The United States Department of Energy will be providing technical assistance aimed at helping Native American and Alaska Native governments accelerate clean energy deployment.

Through the Strategic Technical Assistance Response Team initiative, the D.O.E. and national laboratory experts will work with community-based project teams to determine financial and technical feasibility of projects designed to increase local energy generation capacity, enhance energy efficiency and conservation measures and create entrepreneurial and job opportunities in the new clean energy economy.

Tribal governments are sovereign nations. Therefore, the paperwork process for developing a project is separate from the energy, environment and climate issues tackled in Washington.

Among the renewable energy projects that were put in contention by Native American tribes for their supposed impact on the American Indians' native lands and rituals or practices were the Cape Wind project and the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System project in Ivanpah Valley in northeast San Bernardino County.

At present, the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority operates an 85-megawatt wind farm, the first green energy generation project majorly owned by an American Indian tribe - a major feat considering 20,000 homes in the region are without power.– Jhoanna Frances S. Valdez