The Native American Capital and Investment Alliance (NACIA) is proud to announce its role as one of the 50 core organizations in the Energized Watershed coalition, a University of New Mexico (UNM)-led initiative recently named a semifinalist in the 2025 National Science Foundation (NSF) Regional Innovation Engines competition.
The NSF Engines program, launched in 2023, aims to build powerful regional innovation ecosystems that drive technological advancement, create economic opportunity, and elevate inclusive collaboration across industries, communities, and sovereign nations. UNM’s Energized Watershed proposal, led by Assistant Vice President for Research and Biology Professor Dave Hanson, is one of 29 semifinalist teams nationwide selected for their groundbreaking vision and collaborative approach.
NACIA’s contribution is critical: if selected as a finalist, NACIA will lead the development and operation of a new regional venture studio aimed at incubating start-ups that offer transformative solutions in water and energy security. This venture studio will serve as a launchpad for Native-led innovation, ensuring that Indigenous knowledge, values, and leadership are embedded at the heart of climate and sustainability solutions.
“This is an unprecedented opportunity to place Native innovation at the center of a regional economic engine,” said Kelly Holmes, co-founder of NACIA. “We’re excited to help launch a venture studio that empowers Native entrepreneurs and brings regenerative ideas into mainstream markets.”
The Energized Watershed initiative focuses on developing technologies to capture, recycle, treat, and reuse water, enhance energy distribution and security, and generate predictive models for hydrological processes—all within the deeply interconnected San Juan and Rio Grande watersheds. These watersheds span sovereign Native lands, rural communities, and urban centers in New Mexico and Texas.
The initiative also seeks to build a modular workforce development framework that supports training and career pathways for residents in both rural and tribal communities. By incorporating both Western science and Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), the coalition aims to foster innovation that is not only technologically sound but culturally grounded.
Other organizations participating in this opportunity include the University of New Mexico, Los Alamos National Laboratories, New Mexico State University, the Navajo Nation, Creative Startups, and more.
“This effort showcases UNM’s dedication to being the University for New Mexico,” said Professor Hanson. “What we’re doing is supporting our great regional institutions and communities to foster sustainable solutions that combine the best ideas from science and traditional knowledge for responsible economic development.”
The NSF will conduct virtual reviews with semifinalist teams this summer, with final selections expected in the fall. If awarded, the Energized Watershed coalition would receive long-term federal support to scale innovation, startups, and workforce programs across the region.
As NACIA continues to elevate Native voices in innovation, investment, and sustainability, this opportunity aligns with its broader mission: to build regenerative ecosystems rooted in Native values that drive capital, opportunity, and community transformation.
For more information on NACIA’s work, visit www.nacia.com