The 2013 White House Tribal Nations Conference, held Wednesday, November 13 at the Department of the Interior, was a turning point in the federal-tribal partnership to combat climate change and strengthen community resilience.

Secretary Moniz spoke of the importance of the relationship between the Tribal Nations and the Department of Energy—a sentiment echoed by Department of Interior Secretary Sally Jewell, who thanked Secretary Moniz for agreeing to lead an interagency effort on Indian Energy through the auspices of the White House Council on Native American Affairs.

Senior officials from across the Energy Department participated in pre- and post-conference tribal leader listening sessions as well as six of the eight break-out sessions during the conference, covering topics ranging from sacred sites protection, environmental quality, and tribal control and utilization of tribal energy resources to economic development, emergency response, infrastructure resilience, and strengthening the government-to-government relationship.

As part of implementing the President’s Climate Action Plan, Secretary Moniz also announced the selection of nine tribes to receive over $7.2 million to further deploy clean energy and energy efficient projects. Read the press release to learn more about the projects.

President Obama also spoke at the conference, highlighting the importance of engaging tribal governments on climate and energy issues. For more details about the conference, read the White House Blog by Secretary Jewell.  

To experience more of  the White House Tribal Nations Conference events, view photos.