Six Haury Native Pathways Graduate Research Awards Awarded This Summer!

Native Pathways Awards Program is designed and administered by the Haury Program to strengthen the academic pipeline for Native American and Indigenous Resilience students and scholars, with an emphasis on UArizona programs and people devoted to Native and Indigenous resilience education, research, and outreach. These awards support the research of graduate students who bring knowledge and experience on matters relevant to Native American and Indigenous resilience especially those addressing water access and water quality challenges and those who have experience or are interested in strengthening their skills related to tribal customs and governance, traditional knowledge, and ways of approaching resilience challenges of Native American and Indigenous communities that respect both. These awards are a part of a larger commitment to Tribal Resilience by the Haury Program started by the Haury Donor-Advised Fund Board in 2020.

After the open call published in March of 2023, the following graduate students and projects were selected for awards:

• Mr. Donald Unger, PhD Student, UA Department of History, mentored by Dr. Morrisey; The funds awarded will support Mr. Unger’s research on Diné water issues related to the reclamation of coal and uranium mining sites on Dinétah Bikéyah;
• Ms. Nizhoni Tallas, PhD Student, UA School of Natural Resources and the Environment, mentored by Dr. Lien; Ms. Tallas’s research will examine the intersectionality of Indigenous communities within the national, tribal, and state parks;
• Mr. Christopher Yazzie, PhD Student, UA Chemical and Environmental Engineering Dep, mentored by Dr. Karanikola. Mr. Yazzie’s project is focused on addressing equitable water access for Native American and Indigenous communities;
• Ms. Jessica Begay – Dine College, mentored by Dr. Skaltsas, Dine College and Ms. Shopa, UA Program Manager; Ms. Begay’s project will build on previous work investigating ecological importance of sagebrush populations and the effects of changing climatic conditions, and will aim to compare the fungal endophytic communities of Artemisia species during the drought summer of 2021 and the subsequent summer following an unusual winter;
• Mr. Mark Clytus, PhD Student, UA American Indian Studies, mentored by Dr. Tippeconnic Fox; Mr. Clytus’ research topic will bring knowledge and experience on matters relevant to Native American and Indigenous resilience through applying Indigenous Perspective for Cultural Sustainable Engineering Education Curriculum in Higher Education for Native American Students; and
• Ms. Anu Sethuraman, PhD Student, UA Environmental Science, mentored by Dr. Hoover: Ms. Sethuraman seeks to combine water quality/environmental exposures research with climate change research using a ”community engaged research framework” on the Navajo Nation.

Congratulations to all the awardees, and we can’t wait to see all the results! Haury Program Director, Toni Massaro added: “Few things bring Haury Program more pleasure and pride than fortifying Native Pathways at UArizona. This annual grants process has elevated Indigenous voices, supported amazing research and outreach, and advanced our core mission of promoting tribal resilience.”

If you have a chance, please join us on November 1, 2023, at 10 a.m. at the Arizona Institute for Resilience”s “coffee hour” at ENR2 Building and meet the awardees in person.

To learn more about the Haury Program and their funding opportunities please visit their website https://www.haury.arizona.edu or social media (Facebook, Instagram or Twitter)