Respecting Ancestral Rights in Belize
A&H Indigenous Futures member K. Anne Plyburn was invited to develop a series of workshops to introduce the topic of heritage resource management to descendant Maya communities in Belize, who have recently won the right to hold and manage their Indigenous lands and are for the first time in a position to write government policy as it pertains to their rights. Belize is a developing nation with an embarassment of archaeological riches, and the number of archeeological sites and quantity of museum-quality ancient art yielded through excavation is more than the government can easily protect. These decisions about heritage resources are an important part of Maya human rights and should be included in policy statements about land rights. However, the complexity of heritage management is not always obvious, and understanding the reprocussions of decisions about the use and access to cultural property is crucial for achievement of informed consent underlying ethical policy development. Crucially, no Maya speakers have been consulted about their opinions and preferences for the treatment of their ancestral sites by archeologists.
Alongside Dr. Gabriel Wrobel of Michigan State and a bioanthropology specialist in the study of Maya human remains, the workshops will offer information to the Maya communities about the possible uses of the past and the pros and cons of archeological research, preservation, and repatriation. The ultimate goal is enhanced participation of Maya peoples in the research and use of their heritage resources.
Locally Based, Globally Relevant
Locally Based, Globally Relevant, guest curated by A&H Indigenous Futures member Eduardo S. Brondizio, is an interactive exhibition showing the importance and scale of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities along six pathways.
- Land & Water Management
- Conservation & Restoration
- Assessment & Monitoring Practices
- Reclamation & Resistance Movement
- Environmental Governance
- People’s Relationship to Nature.
Comprised of nearly half a billion people globally with over 5,000 groups and 4,000 languages, Indigenous Peoples hold the territorial rights to and manage over a quarter of the global land surface, including the planet's most well-conserved ecosystems. Their contributions are locally based, but influence entire regional landscapes and have global relevance for biodiversity and climate action. More broadly, Indigenous knowledge and worldviews offer alternative ways of understanding, interacting, and living with nature.
Six case studies are used to illustrate the impact of Indigenous knowledge and understanding in these domains, offering alternative ways of thinking about the relationship between nature and humanity that have global impacts.
This exhibition opened on August 26th, 2024, and is currently on view at the Indiana University Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.
A Mixe pö'ts kast: Linguistic Histories of Mexico
The Ayöök language (also known as Totontepecano Mixe) is spoken by approximately 5000 people in Mexico and the US. It is still being learned by some children, but at great risk of falling out of use over the next century. Mixe language activist Noé Alcántara Gómez has been a singularly important figure in efforts to preserve his language and promote its continued use. Since 2013, A&H Indigenous Futures member Daniel F. Suslak has been working closely with Alcántara Gómez to document the culture and history of his home community -- Totontepec, Mixe, Oaxaca -- and develop pedagogical materials for both Totontepec and the Totontepecano cultural center in Mexico City that Alcántara Gómez co-founded.
With the help of Suslak and the generosity of an A&H Futures Grant, Alcántara Gómez's forthcoming Mixe podcast ("pö'ts kast") will feature an interview with Alvin Schoenhals, a retired missionary linguist who lived in Totontepec in the 1960s under the auspices of the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL). During that period of time Schoenhals and his wife produced a dictionary of Ayöök and a translation of the New Testament. These primary materials will have enormous value both for Mixe people interested in this period of their history and Schoenhals' experiences and for scholars interested in the impactful but controversial role that the SIL has played in indigenous organizing both in Mexico and around the globe.
Northern Peru: Racialization, Religion, and Labor
A&H Indigenous Futures member Olga Rodríguez-Ulloa's plan for research in the Indigenous Futures initiative is to investigate the connections between racialized forms of religion and labor broadly considered within the situated space of Northern Peru, a site of multilayered Indigenous experience. The Moche culture (100-700 AC) flourished in the region way before the arrival of the Inca Empire. Recent archeological findings, for example uncovering the Lady of Cao (650 AC), reflect a polytheistic society in which women held an important political and spiritual presence. Specifically, she is interested in exploring the region’s rich cultural and religious traditions in relation to contemporary cholo and chola spiritual practices. "I link this directly to my autobiography," explains Rodríguez-Ulloa, "my grandmother was born in the early 20th century on the largest sugar plantation in this area, Casa Grande, owned by a German family and operated by Indigenous, Black, and later Chinese workers, which was the space of union organizing, repression, and transnational cultural exchanges for long overlooked in Andean Studies."
Fraternal Organizations and Commodifying Cultural Heritage
A&H Indigenous Futures Team Member Heather K. Calloway's research project aims to investigate the economic exploitation of cultural commodification within fraternal organizations. These organizations are social groups that share common interests, values, or goals, often based on ethnic, religious, or professional affiliations. Many have a long history of promoting cultural identity and preserving traditions. However, the commodification of cultural heritage for economic gain has become a growing concern in recent years.
The project will examine the extent to which fraternal organizations engage in the commodification of cultural heritage and the potential economic exploitation that may result from such practices. It will explore the role of fraternal organizations in shaping cultural identity and the impact of commodification on the communities they represent.
The findings of this research project will contribute to the understanding of the complex relationship between cultural heritage, economic exploitation, and fraternal organizations. It will provide valuable insights for policymakers, museum leaders, community leaders, and members of organizations to address the challenges associated with cultural commodification and promote responsible practices that respect and preserve cultural heritage.
TribalCrit
Vanessa Miller, A&H Indigenous Futures Team Member and Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, is launching a reseach project on the intersection of Indian law and education law, an understudied area within education law. In this project, she is particularly focused on advancing and applying the tenents of TribalCrit, or Tribal Critical Race Theory, to this study. She is working with an Indian law expert to research the enforcement of federal treaties on state education law provisions.