Healing, Sovereignty & Community Leadership | Chris Tall Bear, Southern Cheyenne

Healing, Sovereignty & Community Leadership | Chris Tall Bear, Southern Cheyenne

From Work Is Third by Dawn Hunter

February 16, 2026 · 59 min · Season 1 · Episode 60

About this episode

Dawn Hunter interviews Chris Tall Bear about healing, sovereignty, and community leadership in the context of historical trauma and modern life.

What does real healing look like after historical trauma, and how do we carry sovereignty, ceremony, and leadership into modern life? In this episode of Work Is Third , Dawn sits down with Southern Cheyenne Chris Tall Bear for a deeply grounded conversation about healing, history, and the responsibility of leadership. Chris Tall Bear is a Southern Cheyenne Chief, Tribal public health advisor, and community leader. In this conversation, he shares his experience as a descendant of survivors of the Sand Creek Massacre and his role in memorialization efforts. Together, they explore: The connection between community, history, and resilience What tribal sovereignty really means in practice The role of ceremony and traditional healing in public health Leadership as service Balancing modern life, technology, and cultural tradition The importance of women in Indigenous communities Why self-care is essential for leaders and healers Chris also reflects on his personal journey, his family legacy, and his emerging consulting work focused on cultural engagement and traditional healing. This episode is about sovereignty, ceremony, and the kind of leadership that sustains communities across…

People in this episode

Host: Dawn

Guest: Chris Tall Bear

Topics covered

  • healing
  • sovereignty
  • community leadership
  • historical trauma
  • ceremony
  • public health
  • cultural tradition
  • women in Indigenous communities
  • self-care

Keywords

  • Southern Cheyenne
  • Sand Creek Massacre
  • resilience
  • leadership as service
  • cultural engagement
  • traditional healing

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Work Is Third

Places: Southern Cheyenne, Colorado, Sand Creek

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