NURTURING THE ROOTS:
THE COMMUNITY MENTOR PROJECT

Karl Telfer dancing for the mentor program

EVOLUTION OF THE PROJECT

Nurturing the Roots : The Community Mentorship Program

Originating from the vision of a traditional Hawaiian elder, Nurturing the Roots (NTR) began in 1996 as an effort to bring together artists /educators, activists and indigenous leaders from around the globe to share with one another their cultures, stories, arts, and successful teaching strategies with the goal of creating a global network that would train trainers in indigenous knowledge and community revival.

The name Nurturing the Roots was chosen for the program to convey the idea that the roots of any community are its elders, culture, language, art and history.  The ability to transmit this information to a community¹s youth is paramount.  By energizing these roots, we hope to stimulate the growth of ever more beautiful "flowers," helping communities regenerate themselves while giving the roots well-deserved support and reinforcement.  Programs which bring youth and elders together are key components of helping a community to harmonize itself culturally and ecologically.

During the three-year program (one week per year for three years), NTR participants are immersed in the key areas of our curriculum:   Thanksgiving, Traditional Tracking & Survival Skills, Nature Awareness, Peacemaking, Cultural Awareness, The Arts of Life, Personal Development, Community Education, Ceremony and Renewal. Each day follows a traditional learning model offered to us by our mentors from the Iroquois confederacy.

Nurturing the Roots—Participants 1998.

There have been five NTR programs since the first training ('96-¹98): NTR Reunion in 2000 brought new participants from Sweden together with the original group; Panday Buhat in the Philippines (2000); the Alaka¹i Project in Hawai¹i (2002-2004); Nutrindo as Raizes in Brazil (2003- 2005);  and Cottonwood NTR , (now in its third year) based in New Mexico.

Central to our philosophy, symbolized by the 13 plates of the turtle¹s shell, is the idea that no one cultural group "has it all," that everyone was given a piece of the whole and that we must bring the pieces back together to complete the picture of who we are as people.  This is reflected in the cultural composition of our global network which now includes:  Mohawks, Senecas, Miccosukees, Diné, Puyallups, Aztecs and other Native Americans;  Anglos, Chicanos, Hawaiians, Filipinos, Swedes, Chinese, Japanese, Brazilians; and Aboriginal Australians from three southern language groups—the Kaurna, Narranga and Ngarrindjeri.

These programs, when completed, will have graduated over 150 people, many of whom have already gone on to create their own mentorship circles, programs and/or curriculums based in NTR teachings.

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