Fellows with the Native Environmental Sovereignty Project examine emerging Tribal roles in comanaging lands and resources.
Indigenous Creation Law Initiative
The Native Environmental Sovereignty Project in 2025 launched the Indigenous Creation Law Initiative (ICLI). Envisioned by NESP Senior Fellow and former Director of the National Park Service Charles F. "Chuck" Sams III, and co-led by Philip H. Knight Professor of Law Mary Christina Wood, the ICLI is an evolving research and outreach endeavor aimed at leveraging the "original laws" embedded in Tribal creation stories to advance a legal framework that upholds Tribal sovereignty and supports Tribal self-determination over lands and resources located both within and beyond reservations.
Access NESP's Prospectus for the Indigenous Creation Law Initiative.
19th Annual Rennard Strickland Lecture
- 18th Annual Rennard Strickland Lecture, "Fulfilling a Covenant: Stewardship of America's Best Idea," Charles F. "Chuck" Sams III (2024).
- 17th Annual Rennard Strickland Lecture, "Shared Stewardship," Elizabeth Kronk Warner (2023).
- 16th Annual Rennard Strickland Lecture, "The Dark Matter of Indian Law: The Duty of Protection to Indian Tribes," Matthew L.M. Fletcher (2022).
- 15th Annual Rennard Strickland Lecture, "Oil and Gas: An Oklahoma Origin Story," Stacy Leeds (2021).
- 14th Annual Rennard Strickland Lecture, "A Day of Reckoning: Seizing the Sacred Moment to Restore Balance," President Fawn Sharp (2020).
- 13th Annual Rennard Strickland Lecture, "Environmental Justice and Tribal Sovereignty," Mary Kathryn Nagle (2019).
Indigenous Peoples Reception
Visit the following link to read the opening remarks as delivered by 2022-23 Native Environmental Sovereignty Project Fellow Chloe Tesch at the 13th Annual Indigenous People's Reception:
File 2023-ipr-land-acknowledgment-.pdfThese remarks were prepared in collaboration with ENR Program Assistant Madi Prue and with guidance from the Native American Law Student Association and the Many Nations Longhouse. Folks who choose to use these remarks as a land acknowledgment reference should note that, rather than being rigidly formulaic, land acknowledgments require individual work and must evolve according to their unique context.
Recent Presentations
- Howard Arnett and Chuck Sams III, "Treaties, Trust, and Tomorrow: Navigating the Legal Landscape of Native Lands," Oregon Law Perspective Series, University of Oregon School of Law (August 8, 2025).
- Howard Arnett, "Defending Sacred Sites: Apache Stronghold v. United States and the Battle for Oak Flat," Oregon Law Perspectives Series, University of Oregon School of Law (August 16, 2024)
- Howard Arnett, "Retrospective: Indian Law and the 2022-23 SCOTUS," Oregon Law Perspectives Series, University of Oregon School of Law (August 10, 2023).
- Howard Arnett and Elizabeth Hidalgo Reese, "Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta: What the Case Means for Tribal Sovereignty," moderated by Jennifer Reynolds, O'Connell Conference, University of Oregon School of Law (September 30, 2022).
- Howard Arnett and Garrett Epps, "Brackeen v. Haaland: The Supreme Court Takes on the Indian Child Welfare Act," moderated by Jennifer Reynolds, Oregon Law Perspectives Series, University of Oregon School of Law (September 29, 2022).
- Howard Arnett, "McGirt v. Oklahoma: What Does it Mean and What Might Happen Next," moderated by Jennifer Reynolds, Oregon Law Perspectives Series, University of Oregon School of Law (September 2020).
Select Publications
- Maggie Massey (3L Fellow), Alaska Native Allotments and Federal Reserved Water Rights, Environmental and Natural Resources Law Center (June 2019).
- Mary Wood, Charles Woodward, Whitman Koch, and Ambriel Sandone, Tribal Guide to the Legal Landscape of Fossil Fuel Infrastructure Projects, Environmental and Natural Resources Law Center (June 2019).
- Mary Wood, Anna Elza Brady, and Brendan Keenan, Jr., Tribal Tools & Legal Levers for Halting Fossil Fuel Transport & Exports Through the Pacific Northwest, American Indian Law Journal: Vol. 7, Iss. 1, Article 5 (2018).
Faculty
NESP Fellows 2026-2027
Maya Haubrich (2L)
Max McCool (3L)
Megan Shubert (2L)