Mishtaadim- Anishinaabe Youth Horse Farming and Community programs

View the project final report

Commodities

Practices

• Education and Training: mentoring, youth education
• Energy: Horse-powered farming

1. What We Taught Youth About Sustainable Agriculture: We have five Indigenous and organic farms in the Crow Wing and White Earth reservation area which provide food to our villages, our cultural events, ceremonies, and markets. This project deepened the work on these farms with horses. We face intensifying climate-related food system disruptions, regulatory instability affecting farm labor and environmental protections, and global conflicts impacting fertilizer access. These challenges pose serious risks to our communities. In response, we are advancing solutions rooted in food sovereignty, including pre- and post-petroleum agricultural systems, electrification, solar-powered equipment, and increased use of horse-powered farming. 
2. Educational approach used and learning outcomes: Youth ages 16–19 participated in horse training, cultural education, and equine-assisted learning certification programs. Youth are now helping grow food for our community using horse-powered farming. We call this the "Green Riders Program."
3. Succinct statement of conclusions: Our youth horsemanship program, the Green Riders Program, integrated our youth horse programs with our farming programs through training in fish emulsion, manure spreading, various small and larger scale cultivating equipment, and seasoned farmers, including Amish farmers as neighbors.  We understand that the carbon footprint of our horse farming is benevolent. FAll-Report-AAI.pages
4. Youth, educator, parent adoption: Anishinaabe Agriculture Institute has been working with a set of young horse people for four years now. Our goal has been to teach horse work in the field and in the forests.  During this time, we’ve developed both horse teams and people teams, and we are successfully growing crops with horse-power.

l. Increase horse farming activities to five acres in 2024, on these farms. 

2. Increase the youth farming experience of 8 youth, lead horse people, with training by Kara and others by 8 sessions on fields, with additional emerging youth horse riders, learning from this experience and understanding that horse power with horses is a viable farming system. 

3. Produce food using these methods for our village, delivered by horse and wagon.

4. Develop a video and set of media on this amazing work to share in social media and with youth programs in tribal communities in our region.