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The Navajo Nation Council adopts two acts that will help build a green economy.
The Navajo Nation Council adopted the Navajo Nation Green Economy Commission Act of 2009 on July 22, 2009. This commission will offer leadership, secure / invest funding, and coordinate the development of a green economy.
Next, the Council adopted the Navajo Nation Green Economy Fund Act of 2009. The act ensures that the Nation, with the credibility of the commission, can more easily secure available federal dollars offered, for example, through the economic stimulus effort. It also creates a mechanism to create other revenue streams such as proceeds from future utility-scale renewable energy projects.
These successes required major effort over the past year by the Navajo Green Economy Coalition, a mixture of grassroots organizations such as Grand Canyon Trust and the Navajo Nation Speaker’s Office. The Coalition’s hard work was on full display, especially during the week of the Council session. Most mornings started with key representatives and Speaker Lawrence Morgan presenting to agency caucuses; evenings ended with regrouping sessions. A media tent staffed by youth technicians sent reports to national media (and bloggers) and set up interviews. Over 50 Coalition members marched to the Tribal Council chambers on the day the commission was considering the legislation.
When Trust first started working to mitigate the economic impacts brought on by the closure of Peabody’s Black Mesa Mine, we never envisioned such a day would be possible. Projects such as Shonto Renewable Energy Company, Leupp Farms, and the Just Transition effort created a high level of credibility and helped us when the Council debated the legislation.
Initially we played a senior advisory role to the Coalition and Navajo Nation, providing guidance on how the commission would actually work with communities to develop green projects. We are now entering a new phase of this work — helping the Nation implement the legislation.
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