**Building the new:** On behalf of Anahuacalmecac International University Preparatory (Anawakalmekak) and the Tzicatl Community Development Corporation (TCDC), we are honored to invite you to a special Capital Stewards Impact Salon, focused on the future of our K-12 Indigenous school, the Chief Ya’anna Landback Learning Village, and the Tuatukar Eco-Cultural Center.
A polymodal force to address the polycrises we face, Anawakalmekak is educating the next generation of leaders who will lead us to a new way of being. In partnership with the Gabrielino-Shoshone Nation, these leaders are prototyping new models for applying intergenerational wisdom in an urban context, recognizing local indigenous sovereignty through landback, and bringing indigenous science and education to life in the field every day.
Anawakalmekak is a living example of “Buen Vivir- “ working toward a Just Transition grounded in thriving community, liberation, and balance. Together, we are supporting the growth of this K-12 learning space and sanctuary in Northeast Los Angeles where soil, culture, and academic excellence grow in balance on twelve acres of rematriated land.
## Vision for the School & Village
Guided by the leadership of Marcos Aguilar and Minnie Ferguson, the intergenerational wisdom of the Gabrielino-Shoshone Nation, and the collective projects of Anawakalmekak educators and alumni, this project is a living model of regenerative design and Indigenous stewardship:
**The Future of Indigenous Education:** We are expanding our IndigeNations Scholars program, which merges rigorous UC-approved curricula with "Survivance Studies." Our future vision includes the WeSpeak initiative, a youth-led movement to combat linguicide and revitalize the Nahuatl language as a living ecosystem within our community.
**A "Living Lab" for Science & Ceremony:** Through our Yolsentlapixkeh (Ecoguardian) program, students are already merging Indigenous and Western sciences. The program is guided by our alumni enrolled in top universities and our Ketsal fellow, in partnership with several academic and research institutions, to continue multi-generational urban rematriation and academic research. The future campus will serve as a permanent hub for this participatory research, where students lead habitat restoration and climate mitigation efforts on-site.
**Tuatukar Eco-Cultural Center:** This planned 6,400-square-foot facility is designed with regenerative Indigenous architecture. It will serve as the heart of our campus—a space for dance, Teponaskwikatl (traditional music), ceremony, and the revitalization of Indigenous pedagogy.
**Urban Rematriation & Land Care:** We have secured and are now tending twelve acres through native habitat restoration, water stewardship, soil remediation, and shade canopy expansion, creating a replicable model for intergenerational learning and urban environmental justice.
**Phased Development of the Chief Ya'anna Learning Village:** We are currently moving through Phase 1 (Essential Safety & Accessibility), including perimeter protection and ADA walkways, as we prepare for Phase 2 (Shovel-Ready Development) in 2026.
In a city defined by concrete and displacement, Anawakalmekak and the Chief Ya’anna Regenerative Learning Village offer a spiritual and academic anchor for healing and collective action. We hope you will join us to support this incredible work towards Indigenous sovereignty and educational justice.
We look forward to seeing you on May 27th,
Marcos Aguilar, Minnie Ferguson, Lauren Bon, Salomon Zavala, Chad and T Dyer, Taj James, Lora O’Connor (event co-hosts)