Land Peace Foundation

06/16/2026

Good work, Vermont!

https://www.facebook.com/share/181ukEBtuh/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Vermont is the first state in the U.S. to ban paraquat, a pesticide that is banned in many other developed countries.

Gov. Phil Scott signed a state bill into law in May that bans the use or sale of paraquat starting Nov. 1.

Studies have linked paraquat to an increased risk of Parkinson’s disease, a neurodegenerative disease that is on the rise. People who apply paraquat are more than twice as likely to develop Parkinson’s.

Nationwide, about 11 to 17 million pounds of paraquat are sprayed annually, according to data from the U.S. Geological Survey.

06/11/2026

This week at the Land Peace Foundation. We had our monthly staff lunch, celebrated a birthday, and made more progress in the garden and on the Arbor.

The plans for our upcoming fellows field trip and the powerful Healing Turtle Island Gathering are well underway, and we’re looking forward to welcoming three guest lecturers in our WLI Lecture Series. Watch for those dates in July and September. There are a lot of beautiful things happening here, with a lot of amazing people.

Looking forward to seeing many of you here next month.

06/09/2026

Good news for our whānau in Waikato.

River Iwi say a landmark Environment Court ruling strengthens efforts to restore the Waikato and Waipā rivers while reaffirming Te Ture Whaimana.

06/04/2026

Arbor update - the strapping is going on and the cedar shingles have arrived. It’s getting close to being done. The ground work beneath it will begin this week, to ensure that everything is ready for the upcoming Healing Turtle Island Ceremony 😍🙏🏽🪶

The rest of the place is in bloom. We are surrounded by beauty and life 🌸🪻🌼

06/04/2026

“The report finds that AI's environmental cost is being systematically mismeasured. Most existing assessments focus on the carbon emissions associated with training large models. Yet every kilowatt-hour of electricity used to train or run an AI system also carries a water footprint, from cooling and power generation, and a land footprint, from energy infrastructure and supply chains. These three footprints do not move in the same direction. Switching from coal to bioenergy, for example, can on average cut the carbon footprint of electricity by 70 per cent, while increasing its water footprint more than thirty-fold and its land footprint a hundred-fold. The report concludes that "low-carbon" is not automatically "low-water" or "low-land” and warns that evaluating AI sustainability through a single metric can hide trade-offs and shift environmental burdens onto regions already facing water or land stress.”

By 2030, AI's water use will match the needs of 1.3 billion people while its power use triples that of 650 million, UN University investigation warns

05/21/2026

These beautiful benches were made by Penobscot woodworker, guide, and cultural teacher, Jason Pardilla. They will be placed in the arbor once it’s completed. We love the Wabanakiyik double curve design in the center, keeping us grounded in place.

05/21/2026

We are just finishing the new deck on the yurt 😍 Next, we will be placing an outdoor shower and composting outhouse. The last picture is the view from the new deck, where you have a beautiful view of the ceremonial arbor and distant hills.

05/20/2026

Things are moving beautifully with the arbor. Things always move in the ways they are meant, at the right time. The crew working on this arbor are all such positive, happy, solution minded people. It has been a true pleasure working with them and having them here on site. We are grateful.

05/19/2026

We are proud to have Jasmine in our Wabanaki Leadership Institute program. She’s an amazing human being and incredibly talented.

We hope you will join us for food, lovingly prepared by Jasmine Tintor and Katahdin Kitchen, at 5pm on June 13th at the Chocolate Church Arts Center!

Jasmine Tintor (she/her) As a Penobscot Nation member, Jasmine Tintor (Jazz) uplifts her community through food, culture, education, and nature. In addition to her work building resilience and food sovereignty, Jazz is co-owner of Katahdin Kitchen, Program Coordinator at Nibezun, and supporter of initiatives like Niweskok and Outdoor Equity Fund Workgroup.

Get your tickets now via the link in the comments!