Native News

The Native News Project is a new initiative from MPR News.

Stay informed with the latest news about local and national Native American communities, highlighting stories and issues important to Native American communities in Minnesota and beyond.

Our coverage includes cultural events, policy updates, community stories and more to provide a platform for Native voices, perspectives and important news.

The heat is on: Indigenous-led nonprofit seeks to lower heating expenses with solar thermal
Since 2018, an Indigenous nonprofit near the White Earth Nation in northwestern Minnesota has been installing solar thermal panels to cut home heating costs in impoverished communities.
Native-led suicide prevention program focuses on building community strengths
A research group is testing a new suicide prevention model in rural Alaska Native villages: supporting cultural activities that strengthen community bonds and a sense of shared purpose.
Anishinaabe author Ashley Fairbanks invites children to honor ancestral Native land in her new book
Minnesota-born Anishinaabe author Ashley Fairbanks had her first book published on Aug. 27. The book is for children and is titled “This Land.” It invites kids to trace the history of their home and honor the Native people who lived on the land.
It’s a wrap: Fans say ‘Miigwech’ for ‘Star Wars’ in Ojibwe
The newly dubbed film is a collaboration between LucasFilm, the University of Manitoba and the Dakota Ojibway Tribal Council in Manitoba. It first premiered in Canada last month.
Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community provides emergency assistance amid food shortage 
The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community, a tribal nation in Minnesota, is providing emergency assistance to other tribal nations across the state and across the region as food promised to tribes by the federal government arrives late. 
Historical society makes 100 years of Native newspapers available online
The Minnesota Historical Society is archiving hundreds of thousands of newspapers through digital scans. Many of them are newspapers created and owned by Native American Minnesotans.