2025 Best Practices Conference

2025 Best Practices Conference

The Braided Path: Weaving together Wisdom, Innovation, and Community
July 7-9, 2025
Nashville, TN

Our Why: USET member Tribal Nations have cared for their communities and environments since time immemorial. This wisdom and these invaluable best practices have been passed down through the generations fostering a unique relationship among each other and all living things. This advances a deep connection with the environment, providing holistic health approaches, and cultivates sustainable economic development.

Conference Definition: USET presents an integrated approach to Tribal Sovereignty and Self-determination through the programmatic lens of our Offices of Environmental Resource Management, Economic Development, and Tribal Public Health. This conference hosts learning sessions for Tribal Leadership and staff to engage in a collaborative setting to share knowledge, wisdom, and innovation to enhance our collective strength and impact.

Goals:

  1. To provide collaborative spaces for USET member Tribal Nation Leaders and staff to share knowledge, skills, resources, and fortify relationships.
  2. To promote USET foundational pillars, which support USET member Tribal Nations in strengthening communities of practice.
  3. To provide innovative support service through cross-sectional tracks.
  4. To ensure the health, well-being, and self-determination of present and future generations.

 

Monday, July 7

Strength Through Collaboration in Uncertain Times

This general session brought together USET program directors for a timely and dynamic conversation about the power of collaboration across disciplines, communities, and areas of focus. Just as a braid is strongest when its strands are woven together, our collective work becomes more resilient when we move in alignment. Panelists will share how cross-program collaboration—across health, economic development, and environment—creates innovative solutions and strengthens Tribal Nation rebuilding efforts. In a time of growing complexity, threats to sovereignty, and shifting priorities, this session offers both inspiration and practical wisdom for walking the braided path together.

Weaving the Basket: Revitalizing Culture, Strengthening Programs, Holding Our Future

Giant rivercane is a culturally, environmentally, and ecologically significant species that has faced significant declines across its former range. This session will discuss the identification of rivercane, propagation techniques, Catawba Nation's efforts to restore, transplant, and grow giant rivercane in an effort to provide a sustainable cultural resource for Catawba Nation as well as utilize the plant's natural growth to stabilize banks and help with stream restoration efforts. Revitalizing the cultural uses of rivercane that our ancestors once practiced is one of the directives of our mission statement which is to preserve, promote, protect and maintain the rich cultural heritage of the Catawba Indian Nation.

 

Tuesday, July 8

Sovereignty in Action: Defending Our Rights Through Programmatic Strength

In times when Tribal sovereignty is challenged—through policy rollbacks, jurisdictional disputes, or regulatory overreach—our programs become frontline defenses. This session brings together Tribal leaders, legal advocates, and program administrators for a powerful dialogue on how sovereignty is not only a legal right but a lived, daily practice carried out through economic development, health care, environmental stewardship, and cultural preservation.

Grounded in Policy Panel: How Program Work Shapes Strategy in Uncertain Times
Morning Breakout Sessions
Afternoon Breakout Session
Barter Market

This interactive bartering session placed trade route revitalization into action. Tribal Nations managed vibrant economies with economic ties across the USET region long before the introduction of the cash system. Traditional trade routes laid the groundwork for today’s roads and modern commerce.  Reviving these routes helps build good relationships and economic growth within and between Tribal Nations. When we think beyond cash, the practice of bartering teaches us to value artisans, food producers, and craftspeople for their time and skills, cultural contributions, and expertise - not just the dollar value of their products. Traditional products, often overlooked in capitalist economies due to the time it takes to produce them, are more valuable in our communities because they connect us to our ancestors, each other, and future generations. When we revitalize barter systems, we revitalize relationships and place our values at the center of commerce.

 

Wednesday, July 9

Fireside Chat with Chief Lynn Malerba

This general session chat explored how cultural values, health-centered leadership, and a commitment to public service can shape transformational outcomes in uncertain times. With deep wisdom and unwavering vision, Chief Malerba offered insight and inspiration for all those walking paths of purpose.

In the Language of Our Ancestors: Carrying Home What We've Gathered

Haudenosaunee teachings, spiritual and practical connections to our foods, and creating collaborative pathways to cultivating balanced ecosystems, healthy people, and culturally aligned economies.

Morning Breakout Sessions
Afternoon Breakout Sessions
Roundtable Discussions

Some of the most powerful insights don’t come from panels, they come from stories told around kitchen tables, council fires, and community gatherings. This session invoked that energy by inviting participants into small, intimate groups for guided conversations that build trust, spark curiosity, and celebrate shared experience.