Introduction by Rex Lyons, Haudenosaunee Nationals
We can all see the Earth is heating up, that polar ice and glaciers are melting, and that ever more fires, floods and droughts are screaming at us that our climate is unraveling. Our societies are also showing signs of unraveling. But the legendary, world-renowned Native American Rights leader, Oren R. Lyons, Faithkeeper of the Turtle Clan of the Onondaga Nation, who, among countless achievements, helped establish the UN’s Working Group on Indigenous Populations and authored or co-authored such profoundly influential texts as: Wilderness in Native American Culture and Exiled in the Land of the Free: Democracy, Indian Nations and the U.S. Constitution, is here to tell us that we can’t give up. We have profound responsibilities to coming generations, and time is of the essence, but if we want to reverse course to prevent climate catastrophe and achieve real peace, we will have to dig deep to transform contemporary society’s core values that underlie and drive the existential crises we are facing.
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March 29th | 9:43 am to 10:08 am
Keynote
Member Chief
Onondaga Council of Chiefs and the Grand Council of the Iroquois Confederacy
Oren Lyons, a Faithkeeper of the Turtle Clan who serves as a Member Chief of the Onondaga Council of Chiefs and the Grand Council of the Iroquois Confederacy (i.e. the Haudenosaunee peoples), is an accomplished artist, social and environmental activist, and author; a Professor Emeritus at SUNY Buffalo; a leading voice at the UN Permanent Forum on Human Rights for Indigenous Peoples; and the recipient of many prestigious national and international prizes including The UN NGO World Peace Prize. Oren also serves on the boards of several major nonprofit organizations and social enterprises; is founder and Principal of One Bowl Productions, a purpose driven film and TV production company; and is an All-American Lacrosse Hall of Famer and Honorary Chairman of the Iroquois Nationals Lacrosse Team.
Introduced by
Rex Lyons (Deho Wih Da Dih: “He Gets the Message Through”), Onondaga Nation Citizen, Eel Clan, a former world-class lacrosse player and coach with the Haudenosaunee Nationals and Rochester Knighthawks, currently sits on the board of the Haudenosaunee Nationals. A business consultant and retired tradesman, Rex is also an accomplished vocalist and guitarist and current President of the New York State Blues Festival. His most recent endeavor is co-creating a 501(c)(3) for the Haudenosaunee Nationals Lacrosse Organization.