Wisdom of the Elders, Inc
Wisdom of the Elders, Inc
Join the Willamette Week Give!Guide for a Season of Giving: Support Wisdom of the Elders, Inc. as We Countdown to Year-End Donations!
Supporting an Indigenous-led organization like Wisdom of the Elders, Inc. is a powerful way to champion the preservation and dissemination of traditional ecological knowledge within Indigenous communities.
Join the Willamette Week Give!Guide for a Season of Giving: Support Wisdom of the Elders, Inc. as We Countdown to Year-End Donations!
Supporting an Indigenous-led organization like Wisdom of the Elders, Inc. is a powerful way to champion the preservation and dissemination of traditional ecological knowledge within Indigenous communities.
Our Mission
Wisdom records, preserves, and shares oral history, cultural arts, language concepts, and traditional ecological knowledge of exemplary Native American elders, storytellers, and scientists in collaboration with diverse institutions, agencies, and organizations. Our vision: Native American cultural sustainability, multimedia education, and cultural reconciliation.
Wisdom Newsletter
Harvesting Wisdom: Celebrating 2023 Indigenous Peoples’ Day and the Fall Season
Warm Greetings Friends of Wisdom, As we embrace the vibrant colors of autumn and the changing of seasons in our Fall 2023 newsletter, we also pause to reflect on the significance of Indigenous Peoples' Day. This day serves as a reminder of our commitment to honoring...
Native Wisdom Documentary Film Update
Wisdom’s multimedia team is continuing its work on an educational film shared with the forestry service, and also filming a program that features a variety of Grandmothers stories.
Indigenous Traditional Ecological Knowledge: An Internship program
Wisdom of the Elders, Inc. is pleased to announce the (ITEK Program) Indigenous Traditional Ecological Knowledge. This program is designed for interns and focuses on traditional ecological knowledge passed down from generations.

Wisdom Projects, Community Action, & Events
Read more about what Wisdom of the Elders is doing in the community.
Harvesting Wisdom: Celebrating 2023 Indigenous Peoples’ Day and the Fall Season
Warm Greetings Friends of Wisdom, As we embrace the vibrant colors of autumn and the changing of seasons in our Fall 2023 newsletter, we also pause to reflect on the significance of Indigenous Peoples' Day. This day serves as a reminder of our commitment to honoring...
Celebrating Indigenous Excellence: The 2023 Ecotrust Indigenous Leadership Awards
Wisdom of the Elders, Inc. is thrilled to celebrate the 2023 Indigenous Leadership Awards, a celebration of outstanding Indigenous leaders who have dedicated themselves to the empowerment of their communities and the preservation of their ancestral lands. This year,...
Nurturing Nature and Tradition: Join Us as an Environmental Instructor!
Are you passionate about the environment, Indigenous wisdom, and hands-on teaching? Do you yearn to be part of a team that's dedicated to restoring First Foods and cultivating a harmonious relationship with the Earth? If so, we have an exciting opportunity for you!...
Don Motanic Receives the 2023 Earle R. Wilcox Award
In the heartfelt 2023 Earle R. Wilcox Award Acceptance video, Donald (Don) Motanic, a distinguished figure in the Native American community, and Wisdom of the Elders Board President, radiates humility and gratitude as he receives this prestigious honor. Having served...
Call for Artists & Designers | Paid Logo Design Opportunity
Wisdom of the Elders is looking for the right person to create a new logo that reflects Wisdom’s new mission-driven focus. The right person will lend their expertise to bringing Wisdom a new logo as well as a visual identity. Please submit your artist portfolio,...
Native Gathering Garden Tending Party and Native Plant Giveaway
Join in on the fun with Native Gathering Garden Saturday, April 29th, 10 AM –3 PM 5810 NE 72nd Ave., Portland, OR 97220. Gain experience learning about and giving native plants to the Indigenous community. There will be tools and refreshments provided while supplies...
Notes from Wisdom’s Executive Director
Hello Partners and Colleagues,
I would like to wish you all a very happy Fall season.
We are delighted to see the support and new connections with our shared communities.
Wisdom has been quite busy with gathering and converting our archived footage into digital formats. These will enable us to share all of the stories and footage back to families, tribes, and the greater community.
This has been an exciting process indeed! We will keep you posted as we work towards reinstating our Film Festivals and begin airing some on OPB and through OpenSignal and NPR.
We have had some great ITEK Internships this year. Some of our graduates have been able to move on to jobs while others are to pursue their next endeavors for further training or continuing higher education.
We have hired a graduate from the Internship onto our LLC. Crew! We always are so proud of their accomplishments and are happy to help them to explore more opportunities. They regularly share updates with us, detailing their achievements and outlining the upcoming milestones on their agenda. It’s like a constant flow of progress and ambition, keeping everyone in the loop about what they’ve accomplished and what exciting challenges lie ahead.
Just knowing the trees are being planted, the environment is being made healthier with partner organizations such as all of those connected with Metro and BES as well as the First Foods that are being restored and grown with our partner organizations, such as Zenger Farms.
Please be sure to check out our fundraising efforts! Thank you for being an important part of our family.
My best regards and appreciation,