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Commission supports exploring expanded City land acknowledgement to include water, air and fire
Summary
Commissioners agreed to participate in a cross-commission working group to explore expanding the City of Flagstaff’s land acknowledgement language to explicitly reference water, air and fire alongside the land, and to nominate volunteers to join initial discussions.
City staff and commissioners opened a planning discussion on June 13 about expanding the City of Flagstaff’s standard land acknowledgement to include additional elements — water, air and fire — and to broaden the statement’s language beyond a territorial acknowledgement.
The city sustainability office raised the topic after staff attending a conference encountered a water acknowledgment and recommended Flagstaff consider language that recognizes elemental relationships (land/earth, water, air and fire) and the shared responsibilities those elements imply.
Why it matters: expanding the land acknowledgement is an administrative and symbolic action that could appear on more city materials and at public meetings. Commissioners discussed the value of including elements that Indigenous and non-Indigenous community members use to convey stewardship and interdependence.
What commissioners agreed
- Scope and process: staff proposed a cross-commission working group (including sustainability, water, Indigenous Commission and others) to craft draft language. The work will include interviews with cultural holders; it will not replace tribal government-to-government protocols.
- Participation: the commission supported appointing one or two volunteer commissioners to the multi-commission working group; volunteers will rotate so no single commissioner is required to attend every meeting.
- Timeline and next steps: staff will convene an initial drafting group with representatives from the named commissions and return to this commission with draft language for review; community input and cultural consultation will be part of the drafting process.
Ending
Commissioners expressed broad support for a careful, consultative approach and asked that staff share timelines, invited-commission representation and opportunities for cultural review before any draft goes to City Council.
