Forge Project Launches Inaugural Year-End Campaign

There has never been a more important time to support Native leaders and there has never been a more important time to create larger platforms and stronger foundations for Native voices.

“The somber reality of the settler state is an affirmation of the need for our collective dreaming and building.” – Director of Indigenous Programs & Relationality Sarah Biscarra Dilley (yaktitʸutitʸu yaktiłhini [Northern Chumash])

At Forge Project, we are steadfast in our commitment to building resilient and self-determined Indigenous futures in any political climate. 

“What gives me hope is that we have strength in community and strength in us. We are doing work at Forge and in our personal lives that truly makes a difference for people. This isn’t going to change. It may mean the ways we support people and the ways we organize change, but the election results make our work even more necessary.”  

– Executive Director & Chief Curator Candice Hopkins (Carcross/Tagish First Nation)

Part of Forge Project’s new model for organizing creates critical leadership roles for Indigenous cultural workers, who are on the front lines of resistance movements throughout history. The distinct lack of significant investment and support for Native cultural workers and thought leaders has marginalized Indigenous worldviews. In honoring and uplifting this important work, Forge is committed to supporting Native leaders through fellowships, grants, and programming.

Support Forge’s work by donating to our end-of-year campaign: BUILD NATIVE FUTURES. This campaign will help secure the sustainability of the organization through a generous endowment match of $3.5 million. This working endowment expands our capacity to redistribute wealth by putting financial resources directly into the hands of Indigenous artists and culture workers. Endowments are often examples of hoarded resources and wealth; at Forge Project our endowment will be spent down each year to ensure that we are redistributing the maximum amount of resources and wealth.

In our inaugural year as a Native-led nonprofit, Forge Project has been uplifted by the institutions and foundations that believe in our work. In order to meet our endowment match opportunity, we are reaching out to our larger community of individuals. 

A gift of any size will Build Native Futures, redress historical exclusion of Indigenous voices, and change the landscape of art and culture! 

Forge invites you to deepen your connection to our work by attending our public programs, reading Forging journal, signing up for our newsletter, following us on social media, and viewing our collection online. 

We believe in showing our appreciation for our accomplices:

• Donations over $500 receive a postcard featuring the artwork of New Red Order

• Donations over $1000 receive a postcard featuring the work of New Red Order & the collective’s TreatyMaker 3000 pen

• Gifts of $5000 and above qualify for a postcard featuring the artwork of New Red Order, the collective’s TreatyMaker 3000 pen, and a special tour of Forge Project with Candice Hopkins. 

The postcard features a still from the New Red Order video Forge Reciprocal Relations (2024), commissioned for Forge Project’s collection of contemporary art by Indigenous artists on the occasion of our transition to non-profit status. Forge Reciprocal Relations invites viewers to engage in the work of decolonizing wealth and Indigenous worldbuilding while using marketing strategies as a form of artistic intervention. 

Your gift directly supports us in:

• Investing in Native futures;

• Creating opportunities for Native leaders;

• Supporting Indigenous-led programming;

• Redistributing wealth to counteract the egregious inequity that exists for Native communities;

• Rewriting history from Indigenous perspectives;

• Providing direct economic support for Native artists;

• Publishing that centers Indigenous voices to fill historical gaps;

• Developing new models of Indigenous governance;

• Enabling ecological sustainability.

Learn more and donate now.