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Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals

Listening to Tribes and understanding Tribal priorities drives our programs and services we offer.

Tribal Wellbeing for Seven Generations Program

Tribal Wellbeing for Seven Generations (TW7G)

Webinars:

2025 Webinars

Please click title below to expand and close Webinar information.

March 19, 2025: Clean Energy Workforce Development

On March 19th, ITEP’s Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Center hosted a webinar titled “Energy Workforce Development” developed for ITEP’s audience. The webinar focused on resources and stories about training and empowering Tribal members with the skills and knowledge necessary to participate in the growing renewable energy sector, including solar, wind, and energy efficiency technologies. Clean energy workforce development supports sustainable economic growth and job creation and advances environmental stewardship, energy independence, and climate resilience. Developing a skilled workforce ensures Tribes can lead and benefit from clean energy projects on their lands. Speakers on this webinar included two representatives from Grid Alternatives who highlighted how renewable energy and workforce development empower Tribal nations to achieve resource sovereignty, providing hands-on training, local control of energy resources, and long-term environmental and economic benefits through sustainable, mission-driven approaches. Additionally, Levi Purdum, the Director of Energize Wind River, spoke about the Energize Wind River project, a community solar project dedicated to hiring from within the community being served. This presentation covered hiring and retention, funding strategies, challenges and solutions faced, and more. Finally, Ezra Wells, from LEMA Indigenous spoke about their technology solutions, training philosophy, and community-based design. The webinar had 215 registrants, with 86 attending and representation from 38 unique Tribes and 19 Tribal Organizations.

Presentations Slides & FAQs:
A Community Solar Project benefiting the Wind River Reservation [pptx]
Building Energy Resilient Tribal Communities Through Workforce Development [pptx]
LEMA Indigenous [pptx]

Webinar Video:
Video

Resources Shared:
Training and Development

Solar Resources

Energy Efficiency & Electrification

Funding

Workforce development for clean energy projects on Tribal lands is one way to foster Tribal sovereignty, economic independence, and environmental sustainability. By empowering Tribal members with the skills and expertise needed to design, implement, and manage clean energy initiatives, Tribes can reduce reliance on external contractors and fossil fuels while creating long-term job opportunities within their communities. These efforts support Tribal self-determination, help mitigate environmental impacts, and generate lasting economic and environmental benefits for current and future generations. Investing in clean energy workforce training also aligns with Tribal values of stewardship and sustainable resource management.

Presentations Slides:
Workforce Development – Navajo Power [pdf]
Red Cloud Renewable [pdf]

Webinar Recording:
Video

This webinar is designed to provide tribal communities with a comprehensive understanding of critical minerals and their importance. Critical minerals, such as lithium, cobalt, and rare earth elements, are used for modern technologies, renewable energy, and national security, but their extraction and use raise environmental, economic, and sovereignty concerns. This session will explore what critical minerals are, why they matter, and how Tribal and Indigenous communities can engage with these issues while protecting their land and resources.

Key Takeaways:

  • Learn what critical minerals are and how they are used in renewable energy technologies.
  • Explore the potential impacts of critical mineral extraction on tribal lands.

Presentations Slides:
What Are “Critical Minerals” and How Are They Used? [pdf]
Critical Mineral Sourcing: Protecting Tribal Interests, Treaty-Reserved Rights, and the Environment [pdf]

Webinar Recording:
Video

This roundtable brings together Tribal and Indigenous leaders, environmental experts, and community advocates to discuss the intersection of clean transportation, air quality, and community health. Transportation is one of the largest contributors to air pollution, which disproportionately affects BIPOC and frontline communities. As Tribes consider adopting electric vehicles (EVs) and other clean transportation technologies, it is essential to center wellness, justice, and data-driven approaches in the transition. This session will explore strategies for reducing transportation-related air pollution, improving health outcomes through clean mobility, and ensuring that EV adoption does not unintentionally burden marginalized communities. Panelists will also discuss tools and approaches for monitoring emissions and evaluating the health impacts of clean transportation projects in Tribal contexts.

Webinar Recording:
Video

What is range anxiety—and why does it matter to Tribes? These are just a few of the questions that will guide our conversation. This discussion-based webinar will feature insights from Tim Clashin (Open Access Technology International), Isaac Kinney (Blue Lake Rancheria), and Peter Chipman (Native Sun Community Power Development), who will share their experiences and perspectives on overcoming challenges related to EV charging infrastructure in tribal communities.

Webinar Recording:
Video

As part of ITEP’s ongoing Critical Minerals webinar series, this session will focus on the growing need for solar panel recycling and how tribal communities can prepare for and benefit from a circular solar economy. With solar power rapidly expanding across Indian Country, questions around end-of-life management for solar panels are becoming increasingly urgent.

Key Topics:

  • What happens to solar panels when they reach the end of their life?
  • What critical minerals are recoverable through solar panel recycling?
  • What are the environmental and economic implications of solar panel recycling for tribal communities?
  • What infrastructure, partnerships, or policies are needed to support recycling in Indian Country?
  • How can tribes avoid environmental harm and reduce the use of critical minerals while participating in the clean energy transition?

Presentations Slides:
Overview of Solar Panel Recycling for Indigenous Communities [pdf]
Exploring the what’s, why’s and how’s of recycling in the solar industry [pptx]

Webinar Recording:
Video

In this month’s Clean Energy Round Table, we invite two speakers to share their experiences bringing electric school buses to their school districts, and their experiences securing financing for schools interested in bringing electric buses to their campuses.

Webinar Recording:
Video

Resources:
Students for Electric School Buses
Drivers Reap the Benefits of Electric School Buses
Electric school bus pilot project: Can battery-powered school buses replace diesel vehicles in Minnesota? [pdf]
Power Planner for Electric School Bus Deployment: Nine Key Steps for School Districts [pdf]
“Why Electric School Buses?” Sample Pitch Deck. Use this customizable sample pitch deck to make the case for electric school buses in your community.
Resource Hub for Electric School Bus Advocates
Talk To an Expert: The Electric School Bus Initiative is offering free support customized to your district, to help you navigate the school bus electrification process.
Electric School Bus Ambassadors
All About Electric School Bus Repowers
Repowering the Transition to Electric in New York and Lowering Total Cost of Ownership

CONNECT WITH US

Nikki Cooley
Co-Director
Nikki.Cooley@nau.edu

Karen Cozzetto
Manager
Karen.Cozzetto@nau.edu

TW7G Team
Advisory Committee
Newsletter
TW7G Calendar
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Please contact us if you would like to contribute to our endowment or for any additional information regarding donations.

Rebecca Stevens

Chair

Coeur d’Alene Tribe – Idaho

Program Manager/Restoration Coordinator
Working with the Tribe since: 2005

Rebecca is the Program Manager for the Tribe’s Natural Resources Department-Hazardous Waste Management Program. She also serves the role as the Restoration Coordinator with the Restoration Partnership. Rebecca has been working on water quality related issues for over 19 years. She represents the Tribe in the Bunker Hill Mining and Metallurgical Complex Superfund Site working with EPA while implementing their remedy for the Basin. She is also the Tribe’s Restoration Coordinator for the Restoration Partnership for which all Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) claims have been settled and on the ground restoration work has been underway since 2019. Rebecca continues to work with other Tribes on NRDA issues while coordinating with the US DOI, USDA, and the State of Idaho.

Rebecca is a proud member of the Tribal Waste and Response Steering Committee where she also serves on the Tribal Superfund Work Group and Advisory Council. Rebecca enjoys x-country skiing in the winter, summertime water sports, Frisbee golf, and spending time with her friends, family, and blue heeler. Rebecca is very honored to work for the Coeur d’Alene Tribe and is proud to be a part of restoring natural resources in the Coeur d’Alene Basin.

Rebecca can be reached by e-mail at rstevens@cdatribe-nsn.gov.

National Tribal Forum on Air Quality

The National Tribal Forum on Air Quality (NTFAQ) aims to support tribal programs by fostering information-sharing and networking opportunities that are focused on building tribal capacity in air quality management. The event’s agenda is driven by tribal input and priorities, with a focus on increasing tribal engagement in air quality initiatives that are relevant to tribal communities across the nation.