Tohono O’odham Nation and BLM Unite to Protect Sacred Lands Through Co-Stewardship

In a significant development for the Tohono O’odham Nation, a co-stewardship agreement has been established with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) concerning federal lands that hold deep cultural and religious significance for the tribe. This partnership aims to enhance conservation and management efforts for ancestral lands vital to the tribe’s heritage.

“This agreement will ensure that the Nation has a voice and an active role in protecting these ancestral lands that are so important to our people,” stated Tohono O’odham Nation Chairman Verlon Jose in a recent announcement.

The Tohono O’odham Nation, a federally recognized tribe situated in southern Arizona, boasts approximately 28,000 members. Their reservation is the second largest in the state, stretching from southwestern Tucson to the U.S.-Mexico border. The co-stewardship specifically covers the Baboquivari and Coyote Mountains, which include the Baboquivari Peak Wilderness and Coyote Mountains Wilderness areas.

During a ceremony on December 23 at the Tohono O’odham Nation Cultural Center and Museum, the agreement was formally signed. “This is something the Nation has wanted for years,” noted BLM Tucson Field Manager Colleen Dingman. She emphasized that the tribe had approached the agency multiple times before this fall’s successful collaboration.

The agreement fosters a new partnership where the BLM and the tribe can share traditional knowledge and expertise to effectively preserve these wilderness areas. Projects occurring within these landscapes will allow for tribal input, addressing potential impacts or concerns from the Tohono O’odham.

Quarterly meetings between the tribe and the BLM are planned to prioritize the area’s management and ensure access to sacred and culturally significant sites. The Baboquivari Mountain Range is especially revered, seen as a sacred dwelling place of I’itoi, the Tohono O’odham creator.

“It has been the work of many years to achieve this agreement, which will benefit tribal members and the public for generations to come,” Chairman Jose expressed. He appreciated the cooperative relationship with the BLM and looks forward to enhancing stewardship efforts in the area.

Historically, when the tribe’s main reservation was established in 1917, only part of the Baboquivari Peak and the surrounding mountains were included. The agreement now covers an additional 2,040 acres on the eastern side of Baboquivari Peak and 5,080 acres in the adjacent Coyote Mountains, with the BLM also managing 2,247 acres of non-wilderness lands in the area.

Dingman confirmed that the co-stewardship agreement does not have an expiration date but requires reevaluation in ten years. If both parties find no need for changes, the partnership will continue uninterrupted.