Reflecting on 2024 - Year in Review
Established in 2014 with a $50 million bequest from the Mrs. Agnese Nelms Haury Estate, and a pivot in 2020, the Haury Program envisions a world in which Indigenous resilience, sovereignty, and ways of knowing are respected and advanced to meet climate change challenges, through globally impactful University of Arizona collaborations in research, education, and outreach. This is our Indigenous Resilience Initiative (“IRI”).
As a unique program at the University of Arizona and within the Arizona Institute for Resilience, the Haury Program seeks to deepen its impact in other ways by developing ties to philanthropic and other entities that share our mission, and serving as a communication hub for our shared work and goals. We underscore the principles of respect, reciprocity, and relationships, and strive to model an impactful trust-based philanthropy offering our financial and technical support to Indigenous peoples.
In the past year, our program contributed to Indigenous Resilience at large through the work of most of our awardees but especially through the work of the University of Arizona Indigenous Resilience Center (IRes). In their third year, IRes is becoming a fully functioning center with well-developed programming, research and networks, and we congratulate them on all of their progress.
Our other awards also build capacity of early career scholars, faculty and organizations, and strengthen Native American pathways to and at the University of Arizona. For example, six young scholars who were awarded the 2023 Native Pathways Graduate Research Awards completed their work, and we selected eight more Indigenous and other young scholars to help them implement their research projects. Our awards allow awardees to engage, empower, and/or give back to Indigenous communities, following the principle of reciprocal relationships in various ways, redefining the work of the University of Arizona, and putting its land-grant mission into action.
Some of our top highlights from the past year include 2024 AZ Indian Nations and Tribes Legislative Day, MIT Solve Indigenous Innovators Summit, NAATE’s Native Languages of Arizona Campus Sign Initiative, 2024 Indigenous Data Sovereignty and Governance Summit, 2024 A Meeting of Sacred Waters, 2024 Haury Indigenous Resilience Leadership Awards Celebration, 2024 Pow Wow, Inaugural US WASH Convening and Advocacy Day, 2024 CIELO Tribal Nations (Navajo – Tohono O’odham),3rd Tribal Leaders Summit, 2024 AZ Department of Education / Office of Indian Education Stakeholders Summit, 2024 Haury Native Pathways Graduate Research Awards, IRes and IndigePOD grand opening, Haury Program’s 10th Anniversary Celebration and Garden Dedication at the Women’s Plaza of Honor, 2024 National AISES Conference, Federal Funding Opportunities for Tribal Water Access Webinar, and Preserving Dinetah Water Security for Generations: Navajo Nation Water Settlements Presentation.
“This was a special year because of the 10-year anniversary events in October, where we reflected together on the many achievements of the Program, the ways in which we have been faithful to Mrs. Haury’s vision, the Program’s ability to pivot with the times and emerging 'wicked problems,' and our rededication to the advancement of environment and social justice for Indigenous communities. As 2024 comes to a close, it is no exaggeration to say that our work has never been more necessary. We will seek to be a light for others in the years ahead, and offer greater stability for their critical work to help heal our world,“ shared Toni Massaro, Haury Program Executive Director.
We thank our DAF Board members and partners, and wish everyone happy holidays, and all the best in 2025!