The Influence of Culture on Asset Building Sarah Hicks Director, National Congress of American Indians Policy Research Center Prepared for the Ford Foundation’s Convening Asset Building: The Perspectives of People of Color October 2, 2005

Overview Culture Kodiak, Alaska Alutiiq culture Facets of Native culture’s impact on asset building Elements of successful Native asset building strategies

Culture “the customs, arts, social institutions, and achievements of a particular nation, people, or other social group” “the attitudes and behavioral characteristics of a particular social group” (The New Oxford American Dictionary, 2001)

Culture “the production and exchange of shared meanings including such things as language, ceremonial life, food, values, kinship structure, etc.” (A. Cavender Wilson, 2004)

Kodiak, Alaska

Alutiiq Culture Our elders Our heritage language Family and the kinship of our ancestors and living relatives Ties to our homeland A subsistence lifestyle, respectful of and sustained by the natural world Traditional arts, skills, and ingenuity

Alutiiq Culture Faith and a spiritual life, from ancestral beliefs to the diverse faiths of today Sharing: we welcome everyone Sense of humor Learning by doing, observing and listening Stewardship of the animals, land, sky and waters

Alutiiq Culture Trust Our people: we are responsible for each other and ourselves Respect for self, others and our environment is inherent in all of these values (Compiled by the Native Educators of the Alutiiq Region, the Alutiiq Elder’s Council, and the Alutiiq Academy)

Impact of Native Culture on Asset Building Generally four core issues: Asset building as private sector strategy vs. underdeveloped reservation economies Sharing and reciprocity vs. savings and accumulation Communal accumulation and use of resources vs. individual accumulation and use Mainstream vs. tribal definition of assets (Hicks et al. 2005)

Impact of Native Culture on Asset Building Definition of assets: includes cultural, political, and institutional assets (First National Development Institute, 2000); does not require appreciation over time History with assets: rich in assets, asset-stripping policies (Henson et al., 2005) Incentives to build and uses of assets: improving community quality of life; better opportunities for next generation

Impact of Native Culture on Asset Building Key elements of successful models: Exercise of tribal self-determination Deliberate and balanced building of assets Community leadership with vision Community support Resources (Hicks et al. 2005)