photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

Brett Ramey and Courtney King at the launch of the Indigenous Food Systems Study and Action Plan on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025.

To help shape future food policy and better support Indigenous food traditions and access to culturally significant foods, the Douglas County Food Policy Council brought community members together for public input and activities.

The council has been working on a project dubbed the Indigenous Food System Study and Action Plan. The goal for the plan is to gather stories and data to try to figure out the needs of Indigenous entrepreneurs, like farmers and chefs. The council also wants to incorporate the voices of elders to communicate their cultures and histories.

On Saturday, the council convened Native American and Indigenous community members to continue work on the plan. There was an art activity, breaking corn kernels and discussing various methods for preparing and storing corn along with plant walks in the Douglas County Fairgrounds’ Demonstration Garden.

photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

People breaking corn kernels at the launch for the Indigenous Food Systems Study and Action Plan on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025.

“It’s really just an honor to be able to do what we can, to bring all that good work that’s always been happening in what’s now called Douglas County and bringing it into the future and making sure that we can continue to have healthy lands and continue to support our families through the foods and all the things that grow on this land,” Brett Ramey, an organizer for the plan, said.

Boards were also set up around the Douglas County Fairgrounds’ Dreher 4-H building with prompts for people to respond to such as, “How do Indigenous food systems contribute to the preservation of your cultural practices and traditions?”

Post-it notes included people’s answers, and one of them said, “Many of our ceremonies center around food (green corn ceremonies). This reinforces cultural identity. Medicinal and edible plants also keep us connected to the land.”

Another said “Indigenous food systems (re)build the basis for cultural reclamation and revitalization through caring for the land and our culturally significant species.”

photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

The purpose of the Indigenous Food Systems Study and Action Plan is to highlight strengths and recommendations to support Indigenous food systems.

“Most (Traditional Ecological Knowledge) has been lost in my Tribe, but I have been re-learning from the land and inter-tribal collaborations,” a different Post-it said. “The land is always willing to teach us!”

The purpose of this work is to also provide policy recommendations for the Douglas County Commission to help shape an update to the county’s Food System Plan – a 10-year framework offering strategic recommendations to shape the local food system’s development. The phrase “food system” describes the journey food takes from field to plate and eventually how it is disposed of in the county.

As the Journal-World reported, the council received a $50,000 Hunger Free Kansas Transformation Grant from the Kansas Health Foundation, which is funding the first phase of the project to gather input on food policy from Native food leaders and entrepreneurs. The council is also exploring the idea of a pilot grocer or congregation site in the second phase of this effort. The goal is to create a hub where Indigenous food producers can sell goods and community members can access Native foods.

Ramey said while there is climate change happening to the environment, there is also social and cultural change, and these shifts are happening now. He said the community has a responsibility to make sure everyone is doing the best to move things forward in a good way for everyone here now and who will come after.

photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

Mackie Moore, interim president of Haskell Indian Nations University, attends the launch for the Indigenous Food Systems Study and Action Plan on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025.

“This is sacred work,” Ramey said. “These are really important times … And so what I think we’re really trying to do here today is just kind of set the tone for how we hope our gatherings will continue to be going forward.”

The council is anticipating to provide an update on this work to the Douglas County Commission in the first quarter of 2026.

photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

People breaking corn kernels at the launch for the Indigenous Food Systems Study and Action Plan on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025.

photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

An art activity at the Douglas County Indigenous Food Systems Study and Action Plan Launch on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025.

Attendees participate in a smudging ceremony before the Indigenous Food Systems Study and Action Plan on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025.

photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

People participate in an art activity at the launch of the Indigenous Food Systems Study and Action Plan on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025.

photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

Boards with prompts were set up around the room at the event on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025.