SAT-B11: Weaving Relations: Co-creation for Change Through Healing of Land, People, and Culture

Saturday, October 11, 2025

2:00 PM - 3:15 PM CT

Location: New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, Room R08-R09

1.25 PDH, LA CES/HSW, AICP, NY/HSW, FL

Speaker(s)

José de Jesús Leal, ASLA, PLA (he/him/his)

Principal and Native Nation Building Studio Director
MIG, Inc.
Sacramento, California
Paul Fragua, Affil. ASLA

Native Nation Building Studio Co-Founder, Elder, Architect and Planner
MIG, Inc.
Albuquerque, New Mexico
MC

Melissa Castiano

Native American Affairs Program Manager
National Park Service

Recognizing and restoring Indigenous land rights is key to reconnecting Indigenous people and knowledge to ancestral lands, enhancing ecosystem restoration, strengthening cultural identity, and promoting climate resilience. Co-creating in support of Indigenous sovereignty fosters land-based healing, biodiversity conservation, community empowerment, and advocacy for long-term environmental and social justice.

Learning Outcomes:

Recognize Indigenous leadership’s role in land stewardship and its alignment with ASLA’s equity and climate action plans to promote cultural healing and environmental sustainability.
Explore how integrating Indigenous knowledge into landscape architecture and restoring land rights can drive environmental justice, cultural revitalization, and regenerative design in landscape architecture practices.
Develop strategies for co-creating inclusive, equitable solutions with Indigenous communities, empowering future generations while upholding Indigenous sovereignty and cultural values.
Examine Native-led and non-Native-led projects across various settings to understand how co-creation promotes land protection, cultural preservation, and sustainable, interconnected futures.