Abran Lopez 

(He/Him/His)

Amah Mutsun and Tamien Cultural Advisor, Bear Root Resource Center

I am Amah Mutsun and Tamien, indigenous to the San Juan Valley, the triangle of land formed by the Monterey Bay and the Pajaro and San Benito rivers and the greater Santa Clara valley. I am a Rx Fire Practitioner at The Nature Conservancy, a Senior Technician at the Mid Klamath Watershed Council, and a founding member of Mutsun and Tamien peoples’ stewardship corps programs. The opportunity to contribute to land stewardship and management is deeply meaningful to me. It marked a significant shift in my path, shaping my commitment to this work.

I deeply value my history, culture, and the importance of revitalizing and restoring Indigenous knowledge. Much of my early work was part of a larger effort to restore and protect cultural landscapes that my ancestors stewarded from time immemorial. The medicine plants my ancestors care for hold deep significance for prayer, ceremony, protection, and maintaining balance in our world and for all creatures that depend on them. I have seen firsthand how, through these restoration efforts, plant populations have been revitalized to the point where elders can once again respectfully gather them for ceremony. 

This journey has given me opportunities I never imagined and introduced me to people I might not have met otherwise. I have worked alongside firefighters, archaeologists, traditional culture-bearers, and many others. I am grateful to all those who share their knowledge, including researchers, volunteers, and Tribal elders, as well as to those who support this important work.

I have specialized skills in wildland firefighting and a strong interest in restoring cultural burning practices. I am deeply committed to my community and work to foster a sense of belonging. I bring a valuable perspective on expanding Native youth engagement and look forward to continuing to share my ecological and fire knowledge with communities, collaborating with the Bear Root Resource Center, and contributing as a member of the Cultural Advisory Committee.

Articles about work Abran has been involved with:

August 2024

By Alexii Sigona, Alec Apodaca, and Annalise Taylor

Decades of fire suppression have contributed to increasingly destructive infernos. Now, the U.S. Forest Service is learning from Indigenous fire science to restore balance to the land.Text by

Emily HanGregory Han

by Mary Ellen Hannibal April 6, 2016

Letter from California  September/October 2017

By Antone Pierucci

Lessons emerge from the ways in which North American hunter-gatherers managed the landscape around them

by Sage Gerson