Keya Wakpala Resilient Community Development Receives 2015 SEED Award For Excellence in Public Interest Design
Mission, SD – The Rosebud Economic Development Corporation (REDCO), the economic development arm of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, recently received an international award for excellence in public interest design from Design Corps, the Social Economic Environmental Design (SEED) Network, and Lawrence Technological University (LTU) for the Keya Wakpala Resilient Community Development Master Plan. The Master Plan is the blueprint for a unique Native American community encouraging resilience, health, education, and helpfulness while renewing a culturally meaningful way of life.
REDCO was one of six projects to win the prestigious SEED award through a competitive jury process. The SEED Award winning projects are:
The SEED Award recognizes designs that address the critical social, economic, and environmental issues in the world. Winners were selected by an esteemed jury based on the following criteria: Effectiveness, Excellence, Inclusiveness, Impactful, and Systemic and Participatory.
The projects will be presented by their team members at the fifteenth annual Structures for Inclusion conference, co-hosted by Lawrence Technological University (LTU) in Detroit, Michigan on April 13 and 14, 2015. Structures for Inclusion (SFI) is a series of national conferences on public service architecture and community design. Each year, Design Corps convenes this international conference of diverse stakeholders to focuses attention on design practitioners and projects helping to overcome longstanding challenges in under-resourced communities.
The Keya Wakpala Development also received a first ever Special Jury Commendation:
“This planning document is an incredible asset for the community, a clear and moving description of the community, their history and the challenges that they face. The project goals are completely aligned with SEED principles. The community surveys, meeting minutes, and other docs show an amazing amount of work. A profoundly moving statement here – “Times have been hard, but our people still remain” -- that also describes other under-resourced (and underestimated) people that can learn from this.”
In 2012, the Rosebud Sioux Tribal Council gave REDCO the responsibility to develop nearly 600 acres of tribal trust lands surrounding the Turtle Creek Crossing Supermarket just west of Mission, SD on the north side of Highway 18 with the goal of expanding development of tribal assets while also addressing multiple, socio-economic issues faced by the local population. The site was chosen for its strategic location near the center of tribal population and access to infrastructure while also building off of past development efforts. Throughout 2013 and 2014, REDCO worked with the Native American planning and architecture firm Blue Star Studio Inc and diverse team of engineers and specialists to host a series of community engagement meetings, collect surveys to define the larger vision, values and goals as well as develop conceptual master planning document with inputs from tribal programs and local community members.
“We are on the right track,” said Wizipan Little Elk, CEO & Executive Director of REDCO. “This is validation that the process we are using is an appropriate one for our people. We have a capable and committed team. While its good to be recognized for planning, we still have a ton of work to do. The plan is going to continuously evolve, but we are now nearing the time to implement.”
As a planned indigenous community, Keya Wakpala Waíçageyapi (Turtle Creek Development) will provide housing, businesses, jobs, learning environments, clean water, energy, infrastructure, and a balanced economic life in a manner that supports, cultivates and re-emerges cultural values, and relationships. It will develop ecologically engineered systems, including green and natural building, ecological wastewater treatment, renewable energy development, and integrated agricultural systems as potential options to address these needs.
Mission, SD – The Rosebud Economic Development Corporation (REDCO), the economic development arm of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, recently received an international award for excellence in public interest design from Design Corps, the Social Economic Environmental Design (SEED) Network, and Lawrence Technological University (LTU) for the Keya Wakpala Resilient Community Development Master Plan. The Master Plan is the blueprint for a unique Native American community encouraging resilience, health, education, and helpfulness while renewing a culturally meaningful way of life.
REDCO was one of six projects to win the prestigious SEED award through a competitive jury process. The SEED Award winning projects are:
- Lakota Nation Building at the Keya Wakpala Development – Rosebud, Great Sioux Nation (Oceti Sakowin)
- El Guadual Early Youth Development Center - Cauca, Colombia
- Parque Urbano e Instituto Sitie [Urban Park and Institute Site] - Rio de Janeiro, Brasil
- A jam manufactory for NAXII - Oaxaca, Mexico
- Studio H Collaborative Research Project - California, USA
- Rwinkavu Operating Rooms and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (OR / NICU) - Kayonza, Rwanda
The SEED Award recognizes designs that address the critical social, economic, and environmental issues in the world. Winners were selected by an esteemed jury based on the following criteria: Effectiveness, Excellence, Inclusiveness, Impactful, and Systemic and Participatory.
The projects will be presented by their team members at the fifteenth annual Structures for Inclusion conference, co-hosted by Lawrence Technological University (LTU) in Detroit, Michigan on April 13 and 14, 2015. Structures for Inclusion (SFI) is a series of national conferences on public service architecture and community design. Each year, Design Corps convenes this international conference of diverse stakeholders to focuses attention on design practitioners and projects helping to overcome longstanding challenges in under-resourced communities.
The Keya Wakpala Development also received a first ever Special Jury Commendation:
“This planning document is an incredible asset for the community, a clear and moving description of the community, their history and the challenges that they face. The project goals are completely aligned with SEED principles. The community surveys, meeting minutes, and other docs show an amazing amount of work. A profoundly moving statement here – “Times have been hard, but our people still remain” -- that also describes other under-resourced (and underestimated) people that can learn from this.”
In 2012, the Rosebud Sioux Tribal Council gave REDCO the responsibility to develop nearly 600 acres of tribal trust lands surrounding the Turtle Creek Crossing Supermarket just west of Mission, SD on the north side of Highway 18 with the goal of expanding development of tribal assets while also addressing multiple, socio-economic issues faced by the local population. The site was chosen for its strategic location near the center of tribal population and access to infrastructure while also building off of past development efforts. Throughout 2013 and 2014, REDCO worked with the Native American planning and architecture firm Blue Star Studio Inc and diverse team of engineers and specialists to host a series of community engagement meetings, collect surveys to define the larger vision, values and goals as well as develop conceptual master planning document with inputs from tribal programs and local community members.
“We are on the right track,” said Wizipan Little Elk, CEO & Executive Director of REDCO. “This is validation that the process we are using is an appropriate one for our people. We have a capable and committed team. While its good to be recognized for planning, we still have a ton of work to do. The plan is going to continuously evolve, but we are now nearing the time to implement.”
As a planned indigenous community, Keya Wakpala Waíçageyapi (Turtle Creek Development) will provide housing, businesses, jobs, learning environments, clean water, energy, infrastructure, and a balanced economic life in a manner that supports, cultivates and re-emerges cultural values, and relationships. It will develop ecologically engineered systems, including green and natural building, ecological wastewater treatment, renewable energy development, and integrated agricultural systems as potential options to address these needs.