On September 27th, 2024, we celebrated the completion of a multi-year land transition and the successful rematriation of 232 acres of land to the Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribe. This land transition was the culmination of multiple years of relationship building and process, and is a powerful example of title holders of religious communities (in this case, the Woolman Board, a Quaker organization) facing the harmful legacy of colonialism and moving towards meaningful repair. For more information, check out the press release of the completed land transition.

Somos Tierra is a coalition project in which the North Bay Organizing Project (NBOP) is supporting Campesino communities in Sonoma county with organizing, legal, and advocacy for cooperative land access. A Campesino is a self-proclaimed title typically describing a Latinx small-scale subsistence farmer. This project also bridges Sonoma Ag and Open Space funded by the Vital Lands Initiative (a public program of Sonoma County) to build a bridge of access for these historically underserved communities. This project includes an interim title holding phase to create more spacious time for the region’s Campesino communities to explore and create culturally affirming and cooperative governance. Legal support for this project is provided by the Sustainable Economies Law Center. We are providing multi-year strategic and relationship catalyzing support, with hopeful land acquisition in 2025.

In partnership with Xavion Freedom of Reimagine Real Estate LLC, we provided agency and applied our solidarity and justice approach to this land transition. Movement Generation and Sogorea Te’ Land Trust partnered to rematriate land for Movement Generation’s Justice and Ecology Center. Working in a competitive for sale by owner real estate market, we navigated many unique challenges in service to this inspiring project. We completed the transition in Bay Miwok territory in December of 2022. In collaboration with: Sustainable Economies Law Center

Shelterwood was the catalyst project allowing us to serve this BIPOC land reunion project with the most culturally sensitive, radically decolonizing real estate process we could yet imagine. In Collaboration with Ericka Jennings of Green Key Real Estate, our roles were land transition facilitators, rather than commission based sales agents. We were able to transparently redistribute the real estate commission to benefit Shelterwood. Shelterwood closed escrow on 900 acres in Kashaya Pomo territory in Cazadero, CA in June 2021.

This important land transition happened in the highly politicized context of the Owens Valley where the Payahǖǖnadǖ tribes have faced a long history of land and water theft by the Los Angeles District of Water and Power. After 30 years of advocating for indigenous water and food sovereignty, the Owens Valley Indian Water Commission (OVIWC) has their first opportunity to steward title to a healing oasis called Three Creeks. Working with Mike Godbe, an attorney with California Indian Legal Services, we had the deep honor of supporting all parties in this highly nuanced process involving a discount sale, the formation of a new collective, narrative contract writing, and a short time frame funding campaign. This project closed escrow in February of 2023.

Since November 2021, in tandem with our movement collaborators at the Sustainable Economies Law Center, we have been providing real estate strategy support for the long term project of rematriating the lands of the Winnemem Wintu in the area currently known as Shasta County, CA. This support stands in solidarity with the vision and spiritual leadership of Chief Caleen Sisk, the restoration of the waterways of the salmon, and the lifeways of the Winnemem People. With great reverence and honor, we navigate the current legal fiction of private property in solidarity with the cosmology of the Winnemem Wintu as expressed in an unbroken oral tradition. In Fall 2023, 1170 acres were successfully rematriated to the Winnemem Wintu! Check out the Vox article for more details.

In collaboration with Kitchen Table Advisors, the Center for Ethical Land Transition is providing land transition consulting and facilitation for Kristyn Leach of Second Generation Seeds in their acquisition of farmland with housing in Sonoma County. This land has the first affirmative agricultural easement held by Sonoma Ag and Open Space, therefore providing a learning opportunity in the transition of this easement.

In collaboration with CDER (The Center for Democratic and Environmental Rights), Regenerative Earth, and One Light Global, we are creating a program to support title holders who are committed to dissolving private property rights and utilizing the rights of nature as a legal pathway of restoring culturally appropriate environmental and legal guardianship. This program will use a cohort approach to support title holders and is committed to place specific pathways to reuniting the land with human kin.

SELC

When our clients have attorneys from the Law Center and agency and/or real estate strategy from the Center for Ethical Land Transition, they often say we are their dream team. We love working with the attorneys at SELC as we are deeply values aligned in our approach to providing technical support and thought partnership with our clients. Shelterwood and Winnemem Wintu are among our past and ongoing collaborations.

Xavion Freedom

Xavion and CELT have developed a deep bond forged in vision and action committed to justice through past collaborations . This working friendship has planted seeds that will grow into supporting other real estate agents in finding their path toward repairing land relationships broken by colonization, capitalism and oppression.

Land Justice Futures

Land Justice Futures (formerly Nuns and Nones) is an intergenerational organization that has partnered with religious communities to make long-term decisions about the land they have stewarded for generations. The Land Justice Project seeks to expand available options that protect and regenerate land, while also repairing centuries of racial harm. The Center for Ethical Land Transition has created a unique Cultural Sensitivity Training for Land Transition Training to support this work and Cassandra is also on the Faculty supporting a cohort of Sisters who stewards specific lands and express readiness to transition their land or share access in a meaningful way.