Rep. Debra Haaland (D-New Mexico) prepares to testify as secretary of the interior nominee during a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee confirmation hearing in Washington Feb. 24. (Newscom/SplashNews/Pool via CNP/Sarah Silbiger)
Indigenous tribes and environmental faith groups celebrated the confirmation of Deb Haaland as the next secretary of the interior, who was sworn in March 16 as the first Native American to serve in the Cabinet and as custodian of the nation s 500 million acres of public lands.
The U.S. Senate on Monday voted 50-41 in support of Haaland s appointment by President Joe Biden to head the Department of the Interior. The vote fell largely along party lines, with just four Republicans in favor.
“It was significant that you have a Native American woman who will be in a position to really oversee, if you will, those lands that are part of their homeland,” she told pool reporters Monday. “There is clearly that sense of pride, but as important as that is, it is more important that a woman who has achieved this historic position then lives up to it.”
O’Loughlin said she hopes the Biden administration’s Interior Department will take a different approach to tribal consultations than its predecessor, which she said did not do an adequate job of listening to tribal leaders.
Deb Haaland: the single mum who overcame alcoholism and poverty to become the first-ever Native American US cabinet secretary sbs.com.au - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from sbs.com.au Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Why the Usual Suspects Canât Save the Planet
To achieve global climate justice and arrest climate change, small-scale food producers, Indigenous people, and workers must be at the table.
Manish Swarup/AP Photo
A farmer protests near New Delhi, India, March 8, 2021. Thousands of female farmers have held sit-ins and a hunger strike in Indiaâs capital to protest against the countryâs new agricultural laws.
This year heralds a historic momentâone in which we must ensure an equitable and more effective global approach to climate change. Itâs time to review and strengthen past global agreements to use every ecologically sound lever to reverse the climate crisis and achieve climate justice. To that end, we must ensure that every relevant party is at the table, including local small-scale food producers and Indigenous communities that are close to the land. We must understand that transforming how we raise, grow, cultivate, and distribute what we eat is essential