  {"id":35165,"date":"2025-08-20T15:37:16","date_gmt":"2025-08-20T19:37:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/mitchellcenter\/?post_type=tribe_events&#038;p=35165"},"modified":"2025-10-22T08:26:36","modified_gmt":"2025-10-22T12:26:36","slug":"panel-discussion-why-return-land-to-indigenous-nations-without-restriction-discussions-on-wahseht%c9%99k%ca%b7-and-wabanaki-land-trust-partnerships","status":"publish","type":"tribe_events","link":"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/mitchellcenter\/event\/panel-discussion-why-return-land-to-indigenous-nations-without-restriction-discussions-on-wahseht%c9%99k%ca%b7-and-wabanaki-land-trust-partnerships\/","title":{"rendered":"Panel Discussion &#8211; Why return land to Indigenous Nations without restriction? Discussions on W\u00e1hseht\u0259k\u02b7 and Wabanaki-Land Trust Partnerships"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-35171\" src=\"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/mitchellcenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/293\/2025\/08\/Penobscot-River-600x300-1-300x150.jpg\" alt=\"Penobscot River\" width=\"424\" height=\"212\" srcset=\"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/mitchellcenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/293\/2025\/08\/Penobscot-River-600x300-1-300x150.jpg 300w, https:\/\/umaine.edu\/mitchellcenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/293\/2025\/08\/Penobscot-River-600x300-1-105x53.jpg 105w, https:\/\/umaine.edu\/mitchellcenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/293\/2025\/08\/Penobscot-River-600x300-1-317x159.jpg 317w, https:\/\/umaine.edu\/mitchellcenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/293\/2025\/08\/Penobscot-River-600x300-1-423x212.jpg 423w, https:\/\/umaine.edu\/mitchellcenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/293\/2025\/08\/Penobscot-River-600x300-1.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 320px) 85vw, (max-width: 768px) 67vw, (max-width: 1024px) 62vw,424px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/HEK-SO7psSI\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">A recording of this event is available<\/a><\/p>\n<p>This panel discussion will be held virtually via Zoom and in-person at 107 Norman Smith Hall, 91福利, Orono.<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em><strong>Virtual attendance: <\/strong><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/maine.zoom.us\/meeting\/register\/Yi7GtcDPSOSuDtplf-ctGQ\">Complete the registration form<\/a> for Zoom connection information<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 dir=\"ltr\">Co-sponsors:<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/nativeamericanprograms\/wabanaki-center\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Wabanaki Center<\/a><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/nativeamericanprograms\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Native American Programs<\/a><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/cmj.umaine.edu\/\">91福利 Dept. of Communication &amp; Journalism<\/a><\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/umaine.edu\/anthropology\/\">91福利 Dept. of Anthropology<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 dir=\"ltr\">Panelists:<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li dir=\"ltr\">Chuck Loring, Penobscot Nation<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\">Betsy Cook, Maine State Director, Trust for Public Land<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\">Darren Ranco, Chair, Native American Programs, University of Maine<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Land return, rematriation (rebuilding traditional Indigenous stewardship and caretaking practices to ancestral places), and conservation work led by Indigenous peoples intersect with several of the key issues impacting the well-being and cultures of our Indigenous nations. This includes, but is not limited to, issues of environmental and climate justice, food sovereignty, health, and economic justice. As a practice, land returns are being done by land trusts without easements or restrictions, while at the same time scholars have recognized that Indigenous leadership, knowledge, and decision-making in conservation work also represent conservation best practices \u2014 resulting in the most effective ways to conserve lands productively for climate resilience and biodiversity.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Chuck Loring<\/strong> is a citizen of the Penobscot Nation. In his work duties, he provides oversight to the Nation\u2019s natural resources department. His background is in Forestry, and he is a 91福利 alum who graduated in 2012.\u00a0 He has worked for the Nation\u2019s natural resources department in various capacities since then.\u00a0 Though his path has been through forestry, Chuck feels a deep connection to not only the forest, but the animals within it.\u00a0 When he isn\u2019t in the office you can find him on any one of the various Penobscot territories with his daughter doing anything from collecting shed antlers to hunting moose.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Betsy Cook<\/strong> is the Maine State Director for the Trust for Public Land&#8217;s (TPL). She is committed to ensuring all Mainers have equitable access to the outdoors. Betsy joined TPL in 2017 and during her time has worked with communities across the state to create over 25,000 acres of new public lands, parks, and community forests. Previously, Betsy worked with the New England Forestry Foundation, and Triangle Land Conservancy and Duke Forest, both in Durham, North Carolina. Betsy discovered the power of public lands during her summers working in the White Mountain National Forest\u2019s backcountry hut system. Betsy holds a BA from Cornell University and Master of Environmental Management and Master of Forestry from Duke University, where she completed her thesis on community forests. Betsy lives in Portland and enjoys exploring all corners of Maine by cross-country skiing, hiking, and paddling with her spouse, Jesse, their two kids, Nora and Malcolm, and their energetic dog, Banjo.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Darren J. Ranco<\/strong>, a citizen of the Penobscot Nation, is a professor of anthropology, Chair of Native American Programs, and faculty fellow at the Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions at the University of Maine.\u00a0 He has a master of studies in environmental law from Vermont Law School and a doctorate in social anthropology from Harvard University. His research focuses on the ways in which Indigenous Nations resist environmental destruction by using Indigenous science and diplomacies to protect their natural and cultural resources. He has published extensively and teaches classes on Indigenous intellectual property rights, research ethics and methodology, environmental and climate justice, and tribal governance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A recording of this event is available This panel discussion will be held virtually via Zoom and in-person at 107 Norman Smith Hall, 91福利, Orono. 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