WATCH: Our Panel With Indigenous Athletes and Activists

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The discussion will include Verna Volker, Dinée Dorame, Guarina Lopez, Jordan Marie Daniel and Dustin Martin. We dissected and discussed harms caused by erasing the Indigenous foundations of trail running, and highlight the many ways that Indigenous athletes have changed and continue to lead the sport.

Indigenous Peoples are still here. And thriving. See our resource list below, from our contributors, for further steps and education on how to amplify and uplift Indigenous leaders in sport.

Our Contributors & Resources

Dustin Quinn

See Dustin Quinn’s presentation on Native Running History.

Verna Volker

You can follow Verna Volker (Native Women Running) here on Instagram.

Follow NWR’s “Run the Land’ virtual run in honor Native American Month. https://runsignup.com/Race/MN/IndigenousLands/runthelandvirtual
Native Women Running Gives Back to Chizh for Cheii (Navajo for firewood  for grandpa) https://gofund.me/04eb93a4
Our Native Women Running store – money benefits our Native women so they can have financial access to race registrations. www.nativewomenrunning.com

Jordan Daniel

1. Rising Hearts x NIWRC: Carrying Our Medicine virtual 5k, 10k, Half Marathon 11/15-11/30 (last day to register 11/30).
2. Rising Hearts 2nd Annual Truthsgiving 4 Miler, with ReNew Earth Running, donating towards the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe and NDN Collective – Land Back Initiative. Last day to register: 11/28.
3. Run To Be Visible short film x Patagonia (Co-directed by Jordan Marie Daniel x Devin Whetstone, featuring Dr. Lydia Jennings)
4. Learn about our Running with Purpose Collective and meet our 30 Athlete Advocates intersecting their love of running and movement with advocacy.
5. Are you a race director / organizer? Want to implement land acknowledgements at your event and support Indigenous communities and runners? Contact us about our Running on Native Lands Initiative, see who we have worked with, become a partner and help us transform the running and outdoor industry to be more safe, inclusive and supportive for Native runners, walkers and hikers. And learn more here: https://www.runnersworld.com/runners-stories/a35430508/running-on-native-lands-initiative/.
8. Want to prioritize self-care and learn from diverse wellness advocates and voices? Join Indigenous Wellness through Movement for virtual, donation based wellness classes and workshops as we try to support community and make wellness more accessible and visible for Indigenous and POC teachers and voices, and allies. All are welcome!
9. Learn more about the epidemic of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, Two Spirits and Relatives, and Indigenous relatives stolen and forced into boarding and residential schools across North America – visit www.risinghearts.org/nomorestolenrelatives and stay up to date on resources, history of erasure, upcoming events, books, podcasts to listen to and more!
10. Podcasts to listen to where I talked about running with purpose and in prayermmiw x erasureOrange Shirt day and Advocacy & Self-Care!

Dinée Dorame

You can hear all our panelists on the Grounded podcast: Verna, Jordan, Dustin and Guarina.

Guarina Lopez

Podcast recommendations: Red Nation Podcast and Media Indigena Podcast
Books: Custer Died for Your Sins, Vine Deloria and
Native American DNA: Tribal Belonging and the False Promise of Genetic Science, Kim Tallbear
Find Guarina on Instagram:
Podcasts featured on:
Upcoming projects:
– Publication with Smithsonian Natural History Museum featuring my ‘Call Me By My Name’ project.
– Planning 2 more protest/awareness rides
– Making time to make art (paintings, murals, multimedia)

Trail Runner’s Next Steps

  • Improved coverage of and by Indigenous trail runners
  • Our masthead now includes a land acknowledgment, and we have formed a partnership with the Aspen Indigenous Foundation to support the work of local athletes and leaders in our community. We are visitors on Ute land.
  • All TR staff are part of Outside Inc’s DEI Committee and have committed to continued DEI training
  • Encouraging contributors to do training in trauma-informed reporting
  • Increased pay for contributors
  • Investing in sensitivity editing
  • Continuing partnership with Rising Hearts to produce and promote a year-long series of panels on various topics

Want to Know What It Takes to Finish at Western States? Just Ask Hellah Sidibe.

Find out what happened when this six-year run streaker and HOKA Global Athlete Ambassador took on an iconic ultramarathon in California's Sierra Nevada