June 25, 2025
Bemidji, MN; Ojibwe Homelands

In the early morning hours of June 22, 2025, a powerful storm came through Bemidji, causing serious damage to our Indigenous Environmental Network (IEN) headquarters and the Teaching Garden that so many of us have poured love, time, and care into over the years.

With hurricane-force winds reaching up to 120 mph and rain coming down in sheets, the storm tore through our community with intensity we haven’t seen in years.  Like many across the area, we were impacted by widespread power outages that disrupted our communications and daily rhythms. Our office building, as well as some of our homes, took a hit, roof damage led to water coming into workspaces, and we’re still assessing the full extent of the impact on our infrastructure, archives, and equipment.

What’s been hardest to see is the damage to our Teaching Garden, a living, breathing space rooted in Indigenous food sovereignty and community learning. Several raised beds were destroyed, structures were knocked down, and heartbreakingly, we lost several of our trees. Trees that had stood with us through seasons of planting, ceremony, and teaching. These weren’t just trees; they were relatives. Their loss is deeply felt.

This space has been a place of healing and reconnection, where youth and elders, families and organizers, could gather to learn, grow, and honor traditional ways of being in relationship with the land. As we take in the damage, we’re also holding deep gratitude that none of our staff or families were physically harmed.

We know that storms, both literal and figurative, are part of the cycles we face. As Indigenous peoples, we carry generations of resilience, adaptation, and collective strength. We will rebuild. We will replant. We will continue this sacred work.

How You Can Support

We’re reaching out to our community, allies, and supporters across Turtle Island: if you’re able, please consider making a donation to support our recovery efforts. Your contribution will help us restore our headquarters, rebuild the garden, and care for the spaces that care for us.

Chi-miigwech (deep thanks) for holding us in your hearts. We are reminded, as always, that we are not alone as we move forward together, in reciprocity, in relation, and in strength.

In solidarity and kinship,
The Indigenous Environmental Network Team