Honoring the
Soul of Place
Why This Matters
Around the world, people have lost a meaningful connection with the places they call home.
When the land is no longer seen as sacred or alive, care and responsibility fade — and so do the cultures and ecosystems rooted in that relationship.
Many of today’s biggest challenges — biodiversity loss, damaged ecosystems, disappearing cultures, and weakened communities — are tied to this loss of connection. These are systemic, place-based problems, yet we try to address them with standardized solutions that ignore the unique spirit, knowledge, and living fabric of each region.
For generations, Indigenous and Native communities have held wisdom for living in balance with their lands.
As these voices are displaced or ignored, their guidance is lost, and so are the identity, health, and soul of each place.
Rebuilding this bond—guided by Indigenous stewards and rooted in reciprocal relationship with the land—is essential to inspire action to restore both people and the planet.
Our Focus
We’re helping shift both the narrative and practice of place-based change—from siloed, extractive approaches to systemic ways of seeing and acting.
We ground our work in grassroots leadership, amplifying replicable community-led solutions and co-creating new tools where none yet exist.
Our guiding questions:
How might deeper connection to place unite movements and inspire shared responsibility and action?
How can Indigenous and Native communities expand their cultural and ecological leadership?
How can non-Indigenous communities grow their capacity for true partnership and right relationship?
We don’t have all the answers — but we’re working with partners to establish a new paradigm of communities equipped to self-organize and shape their own futures.
We’re co-creating playbooks that help communities build cultural enterprises that sustain livelihoods and keep traditions alive, while supporting Indigenous and non-Indigenous collaboration to restore ecosystems and biodiversity.
Our approach integrates environmental, cultural, and economic strategies, centering Indigenous leadership to advance shared, place-based priorities.
Our Vision
A world where people live and lead in respectful relationship with their lands and heritage communities—where cultures are revived, ecosystems are restored, and local economies thrive in balance with the Earth.
Where We Are Now
Soul Swell is an evolving nonprofit initiative, collaborating with international Indigenous communities and partner organizations to refine our first playbooks and pilot model.
We are fiscally sponsored by the Tides Foundation, dedicated to advancing social justice by shifting power and resources to those historically denied both.