I've heard from someone who was concerned about this group and DeArmon AKA "Yellowbird." They'd seen a call for elders to take part, so a family member was signed up because they thought it'd give them a chance to travel. Then they heard questions being raised about this organization.
Here's my respondse to them.
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Some elders gatherings are legit, but many are not. Many just want to use the presence of elders to make their New Age organizations or teachings seem legit.
In general I would be very cautious about trusting any group sponsoring an elders gathering which is not Native run, or working with a university or non-government organization (NGO).
We have a thread researching Adam DeArmon, who is a white man calling himself Adam Yellowbird.
http://www.newagefraud.org/smf/index.php?topic=1791.0 He's worked with frauds posing as medicine people, and also sells sweatlodges and other ceremonies.
If you go to "elders" you'll see that at least one of them is in fact a white who was trained by plastics. Jim Beard is a white man trained by the late exploiter Wallace Black Elk and also David Swallow. David Swallow is a ceremony seller condemned many times by other Lakota.
Others are dubious. One claims to be Olmec. The Olmec haven't been around for 600 years, and much of what we know about them is speculation.
Most seem to be artists. Some are activists, or say in some vague way what they do is work for peace. Some do seem to be medicine people. I don't doubt many are sincere, genuine, and want to do what's right. But I think most are probably like [your family member], unaware that DeArmon is really using them to promote himself and make him seem more legit.
Notice the photo of DeArmon, where he tries to make it seem like he's an Indian, just as he does with the New Age name he gave himself.
