We acknowledge that the Prout Research Institute (PRI) was built upon the ancestral land of the Aniyunwiya, commonly known as the Cherokee. Before European colonization, their towns were established throughout the southeastern United States.
Learn more about the land and its people with the interactive map Native-Land.ca.
They endured profound abuse from early colonizers and later the United State government. The numerous broken treaties, document that the basic rights of the Aniyunwiya were violated and their way of life endangered.
They evolved a culture and language in harmony with all creation, imbued with their notion of The Great Creator and their value that everyone take only what they need.
This has much in common with the Progressive Utilization Theory, Prout, with its focus on humanity’s role in the just and equitable utilization of all resources.
The Prout Research Institute seeks to learn more about and lift-up the history and culture of the Aniyunwiya. We pledge to take steps to begin to rectify harm done, to address their needs and aspirations, and to seek a partnership that is based on love, responsibility, and support.
Action Plan
Dispersal of 5 percent of the Institute’s Excess of Revenues over Expenses to be donated to the Cherokee Preservation Foundation.
Preference to contract with Cherokee businesses for services, wherever possible.
Identifying research, oral history, testimony, and references to the Cherokee on our land.
To develop a resource guide on our website that covers: The history and present state of local, regional, national, and global Land Acknowledgment Statements, an ongoing history of the progress and development of our own LAS, and an archive of relevant documents, publications, and resources.
Recommended Reading Material
Below are links to articles, how-to resources, and actual Land Acknowledgement Statements.
We welcome recommendations of other reading material as well as other comments and suggestions about indigenous land acknowledgement.
Acknowledging Native Land is a Step Against Indigenous Erasure by Mariah Stewart, December 19, 2019, INSIGHT Into Diversity
Buncombe Register of Deeds launches Cherokee Land Acknowledgement website by Scott, November 6, 2021, CHEROKEE ONE FEATHER
How to make Indigenous Peoples Day mean something by Trey Adcock, ᏣᎳᎩᎯ ᎠᏰᎵ, Cherokee Nation, is an associate professor at UNC Asheville, where he serves as director of American Indian & Indigenous Studies. Posted on October 4, 2021, by Xpress Contributor.
Personal Essay: Land Acknowledgments Fall Short in Honoring Indigenous People by Summer Wilkie, January 26, 2021. Reprinted in the CHEROKEE PHOENIX. Summer Wilkie is a Cherokee graduate student at the University of Arkansas. She serves as the student coordinator for native and indigenous people at the U of A’s center for multicultural and diversity education.
- Online Resources
As Long As The Grass Shall Grow A history of Cherokee land cessions and the formation of Buncombe County, Buncombe County Register of Deeds
Decolonize Clemson Land Acknowledgement
Native Governance Center Land Acknowledgement Resources
A Guide to Indigenous Land Acknowledgment
- Land Acknowledgement Statements (and press releases thereof)
Anti-Racist Graduate Worker Collective at UNC-Chapel Hill
Furman University (press release with statement)
North Carolina Botanical Garden
UNC-Asheville’s Cherokee Land Acknowledgement (includes Short and Full Versions)
