Maká Thí — To Live as the Earth

Blue Heron Tióšpaye partnered with University of Nebraska–Lincoln Architecture and Landscape Architecture students to imagine what the future of this land could become. Through time spent on the land, Tribal Engagement Trainings, conversations, and research, students worked to understand the land before beginning the design process.

From that work, the students created a proposed site plan guided by four central themes: reclamation, ceremony, stewardship, and creating a living heirloom. Rather than designing individual spaces in isolation, they looked at how the land, people, relatives, culture, and future generations could remain connected.

The resulting vision includes restored prairie, trails, ceremonial spaces, a community center, barn, greenhouse and community garden, areas for horses and buffalo, outdoor learning and storytelling spaces, and the Grandmother's Braid—a pathway connecting spaces throughout the site.

The site plan is not meant to simply place buildings on the land. It presents a vision for caring for the land over time—including cedar removal, cultural burning, prairie restoration, observation, and the return of plant and animal relatives.