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LSP Supports Return of State Park to Upper Sioux Community

This Land Rightfully Belongs to the Upper Sioux Community

April 10, 2023

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Note: The Upper Sioux Agency State Park is located in western Minnesota’s Yellow Medicine County. For years, leaders of the Upper Sioux Community have asked to have the park land, which is sacred to them, returned to the community. The park is adjacent to the Upper Sioux Community and holds several burial sites and other sites of deep cultural significance. Currently, legislation is moving through the Minnesota House and Senate that could lead to the transfer of the park to the Upper Sioux Community. As the West Central Tribune recently reported, there is growing community support for this transference. The Land Stewardship Project’s State Policy Committee and our Land Access and Land Legacy Steering Committees both support Indigenous land return, and LSP’s Land Legacy Policy prioritizes such transferences. As a result, LSP has recently written a statement in support of transferring the park over to the Upper Sioux Community. Here is that statement:

Since its founding, the Land Stewardship Project has worked on behalf of family farms, sustainable agriculture, and rural communities. Additionally, the Land Stewardship Project is committed to advancing racial justice, food security for all people, and Indigenous land return. To that end, LSP is building relationships with tribal nations that have plans to address land access, food sovereignty, and restoration of ecological function.

Our vision is for revitalized rural communities, thriving family farms, a healthy environment, and an equitable, just society. This vision will be strengthened with the return of the whole 1,400 acres of Upper Sioux State Park to the Upper Sioux Community. This is why the Land Stewardship Project fully supports the current bill introduced by the Minnesota Legislature to return the land known as the Upper Sioux Agency State Park to the Upper Sioux Community.

We celebrate the Upper Sioux Community’s process of restoring its original lands and protecting the integrity of burial sites, as well as exploring food sovereignty for its members. We know that the Dakota people stewarded this land for thousands of years, and that land return is in the best interest of this culturally, historically, and socially important site. This land rightfully belongs to the Upper Sioux Community according to the terms of the 1851 Traverse des Sioux Treaty.  The return of this land to the Upper Sioux Community offers an opportunity to support Dakota sovereignty, serve justice, and create pathways to heal and steward relationships in western Minnesota, with each other and with the land.

We also recognize that accessible green spaces and wild spaces are rare and precious in this region of Minnesota, and that this park has been a beloved space by many of the local residents. That is why LSP is committed to advocating and organizing for additional green space development in this region, to increase habitat for native species of animals and plants, and increase access for residents to enjoy those public spaces. We see this as an opportunity to develop new public access acres in partnership with the Upper Sioux Community, and increase protected land and habitat in the Minnesota River Valley. The return of the Upper Sioux State Park to the Upper Sioux Community will ultimately benefit the entire region as we direct the Department of Natural Resources and community resources to steward and protect more green spaces in the western Minnesota region.

We look forward to supporting the Upper Sioux Community and the surrounding communities moving forward.

For more information, contact LSP’s Scott DeMuth, Robin Moore, Amy Bacigalupo, Nick Olson, or Matthew Sheets.

Category: Blog
Tags: racial justice • tribal sovereignty • Upper Sioux Agency State Park • Upper Sioux Community

Upcoming Events

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September 2025

Wednesday September 17

9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Grazing for Invasive Species Management in Oak Savannas
Wednesday September 17
9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Grazing for Invasive Species Management in Oak Savannas
Myre-Big Island State Park, 19499 780th Ave, Albert Lea, MN 56007, USA

For details on this workshop, click here.

12:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Extending the Grazing Season with Cover Crops & Native Grasses
Wednesday September 17
12:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Extending the Grazing Season with Cover Crops & Native Grasses
Bluffton Resort & Bar, 2619 W Ravine Rd, Decorah, IA 52101, USA

This Ducks Unlimited workshop will feature a discussion of how livestock producers can utilize cover crops and native grasses to extend the grazing season. Featured speakers include Adam Janke, who will discuss Iowa State University’s research on CRP grazing, and Brian Dougherty of Understanding AG, who will discuss the economics of grazing cover crops. There will also be a presentation on Ducks Unlimited’s Advancing Markets for Producers Partnership. 
 
For details, see this flier. or call Ducks Unlimited’s Liam Bonk at 612-483-3577. To register, click here.

Thursday September 18

5:00 pm – 7:30 pm
Minnesota Women in Conservation: Conservation Land Walk in Dawson
Thursday September 18
5:00 pm – 7:30 pm
Minnesota Women in Conservation: Conservation Land Walk in Dawson
Dawson, MN

During this Minnesota Women in Conservation event, participants will walk around a “homestead” farm site — exploring areas and goals the landowner hopes to improve in the future, including pollinator habitat, perennial plantings, wind breaks, privacy/noise screens, water quality improvements, well sealing, and compost placements. Participants will hear feedback and recommendations from a conservation professional on potential programs that could assist the landowner in achieving those goals. 
 
This is a FREE event, but you must RSVP here to get the address. For more information and to RSVP, click here.

Saturday September 20

All Day
Farm Aid
Saturday September 20
Farm Aid
Huntington Bank Stadium, 420 23rd Ave SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA

 Farm Aid is heading to Minnesota for the first time for its 40th anniversary festival on Saturday, Sept. 20, at Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. The event will launch a year-long celebration of four decades of impactful advocacy, historic cultural moments and unforgettable music.

Farm Aid 40 — a full day of music, family farmers, HOMEGROWN food and agricultural experiences — will feature performances by Farm Aid board members Willie Nelson, Neil Young (and the Chrome Hearts), John Mellencamp, Dave Matthews (with Tim Reynolds), and Margo Price, as well as Billy Strings, Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats, Trampled by Turtles, Waxahatchee, Eric Burton of Black Pumas, Jesse Welles, Madeline Edwards and more artists to be announced.

For details, click here.

Monday September 22

9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Twin Cities Urban Farm Bus Tour
Monday September 22
9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Twin Cities Urban Farm Bus Tour
Leatherdale Equine Center, 1801 Dudley Ave, St Paul, MN 55108, USA

Join University of Minnesota Extension, Hennepin County, and the Natural Resources Conservation Service on Monday, Sept. 22, for a bus tour of urban farms. We’ll discuss the challenges of city growing, including compaction, contamination, soil health, water management, and more. And we’ll learn about how growers are using soil health practices to mitigate these challenges. Stops will include: 

  • The St. Thomas research gardens, where researchers have been studying different methods for maintaining fertility in urban garden beds for 8+ years, and learning about how these different approaches impact soil health and water quality
  • Our Roots Community Garden, where gardeners have implemented a variety of soil health practices to remediate a brownfield contaminated site into a lush garden with healthy soil and plants. Gardeners here are also working to establish a micro forest at the site
  • Urban Roots farm at Rivoli Bluff. The team at Urban Roots has worked for years to establish a thriving farm at a former street sweeping site. They’ve tried many different practices to address compaction, replace invasive species with native plants to mitigate erosion, and to grow vegetables for their community. 

This is the first tour in a three part soil health bus tour series. Participants can sign up for just one, two, or all three tours. Register at https://z.umn.edu/vegetablebustours. The cost is $15 (flat fee, covers 1, 2, or 3 tours). There are more details in the attached flyer.

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