Oweesta Advocates for Native Community Development
Engages Audiences at USDA Events

Oweesta’s new Vice President of Programs & Operations, Tanya Fiddler, has wasted no time in engaging audiences and advocating for Native community development on behalf of the Rapid City-based Native community development financial institution (CDFI) intermediary. In February, she held the ear of professionals, including USDA Rural Development staff, universities, national financial institutions, and economists, at two separate USDA events while she explained how Native CDFIs transform their local communities. While she captivated the audiences at the USDA Agricultural Outlook Forum in Washington DC and the USDA Rural Development of South Dakota State Training, Fiddler stressed the importance of USDA Rural Development programs and identified them as critical elements in developing economies in Native communities.

Oweesta has long-advocated for increased funding from federal agencies to support the growth of the Native community development movement, and believes that raising awareness at venues like the ones in February is a key element in accomplishing this. “Because most Native CDFIs exist in rural areas, it takes an extra step in advocacy and awareness so that people gain access to these programs, and Oweesta is poised to facilitate that,” states Fiddler on Oweesta’s recent outreach activity. USDA, one of the nation’s most largely funded agencies, has the opportunity to play an important role in growing Native community development because of their programs targeted for rural areas.