Are you an academic, researcher, advanced graduate student, museum professional, archivist, cultural resource management employee, archaeologist, Indigenous leader or expert, or tribal historic preservation officer? This symposium is for you, as well as any others interested in the current state or future of repatriation. We welcome your knowledge and invite you to submit a 500 word paper proposal for the 2025 Audain Symposium, by the deadline of Tuesday, April 1st, 2025, using the link at the bottom of this page. Participants will include scholars from a variety of backgrounds and geographic locations, with topics spanning a range of interests.
If accepted, your paper or presentation should be 20 minutes in duration, with an additional 10 minutes dedicated to Q&A from the audience. Visuals are encouraged, but not required. You will be notified of a decision by Tuesday, April 15th, 2025.
Those chosen to present are provided with complimentary lodging, meals, and travel funds/honoraria to participate in the symposium, held from Wednesday, May 14th to Saturday, May 17th, 2025 at UBC in Vancouver. Presenters agree to attend all events related to the symposium.
Due to the sensitive nature of some topics surrounding repatriation and the desire to foster deep discussions and opportunities for connection, presentations will be held in-person at UBC's campus, rather than remotely via Zoom. Presentations will not be recorded.
When the symposium concludes, select presentations will be published in an edited book volume. Participants will be given ample time to draft, edit, and refine their papers for publication.
Using the link below, please submit a proposal that describes how your paper or presentation relates to the 2025 theme ("Rethinking Patrimony, Restitution, & Repatriation: New Pathways & Puzzles in Native Cultural Heritage"). The following topics might assist with brainstorming your proposal:
Particularly novel or creative approaches to the repatriation of Indigenous belongings
Unique challenges or obstacles that arise in repatriation efforts across the globe, especially in relation to current political events, technological advances, modern declarations of sovereignty, etc
Repatriation case studies emanating from specific museums, Indigenous nations, private parties, university collections, or cultural institutions
Speculative research related to the future of repatriation
Legal loopholes and federal legislation (including, but not limited to, NAGPRA), or lack thereof
Contemporary debates in repatriation discourse
New NAGPRA guidelines
Definitions of repatriation that include music, literature/language, land, and intellectual property or intangible knowledge, in comparison to physical objects or material culture
Contested histories, claims, and descendant communities
Community versus institutional definitions of property, ownership, and stewardship
Alternative modes of repatriation (long-term loans, 3-D printing, replicas, etc)
The "afterlife" or return of repatriated objects
Emotions and reactions (positive, negative, or somewhere in-between) associated with repatriation