Mi’kmaq Nation Adds Over 80 Acres to Tribal Land 

Mi’kmaq Nation Adds Over 80 Acres to Tribal Land 

CONNOR, MAINE — Mi’kmaq Nation, in partnership with Trust for Public Land, has secured 83 acres of unique land that directly abuts existing tribal housing and community space. This addition creates a larger, connected land base that significantly enhances safety, livability, and community wellbeing.  

This acquisition, known as Pugweliget (“living together in a group”), represents both a critical infrastructure investment and a transformative expansion of land access for Mi’kmaq citizens on their northern-most reservation land in Maine. Tribal members will gain direct access to land, right out their backdoors, for recreation, foraging, hunting, fishing, and cultural use. These activities are essential to sustaining Mi’kmaq traditions, language, and intergenerational knowledge sharing. 

Expanded land access will also allow for upgrades to the existing driveway and septic systems, which are priority investments to improve safety, environmental health, and the long-term habitability of the houses on the property. 

While the immediate benefit serves the 48 residents on site, the broader Mi’kmaq community of approximately 1,684 members will also be able to utilize and benefit from this land. 

 “The Mi’kmaq Nation is honored to have been entrusted with another land return this year. Although this property has much fewer acres than the 3,400-acre land return earlier this summer, each land return is unique and meaningful in its own way,” said Shannon Hill  Environmental Health Director for the Mi’kmaq Nation. “These 83 acres abuts our current land holding of 4 acres in Connor. The ability to take a walk and connect with the land as we did thousands of years ago without fear of trespassing is of far greater importance here than the number of acres.” 

For many years, the adjacent 83-acre parcel has been a priority for Mi’kmaq Nation. The former landowner, a neighbor, came to Mi’kmaq Nation, offering to sell to them before anyone else. Mi’kmaq Nation reached out to TPL who worked quickly to raise the funds needed and meet the landowner’s timeline for acquisition so the land could be transferred to Mi’kmaq Nation as soon as possible.  

“Close to home outdoor spaces are critical to health and wellbeing, and Pugweliget not only provides space for neighbors to safely be outside, but also to reconnect with culture,” said Betsy Cook, Maine State Director for Trust for Public Land. “TPL is proud to partner with the Mi’kmaq Nation to restore access to this important place.” 

This marks the seventh completed project in the Tributary Land Returns, a collaboration between the five federally recognized Wabanaki Tribes and seven non-native organizations, to return over 50,000 acres to Wabanaki communities across 11 different projects.  

Tributary is one of the largest returns of private land in the history of the United States, and it doesn’t come from a government mandate, but from a grassroots effort. For eight years the Wabanaki Commission on Land and Stewardship, an intertribal body, and the First Light community, a group of non-native land-based organizations, have worked in close partnership to transform conservation, build trust, and return land. This set of projects was affirmed by the Wabanaki Commission, which also supports Wabanaki citizens, nonprofits, and Tribal Governments in caring for these lands through the Wolankeyutomone Kisi Apaciyewik Fund (“Let us take good care of what has returned”). 

This project would not have succeeded without the deep partnership and funding support from First Light, Maine Coast Heritage Trust, Maine Community Foundation, and generous private donors.  

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Media contact: 

Shannon Hill, shill@micmac-nsn.gov