Fawn Sharp

I am pleased to present testimony to the Committee on the success of the 2013 Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and the critical need to reauthorize VAWA with strong tribal provisions now.

Please join us in sending this message that domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse, elder abuse, stalking and trafficking will not be tolerated on our tribal lands.

We can't take selective science to advance political objectives that benefit multinational corporations.

We have to return to our traditional life ways that the indigenous peoples of this continent have exercised for millennia.

Tribal nations should have a decisive say, through free prior and informed consent, on all Federal actions.

Adaptation funding is simply not enough. And we need additional resources to begin to not only adapt with new and emerging science...

I look forward to working with members of this Committee and other members of Congress to identify climate adaptation strategies that incorporate traditional ecological knowledge and respect tribal sovereignty and self-determination.

Tribal nations are on the front lines of climate change.

The idea that a Tribal nation, like any other governmental body, should have a decisive say over our land, territories, and resources is an international standard that transcends national borders.

It is necessary to re-engage and honor the relationship that the United States has with the Tribal Nations going forward if we are going to continue to work through this issue in a way that ensures the trust responsibility is upheld.

If a Tribal Nation says we have a sacred site, this is where we have an identity, the United States must honor that.