Saxon Metzger, founder of the sustainability and “community benefit” company Eighth Generation Consulting, held a ribbon-cutting ceremony at their new office in Pawhuska on Feb. 5.
Together with his brother Ayda Donne, Metzger runs the Eighth Generation Consulting company, which serves tribes and community projects focused around energy efficiency, sustainable building, and future-proof sustainability careers.
Their decision to relocate their office from Springfield, Ill., to the Osage Nation reservation was easy, said Metzger, as the majority of his time is spent on the road consulting for different tribes, such as the Upper Mattaponi and Rappahannock, both located in Virginia.
Why not be based in the Osage Nation and support healthy growth? Metzger asked. He is enthusiastic and said they aren’t discouraged by past attempts to create recycling programs in Pawhuska, because they aim to work together with community stakeholders to overcome the challenges.
“It’s our first time having an office base here in 100 years,” Metzger also said, reflecting after the Feb. 5 ribbon cutting. He recounted that his family left the Osage for California in the 1920s. “Since we left, we’ve had no roots, no connection – at least not in our direct family line – so it’s important to us to have the opportunity to contribute,” he said.
The brothers were also drawn to move back to the area by the process of working with tribes. “We’ve been doing these things for other tribes, and we’d like to [serve] our own,” said Metzger.
Donne is currently completing a PhD program in New York City, so he won’t relocate to Pawhuska as quickly as Metzger, but is looking forward to the journey.
Getting started
Their new office is located at the Tri-County Business and Development Center, a few blocks away from Pawhuska High School, where they will be hosting an internship program for “future-proof sustainability careers,” said Metzger. That internship could be this summer or next, they are not yet sure.
While the internship is in the planning processes, Eighth Generation Consulting has applied for grants with both the City of Pawhuska and the Osage Nation’s Department of Natural Resources, said Metzger.
In their first conversations with the Nation, they shared their background of expertise in decommissioning solar installations which are no longer functional, and working with the Grid Alternative Tribal Energy Office. Most recently, the brothers won a $250,000 prize from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recognizing their work future-proofing sustainability careers.
The DOE prize money will go toward setting up the office and the internship, according to Metzger. Beyond the internship program, the Osage brothers hope to work on a recycling facility, projects to support sustainable affordable housing construction, and to assist with grant writing efforts as needed in the community.
They are currently in the process of meeting and reviewing possibilities with various Osage leaders in resource management, including Minerals Council Chairman Myron Red Eagle and Paul Bemore, Utility Authority Board chairperson for the tribe.
Next steps at Eighth Generation Consulting include getting “preferred provider” status with the Alliance for Tribal Clean Energy and moving their home base to town, said Metzger.
Learn more at https://www.8thgenconsulting.com/. Their new office is located at 1225 Virginia Short Street in Pawhuska.
