AISES Closing Keynote and Session Highlights

AISES is proud to annouce our closing keynote Bunky Echo-Hawk!

Bunky will be creating a one-of-a-kind art piece as the Awards Banquet is getting underway. The piece will then be auctioned with the proceeds going to AISES! You won’t want to miss this exciting event and getting the chance to bid on a unique piece, created right in front of the audience.

Bunky Echo-Hawk is a multi-talented artist whose work spans both media and lifestyle. A graduate of the Institute of American Indian Arts, he is a fine artist, graphic designer, photographer, writer and a non-profit professional. Bunky is a traditional singer and dancer of the Pawnee Nation and an enrolled member of the Yakama Nation.

Throughout his career, he has merged traditional values with his lifestyle and art. He has exhibited in major exhibitions throughout the United States and internationally, including in NYC, Chicago, Denver, Santa Fe, and Frankfurt, Germany, to name a few. His poetry has been published in magazines and anthologies, and his plays have been performed and produced across the nation.

Bunky speaks at conferences, conducts workshops and teaches both art and writing. As an advocate and an educator, Bunky travels extensively, creating live works of art for auction. Through his art, Bunky has raised thousands of dollars for non-profits. Bunky begins the performance by creating a dialogue with the audience, where socially relevant and meaningful discussion takes place. He guides the audience through conceptualizing a painting, which he creates on the spot for the host organization, while participants continue to contribute their ideas, opinions and personal testimony.

In 2006, Bunky co-founded NVision, serving as Executive Director until 2009. NVision is a nonprofit collective of Native American artists, musicians, community organizers, and nonprofit professionals who focus on Native American youth empowerment through multimedia arts.

Bunky is the 2012 Eiteljorg Museum Artist in Residence. In 2008, the First Peoples Fund named him a Business in Leadership Fellow. Bunky was also nominated for the United States Artist Fellowship in 2008 and received the 2008 Boulder County Multicultural Award.

Nike signed Bunky in 2010, to design for the Nike N7 line. Bunky lives and works in Pawnee, Oklahoma.

AISES is very excited about this year's exciting educational line up!

Leading up to the conference we will be highlighting various sessions taking place at the National Conference in Phoenix...here is the first installment:

Friday, November 20

World Café Session:
Building Capacity to Use Science For Sovereignty In Native Coastal Communities

Presenters: Vanessa Green and Dr. Wendy Smythe from the Institute of Environmental Health, Oregon Health & Science University

This session will address challenges facing river and coastal ecosystems due to increased human activity and changing climate, it is essential to create research collaborations where science, societal needs and education come together.  Representatives from the Institute of Environmental Health (IEH) at Oregon Health & Science University will discuss three science initiatives working closely with and within Native Communities to better understand physical, chemical and biological processes of marine ecosystems in the Pacific Northwest, focusing on the Columbia River estuary, the Lena River estuary in Siberia, The Yukon River, and Prince of Wales Island in Alaska.  This session will introduce participants to leading-edge research pertaining to various environmental issues important to these Native communities and will discuss ways for Native students to become involved.

Ignite Session:
Thriving With a Math Degree

Session Presenter: Kim Boxell, Towers Watson

Do you love math but are unsure where that will take you?  Come hear more about the top-rated profession for 2015 that happens to be math-based!  We will give you a basic overview that might just help you define your dream career!

Saturday, November 21

Concurrent Session:
Strive, Rise, Thrive in the field of STEM as You Balance Two Worlds

Presenters: Dr. Carol Vallee Crouch and David Elliott from the United States Department of Agriculture- Natural Resource Conversation Society

This session will discuss how can professionals use their STEM degrees to strive to address the current issues such as of protecting and preserving our Native lands, having adequate healthy food in their communities and promote cultural awareness? Rise as a leader that promotes sustainability technologies, leadership skills and professionalism in your STEM position. As an American Indian and a STEM professional, thrive to use your leadership skills and their interpersonal skill to balance their American Indian heritage and culture with their careers. Teach other the importance of balancing two worlds; your cultural heritage and career.

To see these fantastic sessions you must attend the AISES National Conference- Register Here

 EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION ENDS MONDAY OCTOBER 5TH! REGISTER NOW!