Native News
NDN Collective Launches LANDBACK Action Network at Start of Earth Week
At the start of Earth Week, NDN Collective announced the launch of the LANDBACK Action Network (LAN), a growing coalition of Indigenous people, Tribal Nations, grassroots groups, and multiracial movement organizations متحد in advancing the global LANDBACK movement and collective liberation for both people and the planet.
Alongside the launch, the organization unveiled landback.org, a new public storytelling platform designed to share insights, opportunities, and calls to action from members of the expanding network.
The announcement comes during Earth Week, which traces its origins to Earth Day in 1970. That first Earth Day emerged in response to unchecked industrial pollution and environmental degradation, ultimately leading to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and landmark legislation such as the Clean Water Act.
For Indigenous communities, however, the principles behind Earth Day are not new.
“But for Indigenous Peoples, every day is Earth Day, and has been for thousands of years,” the organization said in its announcement, while also warning that federal environmental protections have become increasingly fragile.
NDN Collective leaders framed the LANDBACK Action Network as a response to both environmental and political challenges, emphasizing the need for unity and infrastructure to support Indigenous-led solutions.
“We’re launching the LANDBACK Action Network to break the isolation that authoritarianism thrives in by connecting Indigenous people across Turtle Island, Oceania, and beyond,” said Nick Tilsen, founder and CEO of NDN Collective. “The network will catalyze LANDBACK as an expansive theory of liberation that includes building infrastructure for land-based Indigenous practices like food sovereignty, language restoration, cultural and spiritual reconnection, and ecological restoration.”
Nicole Yanes, Membership Manager at NDN Collective, underscored the urgency of collective action.
“These times demand organized, united, expansive movements and formations to advance solutions and shape shared agendas while advancing a just and equitable future,” said Nicole Yanes. “Colonial forces rely on our isolation. But when we come together, we build collective power. That’s the work of the LANDBACK Action Network.”
Since its founding, NDN Collective has built relationships with more than 1,400 Indigenous organizers, organizations, Tribal Nations, and communities engaged in LANDBACK efforts, along with non-Indigenous allies supporting the movement. The new network builds on that foundation, offering a secure platform to connect, mobilize, and resource participants working to return land to Indigenous stewardship.
In addition to strengthening long-term movement building, the LAN is designed to serve as a rapid response resource for communities facing crises such as state violence, climate disasters, or displacement. Organizers say the network will function as both an immediate support system and a vehicle for sustained political power.
The launch signals a renewed push to expand the reach and impact of the LANDBACK movement, positioning it as a central framework for environmental protection, cultural revitalization, and Indigenous sovereignty in the years ahead.