Testimony and Speeches

Jim Gray: Making Change Happen

Producer
Native Nations Institute
Year

Former Principal Chief James Gray of the Osage Nation makes a guest speaker appearance to the January In Tucson class “Making Change Happen”.  In Chief Gray’s own words, he shares his direct experiences with indigenous governance for the Osage people and gives a larger context to the historic challenges and endurance the Osage Nation has shown in their encounters with U.S. intervention.  The years he spent has Principal Chief offer an inside look into the ways a Tribal Leader works with the tools of self-governance while taking note of the ways conflict was navigated.  Jim Gray gives insight to both his time running an Executive branch, the endeavors of Constitutional reform, and current ways he continues to advocate for the people of Osage Nation.

People
Native Nations
Resource Type
Citation

Native Nations Institute. "Jim Gray: Making Change Happen" Native Nations Institute, University of Arizona. Tucson, Arizona. January 26, 2021

Transcript available upon request. Please email: nni@email.arizona.edu

Governor Stephen Roe Lewis Distinguished Tribal Leader Lecture

Producer
Native Nations Institute
Year

Governor Stephen Roe Lewis of the Gila River Indian Community visited the University of Arizona to speak at January in Tucson: Distinguished Tribal Leader Lecture sponsored by the Native Nations Institute and held at the Indigenous Peoples Law & Policy program at James E. Rogers College of Law. In the tradition of his family legacy of leadership for the Akimel O’otham and Pee-Posh people of this desert riparian region of Arizona, Governor Lewis has been a steady leader in the Tribal Government of the Gila River Indian Community through several successful initiatives centered around revitalization of the Gila River and new Gila River Indian Community schools. His approach to Native Nation Building is exemplified in these examples as he shows careful planning and consideration to creating innovative ideas, strong capable institutional support, and centering cultural match to the outcomes. This dedication to a vision of self-determination by leadership in the Gila River Indian Community as shown by Governor Lewis presents an example to the potential of Native Nation Building.

Transcript available upon request. Please email: nni@email.arizona.edu

Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez Distinguished Tribal Leaders Lecture

Producer
Native Nations Institute
Year

The Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program hosted the Distinguished Tribal Leaders Lecture at the University of Arizona James E Rogers College of Law featuring the recently elected Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez. The president gave his views on working for a Native Nation and making governance work for people in he Navajo Nation. He was joined by Miss Navajo Nation 2019 Shaandiin Parrish and Deputy Chief of Staff Milton Bluehouse Jr. who also gave their thoughts about serving their Native Nation.

Native Nations
Resource Type
Citation

Native Nations Institute. "Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez Distinguished Tribal Leaders Lecture," Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program, University of Arizona. Tucson, Arizona. December 3, 2019

Transcript available upon request. Please email: nni@email.arizona.edu

Rebecca Tsosie: Indigenous Sustainability and Resilience to Climate Extremes

Producer
Native Nations Institute
Year

The School of Geography & Development presented the “My Arizona” Lecture of Prof. Rebecca Tsosie, Regents Professor of Law at Univeristy of Arizona on Friday, November 1, 2019. Her lecture, "Indigenous Sustainability and Resilience to Climate Extremes: Traditional Knowledge and the Systems of Survival" was recorded by the Native Nations Institute and abstract as follows: Tribal governments are not just "stakeholders" in the public policy debates over climate change; they are sovereign governments with longstanding political and legal rights to land, water, and natural resources. There is a vital role for Indigenous concepts of sustainability within the frameworks that drive climate policy, and this lecture explores the legal, political and moral arguments for the inclusion of tribal governments within Arizona, national and global climate governance.

Resource Type
Citation

Native Nations Institute. "Rebecca Tsosie: Indigenous Sustainability and Resilience to Climate Extremes" My Arizona Lecture Series, The School of Geography & Development, University of Arizona. Tucson, Arizona. November 1, 2019

Transcript available upon request. Please email: nni@email.arizona.edu

Navigating the Structures of Native Nations

Producer
Native Nations Institute
Year

Native Nations Institute presented a panel at TENWEST 2019 in Tucson called “Navigating the Structures of Native Nations.” Arizona is home to 22 Native nations, many whom are major economic drivers. Panelists presented an overview of Native nations including their socio-economic challenges, governmental form, authorities, laws, and economic environments. Representatives from two of Tucson’s Indigenous communities, the Tohono O’odham Nation and the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, shared suggestions for building effective inter-governmental relationships. Panelists included are:

Joan Timeche, Executive Director, Native Nations Institute

Austin Nunez, Chairman, San Xavier District Tohono O’odham Nation

Herminia Frias, Councilwoman, Pascua Yaqui Tribal Council

Resource Type
Citation

Native Nations Institute. "Navigating the Structures of Native Nations" TENWEST 2019. Tucson, Arizona. October 14, 2019

Transcript available upon request. Please email: nni@email.arizona.edu

Meeting the Need for Higher Education and Professional Development

Producer
Native Nations Institute
Year

Native Nations Institute and the Indigenous Governance Program presented a panel at TENWEST 2019 in Tucson called “Meeting the Need for Higher Education & Professional Development.” The panelists presented a case study on how the Indigenous Governance Program (and a proposed School of Indigenous Governance and Development that is still in the planning phase) at the University of Arizona was created to address a growing need for education related to Indigenous governance best practices among tribal nations in the U.S. and Indigenous communities around the world. To date, the program has reached over 350 participants from over 30 Native nations on 6 continents.

Included in the presentation are stories about how these programs have helped tribes to strengthen their governance, rebuild their nations, and demonstrate sovereignty in action. Panelists included are: 

Joan Timeche, Executive Director, Native Nations Institute

Tory Fodder, Indigenous Governance Program Manager

Robert Williams, Jr., JD, Professor, Regent’s Professor, Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program, University of Arizona

Transcript available upon request. Please email: nni@email.arizona.edu

Dr. Miriam Jorgensen: First Nations governance

Producer
The Australia and New Zealand School of Government (ANZSOG)
Year

Dr. Miriam Jorgensen, Research Director for the Native Nations Institute at the University of Arizona, spoke at ANZSOG's Reimagining Public Administration conference on February 20. Dr. Jorgensen said that First Nations governance structures were important for the strength of communities. “Not just narrow ones to deliver an education program, but ones which establish a public government for an Indigenous nation, in a form which has legitimacy in the community. She said that studies showed suicide levels in US communities depend on resilience factors – a lot of which are connected to sovereignty. Her work in Indigenous governance and economic development—in the US, Canada, and Australia—has addressed issues as wide-ranging as child welfare, policing and justice systems, natural-resource management, cultural stewardship, land ownership, tribal enterprises, housing, and financial education.

Resource Type
Topics
Citation

Australia and New Zealand School of Government (ANZSOG). Feb. 21, 2019. Dr. Miriam Jorgensen: First Nations governance [video file]. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaT9CkARA78

Transcripts are available upon request. Please contact the Native Nations Institute for a transcript of this video: nni@email.arizona.edu

Dr. Karen Diver: Indigenous autonomy is the way forward

Producer
The Australia and New Zealand School of Government (ANZSOG)
Year

Dr. Karen Diver spoke at ANZSOG's Reimagining Public Administration conference on February 20, as part of a plenary on International perspectives on Indigenous affairs. The Native American tribal leader and former adviser to President Obama, said that Indigenous communities had been inexorably changed by conflict, and needed to design systems to protect rights and land. She said that autonomy had been shown to be the best way to generate economic growth and address social issues. “Co-design, co-management only works when the other side follows through. Co-ordination needs to give way to autonomy, give us big buckets and freedom to solve problems our own way,” she said. “If the problem is juvenile delinquency, then we know the kids and their families, we know the schools. The solution that we might come up with acknowledges the broader picture.” “The solutions we design are the ones that work.”

People
Resource Type
Topics
Citation

Australia and New Zealand School of Government (ANZSOG). Feb. 21, 2019. Dr. Karen Diver: Indigenous autonomy is the way forward [video file]. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmYfuhK9JzA&t=2s

Transcripts are available upon request. Please contact the Native Nations Institute for a transcript of this video: nni@email.arizona.edu

Herminia Frias: Native Women in Governance

Producer
Native Nations Institute
Year

Herminia “Minnie” Frias, Councilwoman, Pascua Yaqui Tribal Council. Councilwoman Frias shares her journey of being a Native woman leader, drawing from her experience in serving on her Nation’s Tribal Council both as a Chairwoman, and as a Council Member. Frias was the youngest person and first woman to be elected as Tribal Chair of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe. 

In addition to her tenure in Tribal government, she also ran the non-profit Native Images, Inc., serving as Executive Director; and has served as an International Advisory Council Member for Native Nations Institute, and a Bush Foundation Partnership Manager. Herminia carries a wealth of knowledge in the area of Native Nation Building but also adds valuable experience as a leading Native woman in her community, navigating the many facets of indigenous governance that are necessary to create effective leadership. 

This speech was recorded as part of the Native Women in Governance Speaker Series presented by the Native Nations Institute’s Indigenous Governance Program in collaboration with the Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy program at the University of Arizona, James E. Rogers College of Law.

Native Nations
Resource Type
Citation

Native Nations Institute. "Herminia Frias: Native Women in Governance" Native Women In Governance Speaker Series. Tucson, Arizona. January 23, 2019

 

Transcript available upon request. Please email: nni@email.arizona.edu

Shannon Keller O'Loughlin: Native Women in Governance

Producer
Native Nations Institute
Year

Shannon Keller O'Loughlin, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, is an attorney and the Executive Director of the Association on American Indian Affairs. Shannon was also the former Chief of Staff, National Indian Gaming Commission, a member of President Obama’s NAGPRA Review Committee, and a Cultural Property Advisory Committee Member for the U.S. State Dept.

Shannon’s perspectives and experiences as a leading attorney in her field provide unique insights on the challenges of navigating commitments in leadership, while also respecting the values of Native communities that are served. Shannon stresses the importance of understanding key policy decisions being made at the Federal level, and their potential impact on Indian Country.

This speech was recorded as part of the Native Women in Governance Speaker Series presented by the Native Nations Institute’s Indigenous Governance Program in collaboration with the Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy program at the University of Arizona, James E. Rogers College of Law.

Resource Type
Citation

Native Nations Institute. "Shannon Keller O'Loughlin: Native Women in Governance" Native Women In Governance Speaker Series. Tucson, Arizona. January 10, 2019

Transcript available upon request. Please email: nni@email.arizona.edu