Laying the Foundation for Future Generations: Caddo Nation Economic Development Authority Annual Update | FY 2024–2025
- Leslie Halfmoon
- Jun 9
- 6 min read
Laying the Foundation for Generations
This past year has been about putting vision into action. We are building more than enterprises. We are helping build institutions. With profound gratitude to the Tribal Council for its trust and partnership, CNEDA has worked diligently to transition from startup to structure, and from ideas to action. The road ahead is long, but what we will continue to build into the next five years will support the next generations.
Arrowood: Reclaiming Our Built Environment
Arrowood Kakinah (“to build something strong”), the Nation’s construction enterprise, is laying both concrete and purpose. From the nationally recognized Caddo Childcare Center to the inter-tribal Cummins Road upgrade, from the revival of downtown Anadarko to the Caddo Fusion Center underway, Arrowood is helping us reclaim and remake the built environment of the Nation—into one that reflects our sovereignty, our security, and our values.
Saku: Lighting the Path to Sovereignty
Our solar development firm, Saku, exemplifies what it means to invest in long-term sustainability. The solar arrays will that will energize the childcare center and travel plaza, will not just offset utility bills—they are sending a signal. A signal that we can power our future, with our own hands, on our own lands. Saku’s recognition at the Tribal Energy Finance Forum, and recent becoming a preferred vendor for various national programs providing solar to tribes is growing its referral network, and speaks to a broader truth: Caddo is becoming a national name in energy development.
CIFS and Environmental Responsibility
Our on-going acquisition of a P&A company has enabled CNEDA to build CIFS and deliver on the Nation’s $3.7 million orphan well program and bring these services to other nations, states, and the federal government . But this work is about more than funding. It’s about stewardship. Reclaiming land that was damaged by past extraction, and healing it for future generations, is a form of nation-building that transcends economics. It is a sacred trust. Shared Services: Quiet StrengthBehind every contract, construction site, and well plugged will be the careful, deliberate work of Wistsi Shared Services. Born of a U.S. Treasury grant secured by CNEDA, Wistsi has is structured to become the administrative backbone of tribal enterprises. With discipline and integrity, it will ensure that the house we are building stands on a solid foundation.
477 and 105(l): Governance Reimagined
In partnership with Tribal Administrator Travis Threlkeld and Polly Edwards, the Caddo Nation Economic Development Authority (CNEDA) has spearheaded the launch of the Nation’s 477 Plan—a transformational approach to governance that consolidates federal employment, training, child care, and related human services programs under a single, tribally-designed framework. This consolidation not only streamlines service delivery but also maximizes local control and allows the Nation to align federal resources with its unique priorities and cultural values.
The 477 Plan serves as a powerful reinvestment tool, enabling the Nation to redirect administrative savings and interest into expanded services, workforce development, and community-based initiatives. It supports the creation of jobs, training pipelines, and wraparound supports designed by and for Caddo citizens—redefining what self-determination looks like in practice. It also allows us to seek statutory and regulatory waivers that overly burden programs and prevent them from being customizable for our Nation.
Complementing this effort is the implementation of the 105(l) lease program, which allows the Nation to lease its own facilities to the federal government for the operation of tribal programs funded by the Federal Government. This strategy not only generates a recurring revenue stream for the Nation, but also affirms tribal sovereignty by placing the ownership and management of service infrastructure squarely in tribal hands.
Together, the 477 Plan and 105(l) leasing represent a bold reimagining of governance—one that modernizes how services are delivered to our people and ensures that the Caddo Nation—not federal agencies—determines the direction of our future.
Policy, Land, and Taxation
Working closely with the Tribal Tax Administrator and with legal guidance from Tribal Attorney Steve Ward, CNEDA has helped build the legislative infrastructure that underpins the Nation’s growing authority in taxation, leasing, and energy development. This foundational work is enabling the Nation not only to protect its resources, but to actively shape how those resources are developed, taxed, and reinvested.
These efforts dovetail with CNEDA’s execution of its Tribal Utility Authority Feasibility Study, which is on track for completion this year. This study is a key step in laying the groundwork for a tribally controlled utility that can own, operate, and monetize power infrastructure. In parallel, CNEDA is also scoping a utility-scale solar installation, which will position the Nation to begin generating and distributing power at scale—on its own terms, for its own benefit.
Together, these initiatives are more than strategic—they are structural. By preparing to generate power and control energy transmission across Caddo lands, the Nation is not only asserting its sovereignty but also expanding its tax base, creating new revenue streams, and ensuring that the infrastructure crossing our lands directly benefits our people.
Strategic Certification and Economic Recirculation
As CNEDA works to scale its portfolio of tribal enterprises, one of the most critical levers for growth is access to federal markets. This year, CNEDA has initiated the process of seeking 8(a) certification for several tribally owned entities. This certification will open the door to set-aside federal contracts, sole-source awards, and long-term procurement opportunities that build capacity, generate employment, and strengthen tribal economies from within. By positioning our enterprises to compete in this space, we are not only diversifying revenue streams, but also embedding Native firms in the fabric of national infrastructure and service delivery.
At the same time, CNEDA has focused inward—recognizing that one of the greatest untapped assets of the Caddo Nation is its own spending power. Through Caddo Industry Enterprise (CIE), CNEDA has begun capturing a portion of that internal procurement—supplying goods and services directly to tribal departments that were previously sourced from external vendors. This is more than operational efficiency. It is economic recirculation. Every dollar kept within the Nation multiplies its impact—fueling jobs, enterprise development, and community services.
Together, these strategies represent a dual-front approach: leveraging federal opportunities through certification, while maximizing local economic impact through tribal self-reliance.
Nation and Regional Leadership
The progress of the Caddo Nation and the vision advanced by CNEDA have not gone unnoticed. This year, Chairman Bobby Gonzales and CNEDA Vice Chairman Zackeree Kelin were honored with selection to the Leading People and Investing in Sustainable Communities program at Harvard Business School—an executive education partnership with NAFOA and AFOA Canada. They joined Indigenous leaders from the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand to study best practices in governance, economic development, and community reinvestment. This recognition reflects not only the momentum behind CNEDA’s work but its alignment with global Indigenous leadership and innovation.
That momentum has also extended to CNEDA’s enterprises. Saku, the Nation’s solar development company, was invited to present at the Tribal Renewable Energy Finance Forum, where it shared its early success deploying solar infrastructure and outlined a vision for scaling tribal clean energy. Saku’s growing national reputation speaks to the integrity of CNEDA’s enterprise model—rooted in sovereignty, guided by strategy, and built to serve generations.
Regionally, CNEDA continues to lead through convening. Building on the success of last year’s inaugural gathering, CNEDA is now preparing to co-host the Second Annual Native Renewables Symposium with the University of Oklahoma, supported by partners such as ICAST and the RANGE Program. The symposium has quickly become a touchstone for tribal energy leadership in Oklahoma—bringing together tribal nations, academics, developers, and policymakers to shape the future of renewable energy in Indian Country
Continuity is Our Charge
This is more than a fiscal year. It is a generational threshold. We have momentum, but what we need now is continuity. CNEDA is implementing the next stage of our growth strategy—investing in people, institutions, infrastructure, and partnerships. This is not about finishing a project. It is about preparing a Nation to last.
We are not just building businesses.
We are building a Nation—one institution at a time.
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