Seven Generations

In 2013, Zuni Pueblo Main Street and the Indigenous Design and Planning Institute (iD+Pi), University of New Mexico, partnered with Zuni artists to rethink how they could combine their efforts to diversify the economy of their village. The outcome was the creation of the Zuni ArtWalk, which is now held every month at the village homes of Zuni artists. The main street is along a segment of State Highway 53. It runs parallel to the traditional village, known as Halona or the ‘middle-place.’ After World War II, the village experienced rapid modernization, which has affected the livelihoods of families and the Zuni culture and has impacted the built environment. This discussion frames this effort within an emerging paradigm known as Indigenous planning (IP). This approach uses a culturally responsive and value-based process to community development that is participatory and predicated on establishing a set of principles that are informed by traditional knowledge and a seven-generation framework. Moreover, the effort is tied into a national discussion that examines the role of arts in cultural resiliency as connected to a new emerging IP paradigm known as ‘PlaceKnowing.’