At Matriarch Ways, our work is rooted in decolonization, resurgence, and community action. We focus on initiatives that restore balance, uphold Indigenous sovereignty, and ensure the well-being of our people and the land. Each of our initiatives is shaped by the understanding that true success is in alignment with our responsibilities to the earth, our communities, and future generations.

Indigenous Peoples Day Arizona

Indigenous Peoples Day Arizona is more than an event—it’s a movement. Since 2016, we have gathered as a community to honor our resistance and collective strength. Each year, we bring together Indigenous excellence—artists, educators, advocates, and community leaders—for a weekend of connection, learning, and solidarity across Arizona. Through knowledge keepers, musicians, live artists, workshops, food, and community discussions, we honor our ancestors, uphold Indigenous ways of being, and continue the fight to end colonization while ensuring the respect and recognition of Indigeneity.

Environmental Justice

Our land and water defense work is deeply tied to protecting sacred places and ensuring future generations have access to clean water and traditional homelands.

Oak Flat

Oak Flat is sacred to several Indigenous nations, including the Apache, Yavapai, Navajo, and O’otham peoples. We stand in solidarity with those fighting to protect it from destruction. Our efforts have included letter-writing campaigns, direct occupation of Oak Flat, writing articles to raise awareness, and serving as media liaisons to amplify frontline voices.

Ha’Kamwe

Ha’Kamwe, a sacred water source located in Wikieup, holds deep historical, cultural, and ecological significance for the Hualapai people and surrounding Pai nations. Our support has included spreading awareness through community tabling, building relationships with frontline warriors, supporting non-violent direct action, and creating content that highlights its cultural importance while exposing how colonization continues through environmental exploitation and destruction.

Skill-Sharing & Movement Building

Through workshops and public speaking, we provide meaningful ways to engage with decolonization and resurgence. Our work focuses on understanding the impacts of colonization, reclaiming Indigenous knowledge, and building pathways for resurgence that strengthen individuals and communities.

Programming Grounded in Decolonization & Resurgence Work

We offer hands-on support for artists/ organizers/ advocates/ visionaries, we have done workshops on developing soulful life skills as well as items of cultural significance, and we have deepen cultural connections through ceremony. These include sandal-making and craft workshops, Indigenous land-based teachings, decolonization and community empowerment sessions. By providing direct engagement with cultural resurgence, we help individuals reconnect with their identity, traditions, and responsibilities.

Going Full Circle is a Program for those committed to decolonization and resurgence. This program will guide participants through reconnecting with Indigenous knowledge, developing practical skills for self-sufficiency, and redefining success in a way that honors our natural order and responsibilities.

Steps In Prayer is an intergenerational program that creates safe, culturally grounded spaces for Indigenous youth and families to reconnect through traditional practices. Rooted in community healing and cultural resurgence, the program includes activities like regalia making, powwow dance, storytelling, art, and land-based learning that strengthen identity, belonging, and spiritual wellness.