LaDonna Brave Bull Allard grins broadly as she contemplates the significance of the victory she and other members of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe have just secured. The tribe began a bitter battle against an oil company and the federal government in 2016, when the Dakota Access pipeline was built on their doorstep, threatening their water supply. Four years on, a US court has ruled in favour of the tribe and ordered the pipeline to close within 30 days. Ms Allard is aware of how momentous an occasion this is. It is not often that a Native American tribe with scant resources defeats a major oil company, not least one that has the backing of the US president. For the tribal elder, the court ruling is recognition of her people's sovereignty over land that was stolen from them centuries ago.
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