AIC 53rd Annual Meeting

The conservation team at the National Museum of the American Indian strives to implement the Museum’s mission of service and partnership with its Native and Indigenous constituency, while acknowledging that we are continually learning how to effectively collaborate. The opening session presentation, given by our Head of Conservation, discussed in a broader sense the effective elements of collaboration learned over the years at the NMAI. It relayed how the spirit of collaboration, necessitates  operating in service to the collective goal, prioritizing the group’s objectives over individual agendas. Trust serves as the foundation for any collaborative endeavor and is built on consistent and transparent communication, reliability, and mutual respect. Humility, equitable power dynamic among all stakeholders, as well as truth recognition and an understanding of historical facts and present realities are essential. Power dynamics play a significant role in collaboration, balancing power among stakeholders ensures equitable participation. Access to relevant resources and open information sharing ensures well-informed decision making. Commitment follow-through and continuity are critical to maintaining trust, demonstrating reliability and sustainability supporting long-term impact. Preserving what is valued identifies and safeguards core principles, traditions, and goals essential to the collective identity and purpose of the collaboration.  

The NMAI has a long history of working with Indigenous communities and institutions throughout the Americas. Each engagement and partnership are unique with its own hurdles, successes and failures. During this presentation, we will take a closer look at our current, long-term collaborations and critically review their efficacies and frustrations. Through honest discussions with several current partners and colleagues, we hope to offer lessons learned that will contribute to and inform the larger goal of effective collaboration within our conservation community. While our partners will participate during the talk through prerecorded videos to respect their time and community commitments – acknowledging the difficulties attending the conference in person – we would like to offer a Q&A session with our colleagues remotely listening in following this talk.