The next step is a timber framing and construction workshop scheduled for June 2023. Donate here.

The Center

The Indigenous Wisdom Center is currently under construction at our eco-ranch in Slim Butte. It will house a community space to be used for classrooms and training in holistic, sustainable design practices for both natural building and organic gardening and food production.

The Center is the first phase of our project to create a wisdom sharing hub where self-motivated local residents on Pine Ridge can come and learn from Lakota initiated projects to take skills, knowledge, and inspiration back to their homes to initiate their own projects on their land.

Building Designs

Specs of the building

• Rammed Earth Tire Foundation and Retaining Wall

• Lumber framing, Grade Beams, and Structural Support

• Tin Roofing

• Solar System

• Water Catchment System

• Plaster finished interior

Climate Resilience Training Program  

On-the-job training at our OLCERI Indigenous Wisdom Center training facility is central to the development of teams of carpenters, plumbers, welders, fabricators, equipment operators, earth workers, and engineers. In response to the challenges of expensive education, unemployment, and a housing crisis, we aim to create a seventh-generation workforce hundreds of members strong. Offering a debt-free, native-centric environment we will empower and educate youth while giving them the necessary skills to live well and contribute to the community. Our builders will be trained in marketable, green, and cutting-edge skills. The youth will become the backbone of a shovel-ready home building program and will go forward to construct a climate resilient future for our people.