Newsletter — Our Sacred Earth

Indigenous Climate/Earth and Resistance Matters — August, 2026 (updated weekly)

Dear Community,

Please gather up your courage and curiosity to read and consider some of these different perspectives in each section-- to expand the mind/heart and to learn.

Please see my special Aug. 23 offering through my nonprofit and posted under Resistance Matters.

This monthly newsletter is updated weekly on the Our Sacred Earth website.

Blessings, Bonnie

Indigenous Matters

Editor: Please consider each month, attending an event or learning from an Indigenous offering to counter the intended historical erasure of Indigenous people and their realities.

EVENTS, COURSES

Aug. 5 Wed. 6 pm MT Join NDN for a virtual teach-in on the proposed Dewey-Burdock Uranium Project, covering approximately 10,580 acres across private and federal lands within the Ȟe Sápa (Black Hills) in Custer and Fall River Counties, South Dakota. Register HERE

Aug 16, 23, & 30 Sundays 10 am - Noon MT Building Solidarity with Indigenous Communities, course from Rehuman School. More INFO and to register HERE (pay what you can). Learn to properly approach and respectfully engage with grassroots Indigenous communities in service to life.

"We can de-program the ways we are consciously and unconsciously trained to approach Native Nations in the wrong way (e.g. extractivism, tokenization, romanticization, and co-optation)."

Ed. Comment: Lyla June Johnston is very satisfying to learn from -- she is a good presenter / teacher / with knowledge, warmth and humility. I recommend any of the courses HERE she has offered, which are recorded and can be signed up for and heard afterwards in the "library" which you create for yourself (pay what you can).

‍Indigenous articles, podcasts, films and recordings:

Rick Williams on CO 150th statehood anniversary and Native history-- a must read from july 22 2026 HERE

Excellent coverage of Native history in relation to the Aug. 1 commemoration of CO statehood. "...goes into great depth about why the American Indians are not enthusiastic about celebrating the sesquicentennial and more." See local action you can take next.

Related Action:

ACTION—Boulder County owns 105 acres at Haystack Mountain (5655 Niwot Rd.). This mountain is sacred to many Native tribes. Rick Williams (Lakota & Cheyenne) of People of the Sacred Land said that the tribes would like to have access to this land to establish a Cultural Center there.

It might be possible to follow the model of the Tall Bull Memorial Grounds, an area in Daniels Park reserved for Native Americans to use for ceremonies, powwows, and other activities. This land is owned by Denver Mountain Parks Foundation.

Contact the Boulder County Commissioners, Marta Loachamin, Clair Levy, and Ashley Stolzmann at commissioners@bouldercounty.gov and urge them to grant co-management of Haystack Mountain Open Space to Native Peoples.

Excerpts From Rick's (Williams) Report of May-July 30, 2026

(Includes very detailed historical information about treaties and lands in Denver, found in this report, in the film People of the Sacred Land and in the Truth, Reconciliation and Education Reports of People of the Sacred Land.)

The new information to some, may be these additional comments

First and foremost, the term indigenous is an adjective. It’s not a noun and should only be used with a descriptor noun. For example, Indigenous Lakota. Indigenous is not a legal term and should never be used in a research project. The correct legal term is "American Indians".

The land in Boulder "legally" belongs to only two Native Nations, the Northern Cheyenne and the Northern Arapaho.

Four Arrows on Native views of breaking one's word: from an Indigenous Worldview Precept

The idea of intentionally speaking untruthfully was, by all accounts, unthinkable among pre-contact Indigenous cultures. According to scholarship on the topic, when treaties were first blatantly violated, some tribes did ceremonies to heal the mental illness of those responsible (Cooper, 1998). Surely, this illness was the only way to explain their inability to perceive reality. The words of Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce, aka Hinmatóowyalahtq̓it (Thunder Rolling Down the Mountain), reflect this understanding: “Our fathers gave us many laws which they had learned from their fathers … That we should never be the first to break a bargain. That it was a disgrace to tell a lie. That we should speak only the truth … This I believe, and all my people believe the same” (1879).

In his article “Indigenous Languages as Cures for the Earth,” Tiokasin Ghosthorse (2020) reminds us that Nature does not lie and that we are people of Earth and must act accordingly. He writes, “Conscious languages do not require a logic of believing but rather, a trans-logic of knowing that the Earth does not lie and only speaks the truth with conscious respect for all Beings. It is up to us to learn how to listen as the Earth, who listens to us, [and] has taught the Indigenous peoples.”

(see more in his substack Four Arrows CAT-FAWN Substack <wahinkpe@substack.com> Chapter One: SITTING BULL’S WORDS for a World in Crises )

"Reconciliation: Our Shared Path Towards Healing" by Tipi Raisers --Honest Dialogue, Cultivating True Kinship, Reciprocity . SEE MORE

Film SILA from SAND Sign Up HERE.

See 2 min. trailer HERE from Greenland and the Inuit. “ The word Sila holds everything at once: the weather, the breath, the consciousness connecting all living things. This tender, nonlinear documentary follows Inuit women moving through three hundred years of Danish colonialism, journeys into ceremony, into the shaman’s call home, the heartbeat of the drum,….”

Film showings of PEOPLE OF THE SACRED LAND (info) A film by Dewi Sungai + Jason Houston; Executive producer: Richard Williams, People of the Sacred Land; Field Director: Sarah Ortegon HighWalking website.

Stolen land: What’s often missing from that conversation are rigorous, comprehensive, academically supported Native-led studies proving that through the lens of modern law, large areas of what we call the United States remain illegally occupied. And nowhere in the U.S. is the evidence and culpability more dramatic than in the state of Colorado.

PEOPLE of the SACRED LAND follows Richard Williams (Oglala Lakota, Northern Cheyenne) as he recounts the important history and findings of the Truth, Restoration, and Education Commission (TREC) of Colorado’s TREC reports.

People of the Sacred Land screening dates and info on how to show the film HERE. Includes a screening at the Nederland Community Library on Thurs. Sept. 24 and guided exploration following, 6:30-8 pm.

Further Indigenous Matters:

See Right Relationship Boulder monthly newsletter for more items; now containing International Indigenous news as well as local — I recommend signing up for their monthly newsletter see "Join RRB's newsletter" on right side.

Climate/Earth Matters

Aug 1 and Aug 2 Lammas "The Christian festival of Lammas, celebrated on the first day of August, marks the beginning of the season of cereal harvests. The name comes from an Old English word meaning ‘loaf mass’ ~ a time when loaves baked from the first harvest were brought to church to give thanks and for blessing. In the pre-Christian Celtic tradition, the festival is known as Lughnasadh, one of the ancient cross-quarter festivals in the Wheel of the Year, where the abundance of summer begins to tip toward the quiet descent of autumn.

Rich in symbolism, Lammas/Lughnasadh is a festival both of gratitude and of sacrifice, rooted in the rhythms of the earth and the cycles of life, death, and rebirth. The grain, once verdant and growing, is now cut down to be transformed into bread ~ a death that feeds life." from Lynn Raphael Reed in email news, Sufi Way.

EVENTS:

Aug. 1 Museum of Boulder, 2205 Broadway & Pine --9 am to 5 pm pay as you can day and see Eco-Cycle: 50 Years of Impact (July 10- Sept. 20) INFO

Now through - Sept 20 Sun. ‍ ‍Eco-Cycle: 50 Years of Impact exhibit at Museum of Boulder 2205 Broadway

Founded in 1976 by a small group of Boulder residents armed with little more than determination, retired school buses, and a belief that discarded materials deserved a second life, Eco-Cycle helped spark Colorado’s recycling movement. What began as volunteer-run curbside collections of paper, glass, and aluminum grew into one of the nation’s leading Zero Waste organizations and helped establish Boulder as a model for sustainable community action. More INFO

August 2 Sat 10 am - 2 pm at Nederland Farmers Market, my friend Rachael Gula, Musician who sings for the Earth, plays at the Farmers Market Ride the NB RTD bus up, if you’re down on the prairie, to hear her and enjoy the Market.

VS. GOLIATH is a powerful, award-winning new documentary series following everyday people across the United States (including many allies and leaders from People vs. Fossil Fuels!) as they stand up to the fossil fuel industry and fight for the future of their communities. Each month, screens one episode. Register for the upcoming screenings here.

Aug 4 Tues. 6 - 7:15 pm FILM 2nd of series VS GOLIATH: Appalachia with Q&A with frontline leaders in the film RSVP HERE Note this impressive sponsor list: The VS. GOLIATH screening series is co-sponsored by Fossil Free Media, Sierra Club, Third Act, Union of Concerned Scientists, Center for Biological Diversity, People Vs. Fossil Fuels, 198 Methods, Climate Hawks Vote, Food and Water Watch, 350 Local Groups Network, GreenFaith, Climate First!, Unitarian Universalists for a Just Economic Community, Climate Reality Project Greater New Orleans, and United Women in Faith.

Connecting with Earth: ACTIVITIES

Aug. through Sept. Go beyond seeing Nature as backdrop or beautiful view -- step into intimate relationship and heart communication with tree(s), plants, water, clouds, animals. Meditate, eat your meals, do your yoga or qigong outdoors!
Check out RMERC --consider their retreats at Rocky Mountain Ecodharma Retreat Center and visit their website to see the beautiful land above Jamestown, CO.

Aug 2 Sun. 9 am-12 or 1-4 pm Volunteer at Rocky Mountain Ecodharma Retreat Center near Jamestown -- Hang verbenone treatment pouches on vulnerable ponderosa pine trees to avoid beetle kill. Volunteer Sign UP HERE: Also you can donate HERE to cover cost of pouches: $16 for 2 pouches on 1 tree.

August 2 Sat 10 am - 2 pm at Nederland Farmers Market, my friend Rachael Gula, Musician who sings for the Earth, plays at the Farmers Market Ride the NB RTD bus up, if you’re down on the prairie, to hear her and enjoy the Market.

Aug 2 Sun. 9:30 - 11 am‍ ‍Heart Beat Yoga —Come join in a fun blend of yoga practice, dance, and collaborative movement held outdoors at a private Boulder home. Free. See details at heartbeatyoga.com To reserve your place please reply to louannharlow@gmail.com

Aug 7 Fri ‍ ‍Yoga in the Garden: Yoga Classes: Restorative Yoga: 5:30-6:30 pm

Aug 9 Sun‍ ‍Foundations & Flow Yoga 9:30 - 10:30 am To reserve your place please email louannharlow@gmail.com

Aug 8 Sat. 11 am to 5 pm‍ and BEYOND ‍Anythink NATURE Library, 6811 136th Ave., Thornton (303) 405 3200 Grand Opening Regular hours: 9 a.m. – 8 p.m. Monday to Thursday, and 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday. closed Sundays.

a place where curiosity and care for the natural world take root. Grounded in the Environmental Kinship Model and shaped with insight from Indigenous and Native American leaders on the Anythink Nature Library Advisory Council, this experience-driven space invites visitors of all ages to explore their connection to nature through welcoming environments, hands-on TryIts, and guidance from knowledgeable experts — all within a community hub designed for learning, reflection and discovery.

Please READ MORE (I recommend this because of its inclusion of Native American’s input and focus on Nature:amazing!)

Nature Dance -- monthly dances outdoors in the mountains: contact Laura Rose Nature Dance <laurarose at embodysoulwisdom dot com> for August time.

Aug 1st -30th Check out nature events and hikes with Open Space Mountain Parks‍ ‍HERE

Climate /Earth Matters: Podcasts, articles, films, etc.

Green Roots Podcast has 2 of interest: one an intriguing owl's perspective on our human relationship to Earth's challenges due to us! 16 min. HERE‍ ‍

and followed by a podcast about a winning model for grassroots organizing with eco integrity alliance's Ponderosa Pine perspective. 36 min HERE

"Sacred forests: Where conservation meets the spiritual" by Hattie Doyle Sacred forests, or groves, are areas of ancient woodland protected by indigenous communities because of their cultural connection to the spiritual or divine. Widely credited as one of the oldest forms of land management,...protected by strict social taboos"

What seems clear is that the blanket application of predominantly western conservation practices is not appropriate. from “Finding Our Way Forward,” in When the Forest Breathes: Renewal and Resilience in the Natural World, by Suzanne Simard (Knopf, 2026)

Resistance, Regeneration and Transformation Matters

EVENTS:

Saturdays 11 am to Noon‍ ‍Broadway and Canyon, Boulder -- Join Demonstration with the group newly named First Justice then Peace. Now have a monthly newsletter you can sign up for by emailing Beth <justimagine6699@gmail.com>

Join to call for an end to U.S. wars, U.S. imperialism, a Free Palestine and end to the genocide in Gaza!

Sundays Noon to 1:00 pm 6th Ave. and Main, Downtown Longmont: Join Longmont for Palestine and their Weekly Vigil for Palestine

Aug. 2 Sun. 3-5 pm Free Documentary Screening: The Elements of Mutual Aid, Ch 1 Fire; sponsored by YWCA, BSURJ Justice, and by First United Methodist Church where it will be screened 1421 Spruce St. Participate in the talk-back with the filmmakers and hear from local Mutual aid groups.

Aug 3 Mon 6:00 PM Prophetic Presence: Faith in the Public Square, GreenFaith national training for the week of Covenant for Our Future campaign. Register HERE

The Covenant: A Multi-Faith Call for a Just and Prosperous Future for All see HERE

August 6 Thurs. 11 am -12:30 pm MT AI from a decolonial lens with SAND REGISTER HERE

August 8 Sat. 8:00 AM - 2:00 PM Hiroshima/ Nagasaki Event on Use of Nuclear Weapons

Join us as we gather to commemorate the 81-year anniversary of the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, with an information and action booth near the Boulder Farmers Market. Stop by to learn how to fold your own origami peace cranes, view the new film, "an ordinary insanity", and learn how you can get involved in the fight to shut down nuclear weapons!

Find the gray tent just west of the Boulder Farmers Market, near the corner of Canyon and 13th St.

August 8 Sat.. 6:30- 8 pm 13 Fires, a Stage Play by local playwright Curtis Rogers‍ at Boulder Public Library, 1001 Arapahoe Ave. an original stage play exploring themes of systemic racism, gentrification, displacement, and resilience through the painful and true story of Indiana Avenue, a thriving Black cultural corridor taken under the guise of progress.

Through vivid storytelling and emotionally charged performances, the production honors the legacy of a community uprooted while illuminating the strength and dignity of those who endured. 13 Fires is both a remembrance and a call to reckon with the cost of so-called development. TICKETS HERE

August 6 to 9, Please share the 29 min. film AN ORDINARY INSANITY, where Daniel Ellsberg provides a powerful wakeup call about our continuing to “drift towards unparalleled catastrophe” and proposes how we can move towards a safer world.

“The unleashed power of the atom has changed everything save our modes of thinking and thus we drift toward unparalleled catastrophe.” – ALBERT EINSTEIN, MAY 1946 written just nine months after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945.

Nine nations now collectively possess more than 12,000 nuclear warheads, with Russia and the United States holding nearly 90% of the world’s nuclear stockpile. Over the next decade, the U.S. alone is projected to spend nearly $1 trillion to maintain, modernize and expand its nuclear arsenal.

SHARE THE FILM-- an ordinary insanity -- FREE ACCESS‍ ‍HERE

Commemorating the Hiroshima/Nagaski anniversaries offers an opportune moment to remind policymakers and the world at large that we must “change our modes of thinking” if we are to avoid a nuclear holocaust.

Share with your friends, family and colleagues on social media, by email, in virtual gatherings or house parties. Please also share our Take Action page which includes a form to write your representatives. Another meaningful date for screenings is Saturday, September 26, Nuclear Abolition Day, established by the United Nations.

August 9 Sun. 10 AM- 2 PM Join a solidarity art market fundraiser for humanitarian work and protective presence in the West Bank, Palestine! Secret Garden Studio, 207 W. Emma St., Lafayette

August 23 Sun. 4-6 pm Sacred Ceremony of Dedication of Intention and for participation, the first in a series of 5 events of Experiences for Relationship, this first is outdoors in Nederland, CO. This Ceremony will dedicate the series to be another step towards transforming Colorado's relationship with Native Peoples, their Worldview towards kinship with all life and transforming CO economy's base in Gas & Oil towards an economy that fosters well-being for all life and embracing the Green Faith Covenant for our Future, to counter the Big Bad Bill HR 1 and its impacts. Sponsored by Our Sacred Earth.

If you'd like to participate, please email BonnieSundance at gmail dot com by Aug. 18 for the detailed invitation and put in the subject line Send Sacred Ceremony Invitation please

August 23–30 Green Faith Covenant for Our Future Week of Action (see post 8/3 above) People of faith across the country will come together for the Covenant for Our Future Week of Action a nationwide mobilization calling for climate justice, economic dignity, racial equity, migrant justice, and a democracy that serves everyone.

Whether you're planning a prayer vigil, public witness, community gathering, or creative action, there's a place for you in this movement.

August 28th, Fri 4:00 -7:00 PM Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center Summer Picnic at Scott Carpenter Park, 1505 30th St. Boulder with Climatique, and other community organizations You're invited! Be in community, get some fresh air, eat some good food, tie-dye your own t-shirt, and have fun!

** SAVE DATES September 22-October 15th, every Tuesday and Thursday 5-7 p.m. MT. The Calling In course series with Loretta Ross and team. It reminds us how much we need community spaces to slow down and ask questions of the world around us without judgement, and to learn how to be in deeper and improved relationships with one another.

Editor: I HIGHLY Recommend this course series!

RESISTANCE MATTERS: Articles, films, podcasts and websites:

Recorded webinar: Personal Reparations: A Path to Mutual Healing and Liberation. This excellent and caring webinar offers a chance for settlers to consider how they can better show up, build kinship and commit to responsible action. Work that Reconnects Network webinar — Details and Register HERE.

Article in substack "The Grassroots" From Robert Hubbel

Refering to meetings to get out the vote in CA "Members said that, like all of us, they experience anxiety and fear, but they are willing to take action despite their doubts—which is the very definition of courage. Being in community with like-minded action-oriented fellow citizens helps a lot.

We will win only if we motivate people to show up at the polls and earn votes through hard work—the work I saw this weekend in three meetings in the Bay Area of California.

My in-person meetings with three grassroots groups highlighted an important truth about navigating this difficult time. If you are frightened and anxious because of the political landscape in our country, join a grassroots group. You will be with other people who are anxious and frightened but courageous enough to act despite those feelings."

read details and see protest photos at Robert Hubbell - Today's Edition Newsletter <roberthubbell@substack.com>

The Human Cost of War (from an IMEU email of June 25)

Gaza: 1.027 killed since the beginning of Trump's Gaza plan (Palestinian Ministry of Health); at least 3,201 Israeli violations of Trump's Gaza plan (Gaza Government Media Office);

‍ ‍73,008 killed during Israel's genocide (Palestinian Ministry of Health; Palestine news and info agency— source)

Iran: 3,468 killed (Iran Ministry of Health)

Lebanon: 4,175 killed (Lebanon Ministry of Public Health); 1.1 million displaced (UN)

Israel: 26 killed (Israel Ministry of Health)

US: 13 servicemembers killed (US Military)

Zinn Education Project offers this wonderful Cuban film about their literacy campaign which accomplished Cuba's population becoming literate. A streaming version is available at Vimeo On-Demand. HERE

ACTIONS

August: petition Boulder Schools: Yes to Fighting Antisemitism, No to the ADL . "BVSD can and should tackle antisemitism together with multiple forms of discrimination, exclusion, and inequality. ....without the ADL’s political influence and without the use of the IHRA definition of antisemitism." see petition and background on the issue with resources and citations. HERE

for Venezuelan Children:

Please consider donating for children affected by the Venezuelan earthquakes: this from my trusted Meditation and Nature Practice Guide, Natasha Deganello, who is from Venezuela:

"...my friend Orestes prepares for the arrival of the children who have been separated from their families as a result of the earthquakes. He is so well prepared. I have worked with him and supported his organization for 30+ years. He is family. And he has consistently offered safe haven to vulnerable children.

The scale is staggering. The opportunity is before us. If you are called, I invite you to help the children of my country, Venezuela." Donate HERE.

From Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice newsletter: on local weapons manufacturers

"Colorado has“defense” and “security” companies that recruit our best and brightest minds into their economy of mass death. Companies like Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Northrop Grumman, and BAE develop the technology used to surveil our neighbors, murder children abroad, and facilitate the ongoing genocides in Gaza, Yemen, and Sudan. And they all have a presence here in Colorado.

BAE Systems, based at 1600 Commerce St., Boulder, has built the bombs used to decimate Yemen, Gaza, and recently, the Shajareh Tayyebeh Elementary School in Minab, Iran, killing 155 people including 120 schoolchildren.

Let’s make our cities, our county, and the world safer by getting weapons manufacturers OUT of our communities, OUT of Boulder, and OUT of Colorado!

Grand Bargain Project -- I do list it here as an effort worth knowing about. It has 7 good main ideas below and may move people and Congress but we humans and these 39 reforms may not be addressing deeper causes nor the worldview beneath the issues and suggested fixes. More HERE, and the 7 areas: Let's Create an America That Meets These Aspirations

Greater economic opportunity & growth

Schools that enable kids to reach their potential

Effective & affordable healthcare

Curbing the national debt

Dependable, clean, affordable energy

A fairer, simpler tax code

Congress actually tackling our problems

REPEAT from July, in case you missed:

Caitlin Johnstone's post "Why I hold out hope for humanity" June 30

I hold out hope because all our problems are ours to solve, and we can solve both our inner and our outer problems in the same way: by getting real with ourselves about what is true and what is fear.

I hold out hope because we live in wildly unprecedented times, and in unprecedented times, hopelessness is an irrational position — because nobody knows what’s going to happen.

I hold out hope because, from where I’m sitting, it truly looks like the only sensible way to be. More HERE.

And if you missed these last month, again here are:

WATER retention practices --much needed this year. : Permaculturist ZIA Parker shares here is the 6 min. video on the value of this method. Her work was given a recognition award from the national Department of the Environment, in Ecuador. The 18 min. VIDEO of success stories.

WATER saving measures: whenever you run the hot water tap and cold water comes out first, instead of letting it down the drain, SAVE IT in QUART JARS for reuse to wash vegetables, fruit, and water plants indoors and out.

Watch the Film Save the Farm, Save the Future, excellent documentary on agrivoltaics from Free Range Films in Longmont on youtube. and visit the Colorado Agrivoltaic Learning Center -- tours of agrivoltaic research site, Jack’s Solar Garden in spring, summer, and fall in Longmont

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“Our greatest responsibility is to be good ancestors.”

-Jonas Salk

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From Oxfam, there are : “Five reasons for hope in the climate crisis” article

“Dr. Jane Goodall on the magnificence of Planet Earth” video 3 min. One Home.

From Artemis II Moon Mission crew via USA Today article ‍ ‍A crew, she said, "is willing to sacrifice, gives grace … (and) holds (each other) accountable. The crew has the same cares and the same needs. ....there's one new thing I know and that is [with] Planet Earth, you are a crew." Christina Koch

editor: WE ARE ALL CREW on PLANET EARTH — May we become so!

May all of these efforts protect the Earth and all Life in every way in every place on behalf of a Greater Good.

Thanks for reading and taking actions, Bonnie

Indigenous Matters | Climate/Earth Matters | Resistance Matters