Updates on the Joint “Urban Native Project”

Posted on November 18, 2015 by rblauvelt

Representatives from the Native American Youth and Family Center (Portland, Oregon), Native American Community Services of Erie and Niagara Counties (Buffalo, New York), Little Earth of United Tribes (Minneapolis, Minnesota), the Chief Seattle Club and the National Urban Indian Family Coalition (NUIFC) (both in Seattle, Washington) met in Denver, Colorado, Oct. 20-21, 2015, to tap into the experience of nonprofit leaders, as part of First Nations Development Institute’s “Strengthening Tribal & Community Institutions” focus area and, specifically, the Urban Native Project.

Through a series of cohort meetings, participants utilize diverse areas of learning, build their professional networks, and gain valuable insights by talking with peers about the ways they have tackled particular challenges at their organizations. These meetings are sponsored by the Comcast Foundation and the Kresge Foundation. The meetings enable leaders to step back from the pressures of their jobs and to look at the big picture, learn new skills, strategize policy or action, leverage opportunities, and reflect on the unique perspectives of their organizations and their programs.

First Nations Senior Program Officer Montoya Whiteman and NUIFC Executive Director Janeen Comenote head up the Urban Native Project, which is a joint effort between First Nations and NUIFC.

Separately, on Nov. 9, 2015, the two organizations announced the newly-selected grantees for the 2015-2016 cycle, which is the third year of the Urban Native Project. Under the effort, First Nations and NUIFC, as partners, are working to build the capacity and effectiveness of American Indian and/or Alaska Native nonprofit organizations by providing project funding, training and technical assistance.

The project is made possible through a grant made to First Nations by The Kresge Foundation. It aims to help organizations that work with some of the estimated 78 percent of American Indians and Alaska Natives who live off reservations or away from tribal villages, and who reflect some of the most disproportionately low social and economic standards in the urban areas in which they reside. Urban Indian organizations are an important support to Native families and individuals, providing cultural linkages as well as a hub for accessing essential human services.

The four projects selected for the 2015-2016 period are:

American Indian Child Resource Center, Oakland, California, $40,000, for the “Positive American Indian Directions” (PAID) program, which is an asset-building and self-sufficiency effort for urban Native youth. The target population is “disconnected” (out-of-school, out-of-work, and not served by any other agency) Native youth living in Oakland and surrounding areas, ages 14-21.
American Indian OIC, Minneapolis, Minnesota, $40,000, for the “Integrated Community Placement Project” that seeks to reduce unemployment for the Native community living in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area by training students for specific occupations such as web designer/developer, computer support specialist, and administrative professional, and providing related apprenticeships in the agency’s own social enterprises.
Hawaiian Community Assets, Inc., Honolulu, Hawaii, $40,000, for the “Building Stability in Housing” project. The goal of the Building Stability in Housing project is to establish an integrated asset-building system within five Native Hawaiian-controlled nonprofit organizations and Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) that will increase access to affordable housing for Native Hawaiians residing in urban trust lands.
Little Earth of United Tribes, Minneapolis, Minnesota, $20,000, for a project to reform its corporate and governance structure in order to better support its mission through asset-based community development. By developing board and governance policies and improving its organizational structure, Little Earth intends to encourage the growth and expansion of the organization in a coordinated and integrated manner.

Watch for Our TV Spots on Comcast/Xfinity in December

Posted on November 18, 2015 by rblauvelt

A scene from one of the PSAs

First Nations Development Institute’s two TV public service advertisements (PSAs) will be running on Comcast NBCUniversal’s Xfinity cable TV service in several market areas between Nov. 30, 2015, and December 27, 2015. The airtime was generously donated by the Comcast Foundation and Comcast NBCUniversal, who have donated production funds and significant airtime to First Nations since 2013. (The Comcast Foundation also has supported other projects of First Nations, most notably providing $150,000 over three years toward First Nations’ Urban Native Project.)

The PSAs will air in 30 Comcast market areas. If you live in one of these areas and subscribe to Comcast/Xfinity, please keep an eye out for our spots:

Albuquerque, NM
Portales/Tucumcari, NM
Atlanta, GA
Baltimore, MD
Boston, MA
Champaign, IL
Chicago, IL
Colorado Springs, CO
Denver, CO
Las Cruces, NM
Eugene, OR
Ft. Myers, FL
Hartford, CT
Houston, TX
Indianapolis, IN
Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN
Monterey-Santa Cruz, CA
Northern New Jersey (NYC area)
Philadelphia, PA
Pittsburgh, PA
Portland, OR
Rockville, MD
San Francisco, CA
Sarasota, FL
Savannah, GA
Seattle, WA
Spokane, WA
Tallahassee, FL
Washington, D.C.
West Palm Beach, FL

First Nations’ PSAs can also be viewed on our website at this link: http://www.firstnations.org/psa/psa.html

Separately, in August 2015, Comcast NBCUniversal featured an article about First Nations in its 2015 Corporate Social Responsibility Report. Here’s a direct link to the story: http://corporate.comcast.com/csr2015/raising-awareness-with-real-stories

Comcast Foundation Donates $2 Million in Airtime

Posted on May 19, 2014 by rblauvelt

A scene from one of the First Nations PSAs, shot at Santo Domingo Pueblo in New Mexico

The Comcast Foundation has donated $2 million in airtime on Comcast’s Xfinity cable TV system to run First Nations’ public service announcements (PSAs) during June and July 2014.

This is the second year that the Comcast Foundation has made a significant contribution of broadcast time for First Nations’ 30-second television spots. During 2013, the foundation and Comcast Corporation donated more than $1.5 million in airtime, which resulted in the airing of First Nations’ announcements more than 113,000 times in 13 market areas around the United States. The Comcast Foundation also donated $20,000 in cash for production of the two TV spots. For 2014, the First Nations spots will run in 30 market areas from coast to coast. The spots can be seen online here: http://www.firstnations.org/psa/psa.html.

“This generous gift of airtime will go a very long way toward building awareness of the critical economic development and asset-building needs of struggling Native American communities, and how First Nations plays a key behind-the-scenes role in that,” said First Nations President Michael E. Roberts. “We are deeply grateful to Comcast for continuing its significant support of our efforts.”

Bill Black, vice president and executive director of the Comcast Foundation, said, “We are excited to partner with First Nations on this important initiative for a second year. At Comcast, we are committed to leveling the playing field so that everyone, regardless of income, has an opportunity to improve their life.”

Recent Grants Give Big Boost to First Nations’ Mission

Posted on March 19, 2014 by rblauvelt

Over the past couple of months, First Nations has received several grants that will go a long way toward fulfilling our mission of strengthening American Indian economies to support healthy Native communities.

In March, we received a $1.2 million grant for a project that aims to build the sustainability and vibrancy of Native American organizations that are specifically targeting Native artists and Native cultural institutions. Under the project, we expect to award between 18 and 55 grants ranging from $500 to $30,000 each over the next three years. The grants will help develop the effectiveness and capacity of reservation-based and select non-reservation-based Native museums, cultural centers, community development financial institutions (CDFIs), nonprofit organizations, tribal programs and Native chambers of commerce that have program initiatives in place to support Native art and Native artists. There also will be additional grants, scholarships and travel stipends awarded for professional development opportunities, conferences and related convenings.

The grant was awarded by the Margaret A. Cargill Foundation of Eden Prairie, Minnesota.

In February, we announced that AARP Foundation granted us $250,000 to expand a project that addresses hunger, nutrition and food security of Native American tribal elders. The new grant expands work that began in 2012 when AARP Foundation provided First Nations with a $187,660 grant to begin the Native American Food Security project.

Under the first grant, First Nations awarded funding to four projects that have been successfully completed and evaluated. They were to the Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma, the Pueblo of Nambe and Santo Domingo Pueblo in New Mexico, and Sipaulovi Development Corporation (Hopi) in Arizona. Under the new grant, First Nations will award funding to additional Native American projects.

Earlier in February, we announced that the Comcast Foundation provided a $50,000 grant to supplement a 2013 grant of $1.1 million from The Kresge Foundation. Together, they are being used to enhance the capacity and effectiveness of American Indian nonprofit organizations located in urban settings, as well as providing training and technical assistance services.

This is just the latest from the Comcast Foundation. Last year the foundation gave First Nations funds to produce television announcements along with more than $1.5 million in donated airtime on the Comcast Xfinity cable TV system. This allowed First Nations to run its public service advertising spots more than 113,000 times on various channels. In turn, these announcements helped build awareness of First Nations and the work we do to address pressing issues in Indian Country.

Production Underway on New Television PSAs

Posted on May 17, 2013 by rblauvelt

On location at the Institute of American Indian Arts, IAIA’s Luke Reed is taped in the campus garden.

Through a generous grant from Comcast and the Comcast Foundation, First Nations will be launching two PSAs (public service announcements) later this year. The television “commercials” will run on Comcast cable TV systems in several markets around the U.S.

In early May 2013, folks from First Nations and its production company, Red 76 Creative in Denver, Colorado, traveled to Santa Fe, New Mexico, to do the on-location videotaping for the PSAs. We are especially grateful to Santo Domingo Pueblo and the Institute of American Indian Arts for helping us secure various locations, along with numerous volunteer tribe members, students, staffers and officials to be our “actors.”

Some of the video footage will be used for two 30-second PSAs, and other footage will be

A scene from one of the Comcast PSAs: Shana Coriz holds seeds at Santo Domingo Pueblo.

used for a short video that First Nations will use on its website, on its social media pages, and on its YouTube channel. We don’t want to give away the “plots” of the PSAs quite yet, but one is tentatively titled “Seed” and one is called “Dream.”

We first announced the grant back in January 2013. The Comcast Foundation provided $20,000 to fund production of the PSAs, plus $1 million worth of airtime from Comcast to broadcast them. The grant was in recognition of Comcast’s commitment to the communities where its customers and employees live and work.

Michael Roberts, president First Nations Development Institute.

At the time, Michael E. Roberts, president of First Nations, said: “There is such an urgent need in American Indian communities for the economic development work that we do, but we can only grow our reach, capacity and successes by building more public awareness and understanding of the issues involved with Native American communities. This grant will be a huge step toward creating that heightened awareness and understanding, plus hopefully attracting more charitable dollars for our efforts.”

Bill Black, vice president and executive director of the Comcast Foundation, said, “First Nations is universally recognized as the longtime leader in economic development in Indian Country, and Comcast is proud to be their partner in this important initiative. Comcast and the Comcast Foundation are committed to helping improve communities nationwide so that everyone, regardless of economic circumstances, has an opportunity to pursue a better life.”

By Randy Blauvelt, First Nations Senior Communications Officer