Reflecting on the 2015 Native American and Indigenous Studies Association Annual Meeting

The 2015 Native American and Indigenous Studies Association (NAISA) annual conference was held in Washington D.C., attracting around 1,000 attendees. The conference featured discussions on important issues such as Native pride, battles for indigenous rights, and the importance of Native scholarship. Various panels covered topics including gender studies, indigenous studies beyond North America, and a critical discussion on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The author reflects on presenting a paper on Fourth World Theory and Indigenous Pedagogies at the conference, emphasizing the importance of indigenous epistemologies in education. The conference concluded with plans for the next meeting in Honolulu, aiming to deepen connections between Native American studies and Pacific studies.