Deb Haaland, America’s first Native cabinet secretary, reflects on her legacy

Deb Haaland is the first Native American ever to serve in a US Cabinet.

The department is best known for managing more than 85 million acres of national parks, many of which sit on land stolen from tribal nations.

Under her leadership, the Interior Department has executed more than 400 co-stewardship agreements to enable Indigenous peoples to have more of a say over ancestral lands.

The Biden administration facilitated more than 400 co-stewardship agreements with Indian tribes.

At the same time, there are also people calling for land to be returned back to tribes through the landback movement.

Recently, you announced a new plan to preserve and revitalize Native languages, counteracting years of suppression.

President Biden made an apology to Indian Country. He signed a proclamation for a national monument for the boarding schools. There’s no taking that back. We consulted with tribes. They told us what they wanted. We got those across the finish line. These are all enduring things, enduring progress that we have been able to actually complete.