Q&A: HECHO Advisory Board Member Rock Ulibarri

The Ulibarri side of my family was one of the original 36 families that settled in Las Vegas, New Mexico and my mother’s side of the family is a mix of Apache and French Canadian (as a result of the cavalry in southern New Mexico). Our ancestry and heritage is assimilated from the Native American community, so we see ourselves as caretakers of the land, not owners. Indigenous DNA runs through us and makes us uninterested in developing or exploiting the land. The land is sacred. The blood from my father’s umbilical cord is soaked into this land and his mother before him and her mother before that.

Guest Blog: A Career Managing Public Lands: Q&A with Raul Morales

Raul Morales, Deputy State Director for Natural Resources, Lands and Planning, Nevada State Office of the Bureau of Land Management discusses Latino engagement when managing public lands, finding a good balance between conservation and development, and working in a federal leadership position.

Blog: How Can the Forest Service Represent More Diverse Perspectives?

On March 3rd in Santa Fe, I sat on a Sustainable Recreation panel for the USDA Forest Service Southwestern Regional Chief’s Review. Sustainable recreation is a concept used to describe managing our public lands so that all Americans can receive the benefits of outdoor recreation today and in the future. It was an interesting panel, intentionally structured to showcase a variety of perspectives of how to maximize existing, but untapped, opportunities, increase diversity, and effectively leverage partnerships.

Camilla SimonApril 29, 2016New Mexico, U.S. Forest Service (USFS), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), JEDIComment

Guest Blog: Hunting, Fishing, and Camping - A Way of Life Supporting Connections to Our Lands and Family

Lupe Huerena and his daughter Alexis Stack discuss growing up hunting, fishing, and camping and how these activities have shaped their relationship, lives, and traditions. They also discuss how these outdoor activities forge a connection between person and land, and how protecting these vital resources for our future generations is paramount to the way we live.

Guest BlogGuest BloggerMarch 24, 2016Arizona, Public Lands, Hunting, Traditional Land Uses, Fishing, Outdoor RecreationComment

Blog: Report Back from the Farmington Methane Hearing

On February 16th, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) held a public hearing in Farmington, NM on their proposal to update regulations to address the wasteful release of natural gas into the atmosphere from oil and gas operations on public and Tribal lands. HECHO Board member Kent Salazar attended the hearing and discusses the diversity of people supporting the rule, from Tribal people, people of faith, elected officials, and enviros. The oil and gas industry made a showing, but their economic arguments were not valid; we must do a better job in the future of informing local officials and industry workers as to the economic benefits of capturing natural gas on public and Tribal lands.

Blog: Meet HECHO's Amazing Advisory Board

Throughout 2015, we interviewed each of our Advisory Board members and posted them on our blog to help our community get to know them. We discussed their upbringings, their experiences in the outdoors, their jobs, and more. Today we’re sharing snippets of their inspiring stories.

Guest BloggerFebruary 17, 2016Advisory Board, Mark Cardenas, Rebecca Chavez-Houck, Moises Denis, Al Martinez, Kent Salazar, Lenore Loroña StuartComment

Action Alert: We need you in Farmington, New Mexico on Tuesday, February 16!

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is proposing to update its regulations to address the wasteful release of natural gas into the atmosphere from oil and gas operations on public and American Indian lands.

There will be a public hearing to weigh in on the proposal in Farmington on Tuesday, February 16th at 1:00 pm. Can we count on you to come?

Oil & GasCamilla SimonFebruary 2, 2016Bureau of Land Management (BLM), New Mexico, Oil and Gas, Pollution, Methane WasteComment

Guest Blog: Living Our Proud Traditions of Camping and Fishing in a Multi-generational Family

Enjoying the outdoors naturally makes you want to conserve these resources so we can all continue enjoying them. And you don’t need to be in northern or rural Arizona to experience that with more and more city parks now including urban fishing and urban lakes. What good way to bring increased awareness of being outdoors and enjoying our natural resources. And for Latinos especially, it is important to keep public lands in public hands since this is where so many rich family traditions were created.

Guest BlogGuest BloggerFebruary 1, 2016Fishing, Traditional Land Uses, Arizona, Outdoor RecreationComment

Blog: The Land and Water Conservation Fund Has Been Reauthorized!

The Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) -- perhaps the most important piece of federal legislation that has been protecting our nation’s land and water for the last 50 years – was reauthorized in December.

Camilla SimonJanuary 28, 2016Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), Public Lands, Latino Conservation AllianceComment

Statement: Interior Department’s Announcement to Review the Federal Coal Program

HECHO has issued the following statement today regarding the Interior Department’s decision to launch a comprehensive review to identify and evaluate potential reforms to the federal coal program.

Press Releases/StatementsCamilla SimonJanuary 15, 2016Statement, Department of Interior (DOI), CoalComment

Guest Blog: Generations-old Hunting Traditions in Colorado

My family has been hunting and fishing and enjoying the great outdoors of the Southwest for generations. They had a garden and ate elk and deer and fish – they were the “farm to table” organic growers before it was cool and trendy. Knowing my grandfather hunted in the same places I have and fished the same waters creates a powerful connection to the land.

Guest BlogGuest BloggerDecember 10, 2015Hunting, Traditional Land Uses, Colorado, Fishing, Public Lands Comments

Q&A: HECHO Advisory Board Member Al Martinez

I grew up in a family that would camp, fish, hunt, and hike, and I thought they were the coolest things we did. We’d camp around San Antonio, Texas and my dad also took us camping in Colorado – we spent a lot of time skiing and fishing there. I remember my dad teaching us how to BBQ fish and how he’d buy watermelons and stick them in sacks in the cold lakes to keep them cool.

Guest BlogGuest BloggerDecember 2, 2015Advisory Board, Al Martinez, NevadaComment

Blog: Looking Back on 2015 and Looking Forward to 2016

In 2015, we've really accomplished a lot! Thank you for being a part of this vital movement. As part of Giving Tuesday, please consider making a donation to support HECHO’s work in 2016 – to keep empowering Latinos and elevating our voices, so we are heard by our leaders.

Blog: Our Chance to Protect the Old Spanish Trail

Making our voices heard in regards to the Moab MLP isn’t just about protecting public lands. It’s about protecting Hispanic heritage. Within the planning area is 43.2 miles of our history – the Old Spanish Trail.

Q&A: HECHO Advisory Board Member Utah Representative Rebecca Chavez-Houck

My dad really ingrained in us kids the importance of stewardship, and this was something I knew was a commitment. You reap from the land and you have to be good stewards for the land. At a young age I was aware of that importance.

Guest BlogGuest BloggerNovember 3, 2015Advisory Board, Rebecca Chavez-Houck, UtahComment

Guest Blog: The Story of Juan Palma - How a Mexican Migrant Boy Became a BLM State Director (Part II)

Many Latino families are working so hard to fulfill those basic necessities, they may not have the time or headspace to consider the land or recreation or connecting with nature. However, in my opinion, spending time with family is also a basic necessity, and public lands are a great venue, as they are open to everyone and they provide a place for families to be together doing activities that are low-cost.

Guest Blog: The Story of Juan Palma - How a Mexican Migrant Boy Became a BLM State Director (Part I)

Only in America could a migrant boy from Mexico picking tomatoes look up toward the snowcapped mountains of the Sierra Nevada, and 30 years later, manage those same magnificent lands.

Guest Blog: Honoring our Heritage. Building our Future. One Man’s Story.

Growing up in Arizona, I was surrounded by family – my four sisters, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins. It was a lot of mouths to feed and back then we didn’t have a lot of money, so we relied on nature for our food (not so different from our ancestors).

Guest BlogGuest BloggerOctober 10, 2015Hispanic Heritage Month, Arizona, Hunting, Fishing, Traditional Land UsesComment

Featured: HECHO in the News

Critical decisions made today will affect Latino heritage for generations...

Q&A: HECHO Advisory Board Member Senator Mo Denis

We need to provide our children with the things that make life worth living, and getting out and participating in the outdoors is very important for that.

Guest BlogGuest BloggerSeptember 30, 2015Advisory Board, Moises Denis, NevadaComment

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