James Siva, CNIGA’s Chairman, serves as the Vice Chairman for the Morongo Band of Mission Indians in Cabazon, Calif. where he helps advance new economic development opportunities for the tribe and implements tribal policies that guide the 35,000-acre Morongo Indian Reservation.

Born and raised on the Morongo reservation, he credits his family for instilling within him a deep commitment to serving his tribe and preserving its rich culture. His mother served on the Tribal Council in the 1990s.

Dedicated to the ideal that the tribe’s core values should guide its business activities, Siva has played key roles in Morongo’s pursuit and establishment of new economic development projects that align with the tribe’s principles of self-reliance and self-determination. Siva helped create Tribal Capital Markets, LLC, a New York-based financial services firm formed by Morongo in 2015 to assist tribes and other clients in achieving economic growth while also developing future generations of tribal financial professionals. Siva is also active in efforts to expand Morongo’s retail, service, hospitality and dining offerings along Interstate 10 as part of a master-planned development that will further diversify and strengthen the tribe’s portfolio of business enterprises.

Siva graduated cum laude from Columbia University with a bachelor’s degree in Ethnicity and Race Studies. He was the inaugural recipient of Columbia's Native Alumni Seven Generation Award for Outstanding Community Service.

Siva and his wife, Christina, are the proud parents of three children. He volunteers at First Congregational Church of Fullerton, where his wife serves as pastor, and he is active in the church’s Crop Walk and Hot Meals Ministry, which both provide food to those in need.