Native American and Indigenous Studies Association

Native American and Indigenous Studies Association
Name	Native American and Indigenous Studies Association
Formation	2007
Type	Scholarly association
Headquarters	United States

Native American and Indigenous Studies Association is a scholarly association established to support research on Indigenous peoples across the Americas, the Pacific, and circumpolar regions. It brings together scholars, activists, tribal leaders, curators, students, and community members from institutions such as Harvard University, University of California, Berkeley, Yale University, University of Toronto, and University of British Columbia. The association engages with topics connected to lands like Navajo Nation, Nunavut, Aotearoa New Zealand, Hawaii, and Guatemala and interacts with cultural institutions including the Smithsonian Institution, Museum of Anthropology (Vancouver), National Museum of the American Indian, British Museum, and American Philosophical Society.

History

The association emerged from conferences and networks involving participants from American Indian Movement, Association for Asian American Studies, Organization of American Historians, American Historical Association, and tribal colleges such as Haskell Indian Nations University and Diné College. Founding conveners included faculty and activists affiliated with University of Arizona, University of New Mexico, Brown University, Cornell University, and University of Minnesota. Early gatherings referenced landmark legal and political events like Wounded Knee incident (1973), Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act, Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe, and discussions around treaties such as the Treaty of Fort Laramie (1868), the Treaty of Medicine Creek, and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The association’s institutionalization paralleled developments at entities like the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Ford Foundation, National Endowment for the Humanities, and university presses including University of Nebraska Press and Duke University Press.

Mission and Objectives

The association advances scholarship connected to communities represented by nations such as the Cherokee Nation, Sioux Nation, Haida Nation, Maori (New Zealand), and Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami. Its objectives echo concerns raised in documents and events like the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the Indian Civil Rights Act, the American Indian Religious Freedom Act, and initiatives linked to Occupy Movement–era discussions on sovereignty. The association supports research framed by scholars associated with Vine Deloria Jr., Linda Tuhiwai Smith, Angela Davis, Jeff Corntassel, and Gerald Vizenor and engages with archives and collections such as the Bancroft Library, Library of Congress, National Archives, and the British Library.

Organization and Governance

Governance structures mirror practices at organizations including the American Council of Learned Societies, Modern Language Association, American Association of University Professors, and the Social Science Research Council. The association’s leadership has included elected officers from universities like State University of New York, University of Washington, McGill University, University of New Mexico, and Arizona State University. Committees interact with tribal institutions such as First Nations University of Canada, Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, Choctaw Nation, Pueblo of Zuni, and the Fond du Lac Band. Administrative decisions have been informed by legal frameworks including the Indian Arts and Crafts Act, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, and case law such as McGirt v. Oklahoma.

Conferences and Publications

Annual conferences rotate among cities and campuses including Santa Fe, New Mexico, Vancouver, British Columbia, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Toronto, Ontario, and Honolulu, Hawaii with sessions featuring participants from National Congress of American Indians, Assembly of First Nations, Native Women's Association of Canada, Indigenous Environmental Network, and Cultural Survival. The association produces proceedings, journals, and book series in collaboration with presses such as Duke University Press, University of Arizona Press, University of Minnesota Press, Routledge, and Oxford University Press. Its programming highlights work by scholars and creators connected to projects like Smoke Signals (film), The Round House, Ceremony (novel), The Last of the Mohicans, and exhibitions at the National Museum of the American Indian.

Awards and Fellowships

The association administers prizes and fellowships recognizing scholarship and community-engaged work, paralleling awards offered by institutions such as the Guggenheim Foundation, MacArthur Foundation, American Council of Learned Societies, National Research Council, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Recipients have included authors and researchers associated with titles and projects like The Other Slavery, Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States, An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States for Young People, Braiding Sweetgrass, and curatorial work at the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology. Fellowships support collaborations with archives and centers including the American Philosophical Society, Bancroft Library, Newberry Library, and the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.

Partnerships and Outreach

Partnerships extend to tribal governments such as Stockbridge–Munsee Community, Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, Yurok Tribe, Ojibwe (Chippewa), and intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations including the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, World Wildlife Fund, Greenpeace, and International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs. Outreach includes curricular initiatives connected to school districts and institutions like Oglala Lakota College, Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, Seattle Public Schools, Albuquerque Public Schools, and collaborations with museums such as the Field Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the National Gallery of Canada. Programs address repatriation cases, land claims, and cultural revitalization efforts involving sites such as Bears Ears National Monument, Isla de la Juventud, Makah Reservation, and Fort Ross State Historic Park.

Category:Scholarly societies