Karletta Chief named to inaugural endowed professorship in Indigenous resilience

Karletta Chief, a renowned Diné hydrologist and director of the University of Arizona Indigenous Resilience Center, is the inaugural recipient of the Agnese Nelms Haury Endowed Professorship in Indigenous Resilience.

The center and the Agnese Nelms Haury Program, both units in the U of A's Arizona Institute for Resilience, announced the professorship earlier this month. The center, known as IRes, was founded in 2021 with a vision to help Native American communities lead sustainable environmental solutions. The center's team of faculty, staff and community members has raised over $28 million to help address the challenges that tribal communities face.

The endowed professorship is the latest milestone from the Haury Program, which was created in 2014 with a major gift from the heiress and philanthropist Agnese Nelms Haury to the University of Arizona Foundation. Haury passed away in 2014.

The program's mission honors her vision by supporting university, tribal and community programs and people working to address the adverse impacts of climate change on the environment and on human and nonhuman life. Since 2020, the Haury Program has focused its work on supporting Indigenous Resilience in particular. 

The endowed professorship represents the Haury Program's commitment to strengthening the U of A's capacity to recruit and retain global experts in Indigenous environmental resilience, said Toni Massaro, Haury Program executive director. With a primary focus on addressing water access, energy and food challenges that affect tribal communities, the professorship will continue the program's efforts to co-create climate adaptation solutions that lead with respectful tribal engagement and that blend education and research with Indigenous cultural values.

For the full press release please visit U of A News.