IPDNYC 2022

Over the last several years, on the Second Monday of October, people have gathered from all over the world to celebrate the resilience of Indigenous peoples, learn from and echo the voices of Indigenous peoples in the largest city in the United States, New York City. In the largest city in the country, thousands of people will gather on Randall’s Island to celebrate the resilience of Indigenous Peoples. Indigenous Peoples hold tenure over 25% of the earth’s land surface. When people spend time in nature and unplug from the digital world, there are significant cognitive and mental health benefits and improvements in mood and emotional well-being. This free public gathering was created by representatives of local Indigenous Tribes and Indigenous organizations who formed the IPDNYC Committee. This year IDP will take place on Oct 9th & 10th.

For thousands of years, Indigenous Peoples’ communities have been caretakers of the environment, protecting their lands, respecting wildlife, and utilizing traditional knowledge passed down through generations. We honor the sacrifices, continual stewardships, and preserved ancient understanding of Indigenous people globally. We have had representation from the Philippines, Hawaii, Africa, Brazil, Columbia, Alaska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Arizona, Mississippi, California, Canada, and many local Tribes from the New York area.

The celebration will feature performances, music, vendors, food, speeches from Indigenous activists and leaders, spoken word, and an evening concert to crown it all. Apart from the festivities, IDPNYC has highlighted important issues affecting local Native Americans. Sunshine Gumbs, a Shinnecock Tribal Citizen, hosted a Red Dress special honoring our missing and murdered Indigenous girls, women, and two-spirits.

Each year we collectively fundraise to make this public event FREE to the public. We do not profit from this event. All the money raised goes directly to the expenses required to make this event happen. The money raised has only been able to cover Staging, Sound Production, rentals, permits, food, waste management, and sanitation needs. This year we strive to raise enough to cover the many artists and presenters who travel far. We are on a mission to be able to provide travel and lodging and an honorarium for the lineup.

It takes 50-75 volunteers to set up, run, and break down this two-day event. Over the years, many have not only volunteered but have brought food for the crew out of their own pocket. This year we are on a mission to raise enough to budget for up to 100 volunteers.

For the last 6 years, we have raised 85% of our goal. The remainder we each and out of pocket for. We finally broke even in the previous gathering, which was the largest turnout. This year we are striving to raise enough money to carry us into the following year. This year we would like to include a volunteer budget, a caterer, travel and lodging budget, honorariums, marketing and PR.

Estimated expenses:

Staging $5k

Sound $2k

Sanitation $5k

Permit $12k

Marketing/PR $7k

Food/beverage $4k

Volunteers $10k

Honorarium $15K

Travel/lodging $10k

Contingencies $5k

The goal is to raise $75K

Thank you all for your support and your donations! Every dollar counts :)