Iroquois Nationals Lacrosse: A Game for Life
We are creating an Iroquois Lacrosse Curriculum that will confer lessons in life for Iroquois and other indigenous youth across the world.
About You
Location
Project Street Address
Project City
Project Province/State
Project Postal/Zip Code
Project Country
Your idea
Sport
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Year the initative began (yyyy)
2007
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Project URL (include HTTP://)
Positioning of your initiative on the mosaic diagram:
Which of these barriers is the primary focus of your work?
Sport is trivialized
Which of the principles is the primary focus of your work?
Social cohesion
If you believe some other barrier or principle should be included in the mosaic, please describe it and how it would affect the positioning of your initiative in the mosaic:
In principle, Iroquois (or Haudenosaunee) Lacrosse is a medicine game given to us by the Creator. It is a blueprint for life. It is encoded with our cultural DNA. It provides collective healing, guidance, life force and direction.
Name Your Project
Iroquois Nationals Lacrosse: A Game for Life
Describe Your Idea
We are creating an Iroquois Lacrosse Curriculum that will confer lessons in life for Iroquois and other indigenous youth across the world.
Innovation
What is your signature innovation, your new idea, in one sentence?
We are creating an Iroquois Lacrosse Curriculum that will confer lessons in life for Iroquois and other indigenous youth across the world.
Describe your innovation. What makes your idea unique and different than others doing work in the field?
The Iroquois Game of Lacrosse is sacred. It teaches about respect, community, culture, team before self, and the importance of putting our minds together as one to give thanks. These lessons, learned through preparing for, playing and watching this sport, protect and strengthen the individual, family, community, and all of nature.
The Iroquois were the originators of the game of Lacrosse. We also are a sovereign Indian nation within the United States. Since date, we have fielded a Iroquois Nationals Lacrosse Team that plays on an international level. Our top Iroquois Nationals players are now teamed with elders in our community to create this curriculum.
The finished curriculum will be used in one-of-a-kind lacrosse camps that support sport for social change for youth in our communities, and ultimately extend to other Native and non-Native communities throughout North America. We believe the inherent values conferred through learning our game will help to heal the earth.
What are the existing barriers, the biggest problem, your innovation is hoping to address/change?
Through 500 years of intense oppression by the dominant society, Native communities have suffered cultural, social, economic and physical upheaval. Our ability to hold on to our values and sacred connection to Earth and the Creation is damaged. Our Native children and families now suffer high rates of substance abuse, low educational achievement, poverty, and hopelessness about the future. Lacrosse provides a pathway to reconnecting to our value system and healing our peoples and planet.
Delivery Model: How do you implement your innovation and apply it to the challenge/problem you are addressing?
Our Iroquois Nationals Lacrosse Curriculum will be implemented at first through five-day overnight camps. The curriculum will have four primary teaching components: heritage, skills and drills, team concepts, and wellness/healthy lifestyles. Each compenent will confer the following values: Respect, Culture, Community, Team before Self, and Peformance Principles. The ovenight camp will blend rigorous field-based learning of the game of lacrosse with workshops where metaphors from the sport teach leadership, service and the importance of education. In addition, there will be activities with our elders to confer important lessons about our history, heritage and culture. The camps will create an indelible life-changing experience for youngsters, which will be reinforced as they play Lacrosse in the future. After camp, camp participants will be given access to a web-based Lacrosse community for sharing and receiving messages from other campers, Iroquois Nationals players and elders.
How do you plan to grow your innovation?
The curriculum will be created in modules that can be used in various camp formats (1-day, 3-days, 1-week, 2 weeks) as well as through semester-long school based programs or through community-based afterschool programs. Branding this camp with the Iroquois Nationals identify will help raise awareness and promote it among Native and non-Native communities across the country. We have also partnered with Johns Hopkins Center for American Indian Health, who works with tribes across the country. They will assist in facilitiating connections and are willing to partner in offering the curriculum through their existing Native Vision sports and lifeskills initiative. We will also incorporate a train-the-trainers component that will prepare our best participants to become coaches in future clinics. Finally, Iroquois Nationals sports apparel, designed in partnership with Nike, Inc. will be marketed via the camps, and revenues can help support future expansion.
Impact
Provide one sentence describing your impact/intended impact.
We will create healthier Native children and communities, and as we grow stronger, sharing our lessons through Lacrosse will create a healthier world
What impact has your innovation had to date/or what is your intended impact? Exactly who are the beneficiaries?
Our innovation is currently generating social cohesion and community empowerment as our Haudenosaunee Lacrosse players, elders and grassroots community leaders are gathering to engage in curriculum production.
Our beneficiaries are first our Haudenosaunee six nations youth, including 10-19 year olds from the (include the tribal names) tribes. Second, we will reach out to our Native youth in North America. Third, we will serve youth from other disenfranchised communities from North American and across the world.
We expect our innovation will help youth who receive the curriculum to chart a healthy, productive future for themselves and our communities. As we grow stronger through our youth and leadership, our values of respect for people, nature and the planet will impact the world.
How many people have you served directly?
Our curriculum will be launched in spring 2008.
How many people have you served indirectly?
Indirectly, we are currently generating hope and inspiration among the six Iroquois Nations participating in this effort. This momentum is critical at a time when are communities believe we have a short time ahead to reverse the damages our culture, communities and beliefs have suffered over the past 500 years.
Please list any other measures reflective of the impact of your innovation?
N/A
What are the main barriers to creating or achieving your impact?
We do not perceive any barriers at this point in town.
This Entry is about (Issues)
Sustainability
How is your initiative financed (or how do you expect your initiative will be financed)?
The creation of our curriculum is being supported by consultants from Johns Hopkins Center for American Indian Health. Up to $25,000 in funds are supporting community consultants who are participating in the development of the curriculuar content. A moderate revenue stream and in-kind support is coming from the Iroquois Nationals team.
If known, provide information on your finances and organization.
This initiative is being run by a volunteer staff. We have one part-time project director who is being paid on a stipend basis. The total annual budget for the Iroquois Nationals is $200,000. The total budget for this project will be $25,000 to $50,000.
What is the potential demand for your innovation?
There are 15,000 youth from the six Iroquois Nations who could be served by this effort. In addition, there are approximately 1 million Native youth in the age range 10-19 across North America who could benefit from this curriculum. Finally, this curriculum will ultimately have relevance to hundreds of thousands of youth across the world.
What are the main barriers to financial sustainability?
We may face competition from other corporate-sponsored U.S. Lacrosse clinic and camp initiatives, as Lacrosse is one of the fastest growing sports in North America. However, we will offer a truly unique experience, as youth can learn from the originators of the game and understand lacrosse as a path to life skills, personal and community development, social coheion, and respect for Nature and the planet.
The Story
What is the origin of this innovation? Tell us your story.
The Iroquois people are the originators of the game of Lacrosse, which dates back to more than 1000 years ago. We have played Lacrosse internationally since the 1800s. As the result of racial oppression, we were barred from playing our own game internationally, until the 1990s, when we officially reentered international competition with recognition as a separate nation by the International Lacrosse Federation.
We remain the spiritial grandfathers of the game, the keeper of the Creator's gift of Lacrosse to humankind. As our nations seek solutions to the increasing social ills and mainstream pressures that threaten our youth, we see the renaissance of Lacrosse as a path back to the traditions and spiritual connections that make us strong. This year the idea of formalizing the rich and life-generating lessons of Haudenosaunee Lacrosse into a published curriculum evolved from meetings with elders and community leaders. It is the right idea and the right time.
Please provide a personal bio. Note this may be used in Changemakers marketing material.
Neal Powless is a member of the Onondaga Tribal Nation, Eel Clan. Born Oct 27, 1974, he is a member of the Iroquois Nationals lacrosse team, and has competed in World Championship tournament play since 1994. He was nominated to the ALL-World team in 2002 in Perth, Australia and member of the silver medal team that competed in the 2003 Indoor World Championships. He is currently Career Counselor/Native Program Academic Coordinator and completing a Masters degree at Syracuse University.
How did you hear about this contest and what is your main incentive to participate? (this is confidential)
We were sent an email about the contest. We are excited to share our innovation with others working in the field. We would also use the funds from winning the contest to assist with paying travel, audiotaping and videotaping of our cultural consultants.
Affiliation (please list all that apply)
Iroquois Nationals
Haudenosaunee Confederacy
International Lacrosse Federation
Nike Sport for Social Change program
BRINE Lacrosse
Johns Hopkins Center for American Indian Health
Native Vision Program
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Comments
Neal,
As you know, I am a HUGE supporter of this project. I would love to know more about what your "blue sky" vision for this project would be, i.e. where do you want to see this project in 5 years and what resources, both in terms of human resources, partnerships, knowledge, etc. would you need to realize this vision?
Also, what do you see as the main challenges or risks to successfully completing your vision.
Thanks and GOOD LUCK!
All the best from Amsterdam!
Ziba
Oddly enough, I think the biggest challenge for us is financial. We have always been a volunteer based organization that’s structured very similar to our own government. All of the people involved are so busy, so successful professionally, and so dedicated to the sport and the teams’ development, which has made things difficult at times to really generate the financial backing we needed, yet we have always found a way. I think that now with corporate involvement, marketing and the desire to be more self sustaining as opposed to spending much of our time fundraising creates a bigger need for MORE quality individuals within or communities to step up and play a bigger role. As an organization we have began to research a business model and evaluate its development, while keeping our own ways of thinking and heritage intact. Five years is a tough prediction, but # 1 in the World Rankings would be a good start, and I believe we have the talent to do it.
Hi Neal,
I have another question for you: have you thought of existing camps, even those that you may think of as competitors as a potential "client" for your curriculum? I would imagine that the curriculum could be structured in a modular format so you could deliver the heritage component at other pure lacrosse camps and perhaps use this as a source of revenue to fund the lacrosse camps targeting communities that have fewer resources to pay for camps/ clinics?
Best,
Ziba
I don’t see why not. Many of the Natives from our communities that have played college lacrosse work college camps or have in the past. Most recently, the Onondaga Nation hosted a day camp teaching the fundamentals of indoor lacrosse, for the youth program. That program is an indoor league, so many current and former Native indoor professional players worked that camp. The turnout was outstanding for the first year, and a good contingent of the players involved we non-native players. The organizer of that camp, and many of the coaches involved in that camp are also integral parts of this project as well. So I guess the answer is no, I don’t see any reason why we couldn’t “outsource” our unique perspective on lacrosse as descendants of the game itself. Lacrosse is about community, it always has been, and I would hate to see that value change, no matter how popular the game gets. It really comes down to contacts, marketing and the desire of the young players to want to learn about the unique origins of this game. Many players refer to the “fraternity” that is lacrosse, and it is true. During the game we are opponents, respectful of each others gifts and afterwards we are brothers just enjoying the community of lacrosse, and the atmosphere that was the result of the excitement of the game.
Great work! Are there any efforts on your part to incorporate Iroquois Lacrosse into more main stream sports and reach a broader community? This seems to be a really great way to unify individuals within the Iroquois culture. Are there any possibilities for using this program as a way to integrate with other cultures? Could a similar program be applied to reclaiming other sports in other cultures?
I look forward to hearing from you.
Dana Frasz
Changemakers
Lacrosse itself has been broadening into mainstream culture exponentially over the past 25 years with the creation of professional Lacrosse Leagues, although there have been others, dating as far back as the 1930's. I think it is our time to show people where this game came from who may not already know the origins. This project has always been something that has prided itself on the connection of all of our communities and lessons it teaches our youth. I think these are values that are vital to any culture. For right now, our goal is to create something that may help teach about who we are as Haudenosaunee as well as inspire others to search out their own roots through sport. For how do you know who you are, if you don't know the history of your heritage, even if that means creating it for yourself? That may be the way in which this program may inspire other groups to search out their traditional games and cultures.
Hey Neal,
I know that any player of Native American heritage can try out to play on the Iroquois Nationals. Can you talk a little bit about how different Nations relate to one another when it comes to identity, i.e. will other nations embrace lacrosse as their own and part of their identity or will it be seen to be only Haudenosaunee?
Can you also talk about what social impact implementing the Iroquois lacrosse curriculum will have on Native youth? What are the intended outcomes/ benefits. I know you explain this a bit in your entry, but would love for you to expand....and after this....I promise I will stop asking you questions!!
Cheers,
Z
Actually that is a really technical and difficult question to answer. I guess I can briefly talk about “Native Identity.” There is a basic sense of mistreatment that most Natives can share in, that is the sad truth of the American “melting pot” culture.
As far as games go, it is my understanding that many Nations had their own version of a “stick and ball game.” Some western nations use two smaller sticks the whole game, using them to pick up and throw and catch the ball while other nations toss the sticks and run with the ball once it is off the ground and in a players’ possession. I guess that’s why I refer to youth researching their own traditional games. I was given an article from a friend who was in the Carolina’s or Georgia, Not really sure (it was a while ago), in which they play a game much more similar to rugby, with sticks. They talk about lacrosse, and actually say they wouldn’t play, because they feel it is too soft. On player wanted to know why the players wore pads. Oddly enough, in our traditional games, like them, we don’t wear pads either.
As for aligning with lacrosse, although it was originated by the Haudenosaunee, it is essentially a game designed to highlight individual skills, used for the betterment of a TEAM, with the ultimate goal of uniting communities.
In regards to player eligibility, that is a much more complicated issue. The Haudenosaunee are unique for many reasons, but the one that allows us to compete at an INTERNATIONAL level is that not only do we have treaties with the United States, but they are still being honored today…to an extent. (Treaties with individual states are illegal) This is obviously a very vague and brief description of just how we were able to create that status, which includes our own passports that we travel on. Therefore, at this time, in order to be eligible to play for the Iroquois Nationals you have to be able to prove your Native status with one of the nations in the Haudenosaunee. Some of the Nations have relatively strict rules for getting onto their roles.
In the States, Neal, we're so accustomed to instructing other countries, cultures, and societies as to how they can become more egalitarian that we forget to extend this same advice to ourselves. For your part, however, you're helping us keep honest in terms of honoring the customs and traditions of our own Native peoples with the Iroquois Nationals Lacrosse and Lacrosse Curriculum.
I was wondering if affiliating your efforts with those varsity lacrosse programs at major Eastern colleges and universities would help extend your reach to even more indigenous peoples, especially along the Eastern Seaboard. I know that you've partnered closely with Syracuse and Johns Hopkins, but are affiliations with any other schools possible?
At my school on the West Coast, lacrosse is enthusiastically played but only as a club sport and so not within the NCAA apparatus of sports competition. I don't think you're similarly limited at Syracuse and other Eastern campuses.
Steve Byars
Marshall School of Business
University of Southern California
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