Olivia “Liv” Watyana’li:yo Bigtree is Onyota’a:ka (People of the Standing Stone), Turtle Clan. Watyana’li:yo (her original name) translates to “She puts down a good track,” or “She puts down her good tracks.” Honoring her role and responsibility as a young Onkwehón:we (Original Being) life-giver, she walks her pathway with great intention. She grew up in Onondaga, where she was raised by primarily strong Onkwehón:we women. Mindful of those that came before her and those that are to come, she is an empowered member of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy who strives to live a life authentically rooted within the Original Instructions of her people. 

With a background in visual art, she finished her first year of art school at Maryland Institute College of Art in 2021. Over the course of her high school career, she received numerous honors and titles for her art, both nationally and regionally. Her willingness to open her heart and to live authentically has taken her path away from colonial life. Decolonization, healing and cycle-breaking are practices within her consciousness that have led her to Ioskóhare (Schoharie Valley), the ancestral lands of the Kanien’kehá:ka (People of the Flint). 

Liv moved to Ioskóhare in January 2023 to rematriate the land and assist in the growth of the ever-evolving vision taking place at Skywoman’s Forever Farm. Living in an off-grid yurt, she devoted her energy into re-membering her connection with all of creation, honoring her celestial, ancestral bloodlines. She’s poured her blood, sweat, tears and love into the rematriation of Skywoman’s Forever Farm. She worked as communications director for the Waterfall Unity Alliance, on whose board she now serves. 

Efforts to keep Onkwehonwenéha (Original Language/Instructions) alive are at the roots of land rematriation. Knowing the importance of Onkwehonwenéha, she left Ioskóhare to learn Kanien’kéha (Mohawk language). 

For the 2024-26 educational years, Liv will be a full-time student, devoting her time, energy and focus into embodying Onkwehonwenéha. Liv is in the class of 2026 for the Kanien’kéha Ratiwennahní:rats Adult Language Immersion Program in Kahnawà:ke (a Kanien’kehá:ka Reserve in Quebec, CA). She intends to bring all that she learns from this program wherever her pathway takes her, including Ioskóhare.