Native Civic Power Initiative
Building Coordinated Civic Infrastructure Across Indian Country
We’re working together to build civic power across Indian Country
The Native Civic Power Initiative (NCPI) brings together a national, Native-led leadership table committed to strengthening civic participation in Indian Country. Our work grows from longstanding community leadership and supports coordination, communications, and shared infrastructure that help Native communities act with clarity and confidence.
Download our overview to learn more about our approach.
Community Care Strengthens Sovereignty and Civic Power
The Native Civic Power Initiative anchors a coordinated set of activities that rebuild stability, strengthen trusted leadership, and deliver the shared tools Native communities seriously need to protect civic participation. Together we are working to:
Increase coordination across Native civic efforts
so leaders and organizations can align strategy, timing, and resources without duplication and fragmentation
Strengthen trust and shared decision-making
among Native legal advocates, organizers, communications leaders, and policy practitioners working across regions
Raise sufficient funding required
to right-size Native civic work for the threats our communities are facing
A National Bench of Native Civic Leaders
Our work is guided by experienced Native strategists, legal experts, organizers, and national communications leaders who have shaped civic participation across Indian Country for decades.
Ahtza Dawn Chavez
(Diné Nation)
Executive Director, Naeva; power-building strategist who helped pass the New Mexico Voting Rights Act.
Jacqueline De León
(Isleta Pueblo)
Leads the Native voting rights practice at the Native American Rights Fund; advancing litigation, advocacy, research to protect Native voters.
Dawn Knickerbocker
(White Earth Nation, Anishinaabe)
Project Director for NCPI. Dawn brings two decades of experience in philanthropy, civic strategy, and Native-led organizing. Operations Director at the Tribal Funding Registry, and co-founder of In Our Ways Strategy Group.
Judith LeBlanc
(Caddo Nation)
Executive Director, Native Organizers Alliance; co-led the largest Native Vote effort in history.
Ronnie Jo Horse
(Oglala Lakota Nation; Northern Cheyenne descendant)
Executive Director, Western Native Voice; statewide leader in Native civic engagement.
Alyssa Macy
(Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs)
Policy strategist advancing Native civic participation and environmental justice. CEO of Washington Conservation Action.
Saundra Mitrovich
(Maidu)
National leader in Native voter education, census, and civic engagement- Co-leader for the national Native Counts Coalition.
Michelle (Macuar) Sparck
(Qissunamiut Tribe of Chevak, Alaska)
Leader in Native voter education and civic participation with the Alaska Federation of Natives. Director of Get Out the Native Vote (GOTNV).
Temryss Lane
(Lummi Nation)
Strategist and storyteller dedicated to Indigenous visibility; Executive Vice President, Pyramid Communications.
Together, this leadership table brings deep experience, regional reach, and shared commitment to coordinated civic infrastructure.
What we are building
We’re building the shared infrastructure Native communities need to participate fully and confidently in civic life. In the months ahead, that work includes:
- A shared communications and narrative platform. Coordinated tools and messaging so Native voices are heard clearly, and in unison, across Indian Country and into mainstream media.
- A civic data resource. A Native-led, public-facing dashboard bringing together census, demographic, and other public data, so communities and partners can plan with accurate, equitable access to information, with CARE Principles for Indigenous Data Governance.
- A field resource hub. Downloadable, ready-to-use templates and tools that partner organizations can put to work right away.
Why this work, Now
In April 2026, the Supreme Court’s ruling in Callais v. Louisiana gutted Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, the core protection against racial discrimination in voting and redistricting. Native voters already face some of the steepest barriers to the ballot in the country. This ruling raises both the stakes and the urgency of coordinated, equitable civic infrastructure across Indian Country. Hear NCPI leaders Jacqueline De León of the Native American Rights Fund and Judith LeBlanc of the Native Organizers Alliance break down what the decision means for Native communities and Tribal Nations, in conversation on Native News Online’s Native Bidaské.
Contact Us
If you are organizing, leading, supporting civic participation, or building infrastructure in Indian Country – please connect with us and tell us about your work.
Take Action
Invest in Native-led civic infrastructure. Your support enables relationship-based coordination, shared strategy, and field-ready tools that strengthen participation across Indian Country.
For Donor-Advised Fund Giving: Recommend a grant to Forward Global (EIN: 98-0592591) and designate it to the Native Civic Power Initiative. Your fund’s platform will recognize Forward Global in its system. We are already receiving DAF support and welcome yours.