Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson addressed the National Congress of American Indians on Tuesday.

Jackson gained experience with tribes when she worked in the EPA's Region 2, which includes New York. She later served as Commissioner of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, where she worked closely with a state-recognized tribe.

At EPA, Jackson created the Office of International and Tribal Affairs. JoAnn Chase, a member of the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation who once worked for NCAI, runs the American Indian Environmental Office.

"We believe that putting our tribal and international programs under one umbrella -- and placing our relationships with tribal nations in the same organizational structure as our relationships with nations around the globe -- will help us better serve your needs," Jackson said at NCAI's 2012 executive council winter session.

The full text of the speech can be found at tinyurl.com/74mscaf.

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