Ponca bands reunite on ancestral land for Four Winds convening

The Fourth Convening of the Four Winds brought together Ponca bands in Niobrara, Nebraska, from May 16-18, making it the first time it was held outside Oklahoma, according to ICT. Co-hosted by the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska, the Ponca PaThaTa and Movement Rights, the gathering focused on tribal sovereignty, rights of nature and environmental justice. Participants traveled from across Turtle Island to take part in prayer, ceremony and community planning at the Old Ponca Agency Grounds.

Organizers emphasized intergenerational activism and the importance of reconnecting with traditional knowledge. Conference attendees held a water ceremony and planted sacred Ponca corn on ancestral land, continuing a tradition reestablished in Nebraska in 2024. The coalition also released a statement supporting a July advisory opinion from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights that links climate change to human rights obligations, according to ICT.