7th Annual Repatriation Conference

Accountable To Our Past, Committed To Our Future

An ALL VIRTUAL Community Conference

The Association on American Indian Affairs is excited to announce that the 7th Annual Repatriation Conference will be November, 3, 10, and 17, 2021, with special events, networking and keynote speakers between November 1st and November 19th. This will be a virtual conference again this year for everyone’s safety and to increase accessibility.
 
Repatriation is not only the act of returning Ancestors, their burial belongings, and sacred and cultural patrimony. Repatriation requires all parties involved – institutions, collectors, dealers, federal agencies, Tribal governments, attorneys, academics – to be truth tellers and healers. The 7th Annual Repatriation Conference will require us to acknowledge our accountability for the past and move together collectively, committed to a future where diverse Native American cultures and values are lived, protected and respected.

The Conference theme – Accountable to Our Past, Committed to Our Future – will be realized through interactive, virtual panels led by experts from diverse backgrounds within Tribal governments including Tribal repatriation practitioners and spiritual leaders, museums, academia, dealers and auctions, federal agencies, foreign museums, and legal counsel. These experts and partners will share examples and case studies where there has been a reckoning of history, and teach us about the process – using NAGPRA or other laws, or through consensual actions and best practices.

​The Conference will provide connection, ceremony, and healing for participants, while also providing education and training for everyone committed to healing the past. Participants will come together for a variety of relevant panel discussions, breakout sessions, workshops, and networking opportunities to unite all participants in one mind in order to envision a world where diverse Native American cultures and values are lived, protected, and respected.