This story was produced with support of Internews' Earth Journalism Network.
On a hot July afternoon, the sun begins to lower, emanating a vibrant orange glow on Comanche Nation citizens and visitors of the tribe's annual homecoming powwow in Walters, about 30 minutes southeast of the tribe's headquarters in Lawton.
"Alright, everybody, come on into the arena," the emcee says into the microphone during the Saturday night celebration. "Gourd dance your little hearts out."
This year marked the Comanche Nation's 72nd Annual Homecoming Powwow, a three-day event that honors tribal members, including its princesses and code talkers from World War I and II.
But in the background of the celebration is a relatively new nickel refining company, Westwin Elements, and its quest to chart a new path for America — one that helps ensure the US does not continue falling behind in the race for critical minerals.
Westwin Elements' business has the potential to aid in climate change and national defense. But tribal nations in the area say it comes at a price.
"We're permanent members of this community, right?" Forest Tahdooahnippah, the Comanche Nation's Chairman, said. "We were here before, and we're here now, and we hope to be here into the future."
Kiowa, Comanche and Apache or KCA tribal nations share a reservation that runs through the southwest Oklahoma communities of Lawton, Anadarko and Carnegie. This land was promised to them in the Medicine Lodge Treaty of 1867, and in many ways, it informs their identities as Indigenous people.
Gatherings like this year's Comanche Nation powwow are integral to sustaining Comanche culture. Their land base or reservation— despite it being ruled as disestablished by an Oklahoma court — is also key.
"Things like culture and language, we do our best to make them accessible to the diaspora," Tahdooahnippah said. "But you absolutely need to have people living together to have culture."
However, since Westwin Elements started pushing ahead with plans to refine nickel in Lawton, some KCA tribal citizens and city residents fear what's at risk if something were to go wrong.
Because just last year, things did go south — not from Westwin Elements, but from multiple contributors that polluted East Cache Creek, which winds around the Comanche Nation's powwow grounds.
Historically, powwow visitors have swam or fished in the creek. But last year, that was not the case due to alarming levels of e. Coli that killed a few fish.
Tribal members raised alarm bells about the polluted waters at a tribal business committee meeting. They later spoke out about the potential for more pollution from Westwin Elements, which was then set to open a critical minerals refinery near a historic Comanche church.
Tahdooahnippah explained that any threat to the tribe's environment doesn't just put their land base and water at risk, but also another aspect vital to their ways of being.
"If there were an environmental catastrophe and it did cause people to kind of scatter, that would then just be the slow death of the entire culture and language," Tahdooahnippah said.
Critical minerals are essential to the economy, but put Indigenous lands at risk
Westwin Element's primary focus centers on nickel, which is considered a critical mineral because of its importance to the national economy, determined by a team of economists, scientists and engineers. It can be used in renewable energy such as wind and solar power technology, as well as rechargeable batteries and stainless steel.
Currently, China is the leading producer of most critical minerals, according to a 2025 US Geological Survey report.
Data like that is why Nick Hayman, the director of the Oklahoma Geological Survey, believes many U.S. citizens feel the pendulum has swung too far toward relying on an international supply chain. He explained critical minerals are essential not only to the Trump administration but have been for several decades.
"If we are dependent on EVs (electric vehicles), cell phones, — you name it — in our economy, then we should be able to count on some portion of that in a domestic supply chain," Hayman said. "And that is what the President's executive orders have been about, saying that we need to do more of this in the United States."
While Hayman noted critical minerals manufacturing in the US would decrease the nation's foreign reliance on the materials, Westwin Elements CEO and Founder KaLeigh Long has said she's encountered global pessimism. She said skeptics have told her the US is the worst place to operate due to permitting, high costs and how controversial her work is.
The doubt some have in Long's vision adds not only more pressure for her business to perform, but also for other potential businesses hoping to capitalize on the same industry.
"So certainly if we failed, it would further probably bolster the global sentiment that don't manufacture in the United States of America," Long said.
In the long run, Class 1 nickel products have the potential to help tackle climate change and assist in national security — one of the reasons Marissa Espinosa, Westwin Elements' communications manager, said she chose to work for the company.
"My experience in the military gave me a very real understanding of how much our defense systems rely on critical materials," she said in an email to KOSU. "Whether it's aircraft, submarines, or next-generation platforms, they all depend on secure access to key minerals. That perspective made it clear to me how important it is for the U.S. to strengthen its own capacity to produce and refine those materials."
However, in the process of protecting the US or fighting global warming, Indigenous communities are often at the heart of where the extraction process occurs, causing deforestation, displacement and, in some cases, soil and water contamination from mining waste.
Krystal Two Bulls (Oglala Lakota/Northern Cheyenne), the executive director of the Indigenous-led coalition Honor the Earth, claims there is no such thing as clean energy because of the damage that usually follows this type of work and its impact on Indigenous communities.
"Even with renewables, they have their cons," Two Bulls said. "They have their impacts. Where do the resources and minerals come from, like solar panels or to build wind turbines? How do they impact the ecosystems that they're on?"
Studies have found that more than half of energy transition minerals, such as nickel, are located on or near the lands of Indigenous and land-connected individuals, such as farmers or pastoralists.
Mining is dormant in southwest Oklahoma, after unsuccessful gold mining attempts in the Wichita Mountains in the 1900s. Westwin officials said the company currently relies on mined products from Turkey and Australia for its nickel refining process.
"How much of this can become a domestic economy versus an international one is kind of where we're going to see where it goes," Hayman, the OGS director, said. "I think it's socially responsible to have that conversation because a lot of the elements that go into our technologies are being mined in places like the Congo in Africa, using incredibly irresponsible labor practices, and incredibly environmentally catastrophic techniques. And we are subsidizing much of that."
Ensuring ethical mining and labor practices is at the heart of Long's mission to open America's first major nickel refinery, a goal she has vocally expressed. She has often talked about her relationship to the Congo and how she wants to clean up a notoriously dirty industry, as well as how she hopes to provide jobs in the Lawton area and potentially for tribal citizens.
But, when asked about how many tribal citizens are employed at Westwin Elements, a spokesperson said, "We do not maintain demographic information on our team, nor do we ask them to disclose this information in the hiring process. We absolutely welcome tribal applicants to apply for job openings at Westwin, where we value unique and diverse experiences. …The great thing about hiring the best person for the job is that it naturally creates a diverse pool of talent."
Both Tahdooahnippah and Kiowa Chairman Lawrence Spottedbird said they want economic growth and development in the area, but need to ensure it does not happen at the expense of their land, people or resources.
Is there evidence that Westwin Elements is harming the environment?
Like the state of Oklahoma, the city of Lawton is hungry for industrial development. It has multiple businesses, including a growing Goodyear tire manufacturing plant, a paper factory, Westwin Elements and a prospective rocket fuel company called Firehawk Aerospace.
Christina Cooper, the director of Comanche Nation's Office of Environmental Programs, understands why tribal members are worried, but notes it's not just about Westwin Elements.
"I think the concern will always be there — like the hazards that are possibly there — and not necessarily just with Westwin, just Industrial Park as a whole," Cooper said.
Initially, the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality held a meeting with Westwin Elements to determine what, if any, permits would be needed, according to an ODEQ spokesperson.
"Based on the information received from Westwin Elements staff on October 23, 2023, potential emissions from the facility are below 100 TPY (tons per year) of any criteria pollutant," ODEQ said in an email. "Although actual emissions will be less than 40 TPY of any regulated pollutant, the facility will be subject to an emission standard, equipment standard, or work practice standard."
ODEQ said Westwin Elements' demonstration plant did not meet the "permit exempt" criteria, and was "required to apply for Permit By Rule for on-site emergency generators."
Along with ODEQ, the Comanche Nation's Office of Environmental Programs is keeping up with its air and water monitoring.
Despite concerns that Westwin is an environmental threat, Cooper said the Comanche Nation's department testing shows Westwin Elements is meeting criteria.
Cooper said her office has had positive meetings with Westwin Elements officials, who allowed them to visit their property to watch their third-party testing be conducted.
"We'll continue to work and to monitor and research and just continue doing what we do to protect the environment and protect the nation's natural resources for future generations to come," Cooper said.
She advised reaching out to their office if any Comanche Nation citizens have concerns or questions.
The Kiowa Tribe is also working on conducting its own environmental assessment. The tribal chairman, Lawrence Spottedbird, said the tribe's prospective assessment will examine Westwin Elements' technology and the impact it has on the water, land and vegetation.
"We want to have somebody that we think can be objective and unbiased to look at their technology and give us their summary," Spottedbird said in a phone interview with KOSU. "And so that's, actually, what the CEO [KaLeigh Long] agreed to let us do."
So, what's next for the KCA community and Westwin Elements?
Westwin Elements announced it has entered into multiple sales purchase agreements with Traxys and Golden Age, totaling $1.7 billion in committed revenue, according to the company.
Long, Westwin's CEO, called the recent transaction with Traxys a "vote of confidence in Westwin and in American-made critical minerals." It includes the purchase of 10,000 metric tonnes per annum, or tpa, of Westwin's high-purity nickel briquettes and up to 17,000 tpa of mixed hydroxide precipitate — another form of nickel.
The startup is working to ramp up its Phase 1 of production, which aims to produce 18,000 tpa of high-purity nickel a year. It is on track to build its first commercial facility once its capital stack is finalized.
"Westwin plans to reach its full nameplate capacity by 2027 and is in active commercial discussions, either through Traxys as its commercial interface or directly for non-Traxys volumes, with multiple global customers across the national defense, aerospace, energy and specialty alloy sectors," a Westwin Elements press release said.
These agreements signify that Westwin Elements has sold 80 percent of its projected commercial revenue, laying the foundation for Long to provide generational wealth for her two children and for her company to fulfill its mission of "earning a win for the West."
"I was the first investor into Westwin," Long said. "I'm the sole financial provider for my two children and me. There is no, you know, rich daddy or granddaddy waiting on me."
While Long continues to ensure that Westwin Elements does not fail, the Comanche Nation community is working to safeguard what they hold dear: their relatives, their homelands, their language and culture.
But due to legislative and legal decisions that have eroded tribal sovereignty, the KCA tribes have limited power to shut down industrial companies that continue to operate within the community.
"I know people get frustrated because they ask me so often like, 'Well, have you figured it out yet? Are they gone yet?" Tahdoohnippah said. "And part of the unfortunate thing is that we don't have hardly any tools at our disposal, which is why sometimes all you have is kind of the old school activism."
Westwin Resistance, an Indigenous-led grassroots coalition supported by Honor the Earth, has stepped in to fill that role — with Kasya Whitley, leading the charge. She said the organization's very existence is a key indicator of a larger problem.
"The issue at hand is not really just isolated to this area," Whitley said. "There are fights like ours that are happening all across the state of Oklahoma and Turtle Island. And so I think that people need to understand that this is really a systemic issue."
Whitley has pointed to capitalism as a major challenge in protecting the environment, and she said she is surprised more people aren't concerned about the economic system.
She worries how her community and the larger landscape of Mother Earth will continue to be impacted if money is valued over the protection of all living things.
"I do believe that we are going to be furthering an ecological disaster, which is that our planet will no longer be sustainable for human life," she said. "And I don't know if that would happen in 20 years, but I feel like we are going to see a rapid acceleration if we continue with industrialization for even two more decades."
While Westwin Elements furthers its expansion and Lawton's industrialization continues, Whitley said she will not just sit by and watch.
Taking no chances on its environmental impact is essential for Whitley and her coalition's larger goal because it means defending not only the land and water, but also Indigenous teachings and ways of being that they hope will continue to be passed on for many more generations to come.
"Once you rip up a piece of paper, you can't really put it back to the way that it was before," Whitley said, giving a metaphor for the Earth. " Like, you could tape it together. You could glue it together. But, like, the lines will still be there. …I feel like the narrative needs to be, 'How can we, as people like, undo some of the damage that we've done so that we can give future generations a fighting chance.'"
This story is supported by the Earth Journalism Network and was the last in a series about the Kiowa-Comanche-Apache community and Westwin Elements.
This report was produced by the Oklahoma Public Media Exchange, a collaboration of public media organizations. Help support collaborative journalism by donating at the link at the top of this webpage.
