2026 Perspectives on Indigenous Resilience & Haury Networking Event to be Held on April 30!
The Haury Program will be hosting their annual showcase of Haury graduate research grantees on April 30th at ENR2 in N225 and via Zoom, starting at 10 am.
- Shawnell Damon, Doctoral Student, Public Health
- LaCher Pacheco, Doctoral Student, College of Education
- Chrisa Whitmore, PhD Student, Environmental Sciences
- Majerle Lister, PhD Candidate, School of Geography, Development, and the Environment
- Matthew Tafoya, PhD Student, American Indian Studies
- Felisia Tagaban Gaskin, PhD Student, Center for the Study of Higher Education
- Byron Upshaw, PhD Student, Health Behavior Health Promotion
- Nicholas Wilson, Doctoral Candidate, Center for the Study of Higher Education
This year, they are adding a fun networking event after the presentations over lunch catered by Tucson Tamales, where you will have a chance to meet other Haury awardees and others working in the complex space of Indigenous Resilience at the University of Arizona. Please note that this portion of the event will not be available via Zoom.
Please RSVP here by Friday, April 24: https://forms.gle/Xzb3FuktBCKsRpAQA
The eight graduate students presenting in this year's showcase received a 2025/26 Haury Graduate Research Award to help them conduct research on issues of Indigenous resilience, or a Degree Completion Grant to help them finish their research and other requirements to complete their studies at the University of Arizona. This program was first designed by the Haury Program and our DAF Board in 2020 to help recruit top-tier graduate students to the University of Arizona. Since 2020, this program has: 1. Strengthened Indigenous resilience academic pathways at UA; 2. Built capacity of early-career Indigenous Resilience scholars and practitioners; 3. Developed best practices for respectful research and engagement between UA and Indigenous communities, and 4. Contributed to achieving goals of Indigenous communities.
Respectful Engagement and Reciprocity with Indigenous Communities: The Haury Program is dedicated to supporting work that fosters and promotes reciprocal relationships with people and communities, and we incorporate this requirement into our applications and reporting. We work with Native Peoples Technical Assistance Office at the University (NPTAO) and integrate their presentation on respectful tribal engagement and research into our Informational Webinar. We also require researchers to provide proof of completed NPTAO training or consultation, and support by tribal communities for the research projects. In the first five years of this program, our awardees developed a large array of best practices for respectful engagement with Indigenous communities, as well as helped Indigenous peoples achieve their goals in numerous ways. One example is a video “We Are Still Here” produced by Tommie Lorene, a 2024 cohort member, on Duwamish Tribe or dxwdəwʔabš. The video showcases Duwamish culture, strength, and resiliency despite lacking federal recognition and funding, and is now shown in their cultural center.
Since 2020, total 30 awardees received grants, of which 7 were for Master's students, 21 PhD students or candidates, 1 undergraduate student and one special award was awarded for research of an assistant professor. The total funds awarded between 2020 and 2025 were over half a million dollars. Colleges and / or areas of research by awardees include Public Health, Education, Environmental Science, Natural Resources, Geography, American Indian Studies, Anthropology, Human Rights Practice, Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy, Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Applied Bioscience, Nursing, Arid Land Resources, and Law.
“The Haury award has enhanced my ability to understand and implement Engineering protocol and experiments as a non-Engineering student. This experience has enhanced my understanding of environmental science from a valuable perspective and find my place in a laboratory setting which not only heightens my work but allows me to contribute unique perspectives to the laboratory team. The Haury award has also enhanced my capacity to participate in conversations at the nexus of food, energy, water, and soil – I am invited to conferences to share my interdisciplinary research in the field of environmental science and engineering focused on science communication for resilient communities. My research was awarded at the 2025 AISES conference, which would not have been possible without the support of the Haury award.” - Nieves V.zquez, M.S., 2025 Cohort
The Haury Program is a University of Arizona-embedded philanthropic program established in 2014. Since 2020, the Haury Program has been focusing on advancing Indigenous resilience, especially environmental and water resilience. By leveraging University of Arizona excellence and resources, the Haury Program invests in people and programs at the University of Arizona, as well as community partnerships and Native Nations directly. For more information, visit Haury Program's website.