Nia Tero, a national nonprofit organization working in solidarity with Indigenous peoples and movements worldwide, has been supporting efforts to protect Indigenous territories.

It is committed to increasing funds for Indigenous peoples to protect their homelands, share their methods of land stewardship and foster a deeper understanding of Indigenous ways of being among non- Indigenous communities.

According to the organization, Indigenous populations sustain at least 40% of Earth’s remaining intact ecosystems — which has been considered “an essential foundation of a livable planet” — but they are continuously facing existential threats.

Dr. Morgan Wairiu, Islands Knowledge Institute trustee from the Solomon Islands, told the Honolulu Star- Advertiser that the goal is to ensure that “we protect them and have them remain as it is, and elevate them.”

Wairiu said that states formed under colonial frameworks, such as the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, have historically treated Indigenous lands and resources as if they belonged to the state.

He contends that resources such as land and water are owned by tribes under customary ownership, meaning that despite appearances, the state does not actually own any of these resources.

“Actually, what we did was merely act as guests within their own territory,” he said.

Lysa Wini, Nia Tero Solomon Islands coordinator, said the reality is that “the kinds of work that we do in- country and the way that we have been behaving in- country has not really allowed us to be ourselves.

“You still have full control over your land. You still have full control of your children. You still have full control over your ways and practices. The world sees us seem like everybody else — that it’s a state, that it has a government and the state controls everything — but we’re not.”

She said that most of the regions are governed by the people, for the people.

Wini said that younger generations, influenced by education systems that emphasize looking outward, often lose touch with their cultural roots.

“This space for us — it’s about connecting the next generations with previous generations, and reminding me of who I am,” she said.

In 2023 alone, Nia Tero distributed $24.3 million in grants, including multiyear funding, to 128 organizations supporting 271 Indigenous peoples globally — with specific focuses on Amazonia, North America and the Pacific Islands.

Since its establishment in 2017, Nia Tero has distributed $85 million in grants, protecting 128 million hectares of lands and bodies of water, sequestering 24.4 gigatons of carbon. It expects to reach $100 million in distributed grants by the end of this year.

Nia Tero’s primary focus is directly funding Indigenous peoples. Approximately 98% of their grants have been awarded to Indigenous organizations, fiscal sponsors or trusted allies, with the remaining 2% going to organizations that support the work done by Indigenous peoples.

Wini said that while it may seem like customs and culture are falling behind, they remain present within the people.

“It is very much alive, we are living it; when it comes to state spaces, we will act modern, we will speak in the language that makes sense to the world and will not speak from who we really are,” she said.

“The state just needs to be empowered to understand that — not the communities,” she said. “The state is just us. It’s our own people. But because it’s an architecture that’s foreign, people behave within that architecture.”

Gatherings such as the Festival of Pacific Arts &Culture, Wini said, offer a vital space for communities to preserve their traditions and remain intact.

She emphasized the importance of remembering to safeguard heritage, especially in the face of modern capitalism’s push for development.

“Hawaii is an island with a knowledge system, with culture that they have built,” Wini said. “It’s about bringing these knowledge systems together, irrespective of the colonial experience, and acknowledging who we are.”