At an October 2008 meeting to help develop a healthier Indian Country, American Indian and Alaska Native leaders stressed the importance of native food traditions and ceremonies and they emphasized working with outside communities like state and local governments. The healthy communities strategy meeting held in Phoenix on October 19, 2008, was co-hosted by Leadership for Healthy Communities (LHC), and the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI).

More than 70 American Indian and Alaska Native leaders participated in the event, an impressive turn-out for a Sunday pre-conference session. The event, titled "Building Healthy Communities: An Integrated Approach," was part of NCAI's annual conference.

Marjorie Paloma of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation provided an opening statement. Tribal and other government representatives as well as NCAI and LHC also gave remarks. Three panels focused on food systems, the built environment and best practices in Indian Country.

Food Systems panelists from the Tohono O'odham Community Action (TOCA) began their session by simply asking: "If you are completely dependent on food from outside of your nation, what does sovereignty really mean?" Rebuilding traditional and sustainable food systems from the ground up is a challenge, TOCA representatives said, "but traditional native foods have been shown to regulate, manage and prevent type 2 diabetes."

The TOCA panelists added that the question Native communities should ask themselves isn't necessarily “how do we go back?” but rather “how do we create a sustainable food system today that takes the best from the past?” The public, private, and civic sectors combined are integral components for sustainable change, they said.

Acknowledging that his tribe has very high rate of diabetes, participant Danny Lopez recommended that his community focus on how they prepare food, not just on the type of foods they eat. Lopez said that introducing new foods to youths’ diets may improve their health.  “Often we make little changes to affect wellness,” he said. As for increasing physical activity, he suggested that participants think in holistic terms when they consider housing and planning. “We are talking about apartment complexes but we need to talk about how to build them to promote walking.”

Central to the conversation about creating healthy, sustainable change in a community is finding the funds to pay for it. Washington state Rep. John McCoy of the Tulalip tribe said that because many tribal members are traditional, they sometimes regrettably don’t look outside of their communities for economic development. According to Rep. McCoy, leaders need to work with their state governments because “leave it to the state and they will overlook the tribes.” As an example, he said that currently all new Washington state legislators get a course on Indian law and sovereignty whereas in the past, “there was not one word about sovereignty and Indian law,” he said.  “You have to work together—you can make it work.” But according to Bureau of Indian Affairs transportation specialist, Ed Hall, Native communities should look to the tourism industry.  “You become a tourist to immerse yourself in a culture,” he said, adding that food and hospitality are important to that end. “Tourism,” he said, “allows our children to see the value of their own culture,” while also providing economic growth to the community, he said.

A deep understanding of a community's own culture is also key to healthy community building, one participant from a whaling community in Alaska said.  Identifying himself as a former participant in a healthy communities initiative, he said that “we have to develop a program to create policies in relation to healthy communities" while protecting, preserving, and perpetuating cultural identity. According to the participant, leaders must also make sure that all outside communities within a region are aligned, and that they identify beneficial services (spiritual, physical, and emotional) and develop committed leaders.

Encouraged by the day's discussions, Sally Smith of the National Indian Health Board said that “today, our words are strong.”  She recounted a time when American Indian children who became ill were all but ignored by the health system. Smith further stated that all participants need to serve as champions for health. “We are not warm, well-fed and happy when we cannot advance our destiny,” she said.

The spiritual dimension of building healthy communities came out even stronger from another participant. “As a child, I was sent to a boarding school and as a result, I discovered that I have no vision,” he said. “I got confused between Christianity and the traditional way. My great grandmother introduced me to our elders, and there were seven other people there who she didn’t introduce me to. When I asked who they were she said, ‘they are seven generations.’ There was an energy that moved when she spoke. I want everyone to know that when we plan, we don’t plan alone.”

The purpose of this strategy meeting was to engage American Indian and Alaska Native leaders in discussions about building local capacity and partnerships that promote sustainable, healthy communities in Indian Country. The meeting objectives included illuminating the role of policy and partnerships in promoting physical activity and healthy eating; exploring the link between economic development, planning, transportation, the built environment, and public health; and encouraging the development of more American Indian leaders who can become champions for childhood obesity prevention and healthy communities.

Speakers at the event included Lieutenant Governor Jefferson Keel of the Chickasaw Nation and the First Vice President of NCAI; Ted Jojola, PhD, Regents’ Professor at the University of New Mexico and Visiting Distinguished Professor at Arizona State University; Robert Wood Johnson program officer Marjorie Paloma; NCAI Director of Strategy and Partnerships Peter Morris; Director of LHC Maya Rockeymoore; Director of Land Use/Transportation Programs with the Local Government Commission Paul Zykofsky; and Tohono O’odham Nation Community Action Program Coordinator Karen Blaine and Co-Director Tristan Reader.