Panel Discussion: Fire, Land Stewardship, and Indigenous Conservancy

Presented in conjunction with the Fire Kinship exhibition at the Fowler Museum at UCLA, this panel will bring together Indigenous scholars, fire practitioners, and land trust leaders to explore the role of land conservancy in the broader Land Back movement.

Focusing on fire as both a cultural practice and an ecological tool, the discussion will examine how Indigenous-led conservancies are reclaiming stewardship through legal frameworks that support the return of land and the revitalization of ancestral care practices. Panelists will share case studies, community-led strategies, and the challenges of putting fire back on the ground in landscapes where cultural burns were once suppressed.

Together, we will consider how land trusts and conservancies can be leveraged to return jurisdiction to Indigenous nations, support fire-based stewardship, and foster cultural and ecological renewal.

Charles Sepulveda (Tongva and Acjachemen) is an Assistant Professor at the University of Utah in the Department of Ethnic Studies. He earned his PhD in Ethnic Studies at the University of California, Riverside in 2016. He grew up in California in the San Jacinto Valley, attended community college and graduated with a B.A. in American Studies from UC Santa Cruz. His fields of research and teaching include California Indian History, Ethnic Studies, Indigenous Feminist Studies, and California History. He is currently at work on his first book project tentatively titled, Indigenous Nations v. Junípero Serra: Resisting the Spanish Imaginary.

Elizabeth Paige is a desert naturalist and a member of the Torres Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians, dedicated to cultural preservation and the advancement of Indigenous people working in science and conservation. She is the education and stewardship program manager for the Native American Land Conservancy (NALC).

Michael Madrigal is a member of the Cahuilla Band of Indians and president of the Native American Land Conservancy.

Host or Publisher Fowler Museum at UCLA