Institute of Native Knowledge
Klamath arts and culture
Established in 1989, the Institute of Native Knowledge is a Native-run and directed organization dedicated to the mission of “returning Native knowledge to Native people.” Based in northwestern California, the Institute supports Native arts and culture projects for individuals and groups, operating as a multidisciplinary initiative under the fiscal sponsorship of the Ink People Center for the Arts. This long-standing partnership has supported numerous impactful, community-based projects over the past decades.
Living Cultures Grant Program
2024
Plants, Tell Me Your Story
Funding will support the creation of posters and digital booklets about native plants, featuring seven Native languages, as well as videos sharing traditional plant stories and medicinal uses. The project brings together three artists, four storytellers, seven language speakers, and one writer in a collaborative, multigenerational effort to pass down cultural knowledge through narration and art.
2006
In 2006, the Institute of Native Knowledge received a grant from ACTA’s Living Cultures Grants Program to support the Klamath River Songs Project which will enable master traditional singers of northwest Native California to conduct a series of workshops in four local communities. Young Native adult men and women will learn the fundamentals and intricacies of indigenous ceremonial song forms. Instruction includes rhythms and melodic structures for story songs, social songs, and more complex ceremonial songs.
