# Sourcing Wisdom, Collective Connection, and Empowerment : A Call to Action for Strengthening Indigenous Maternal and Infant Health and Wellness Across Geographies and Opportunities ![Event Image Header-Plains](/sites/g/files/omnuum6806/files/styles/hwp_21_9__1920x825/public/2026-08/header.jpg?itok=tdzk7dq2) ## expand\_more ## Harvard Kennedy School Project on Indigenous Governance and Development in collaboration with Indigenous Early Learning Collaborative ## Convening Venue Information & Agenda --- ### Date and Time Thursday, October 29th - Friday, October 30th, 2026 8:30AM - 7 PM EDT ### Location Smith Campus Center | 1350 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge MA 02138 10th Floor, Glass Box \* *On main level, check-in at security desk with government ID to gain access to the elevators* ## Thursday, October 29th Open all sections Close all sections ### 8:30 AM | Registration/Welcome and Breakfast expand\_more Opening/Welcome: Randall Kekoa Akee and Tarajean Yazzie-Mintz Words of Wisdom/Song: Tobias Vanderhoop Framing dialogue: Conveners: Randall Kekoa Akee and Tarajean Yazzie-Mintz ### 9:00 AM | Keynote: Michele Goodwin, author of "Policing the Womb: Invisible Women and the Criminalization of Motherhood." expand\_more Michele Goodwin, author of “Policing the womb: Invisible women and the criminalization of motherhood,” will open our two-day meeting by framing the landscape of the laws around reproductive rights, and the ways in which the history and evolution of the law has led to the criminalization of women and women’s bodies. Through the challenge of legal analysis and the poetry of narrative, Goodwin will explore connections between law/policy and its application to reproductive rights and implications for Indigenous communities and nations. The keynote will seek to build a broad concept of fighting for the dignity of pregnant women and look to what is on the horizon for our communities and our collective work to honor Indigenous women and motherhood. **Presented by:** Michele Goodwin, *Georgetown University Law* ### 10:00 AM | Dialogue 1: Overview of Community-Based Inquiry: IELC's On the Horizon to Good Prenatal and Maternal-Infant Health Initiative expand\_more The Indigenous Early Learning Collaborative network, five sites across the United States, will discuss local and intersecting Community-Based Inquiry projects that seek to strengthen maternal and infant health and wellness. Site teams articulate their own inquiry questions and explore ways to find answers to their questions; this dialogue will visit each IELC site, learning from their initial inquiry questions and processes to restore ancestral knowledge into the life cycle of maternal and infant attachment, practitioner learning, and community engagement. **Panelists:** - Cheryl LaRose, Heather Woods, *Wiikwedong ECD Collaborative* - Fawn YoungBear-Tibbetts, *Wicoie Nandagikendan* - Sara Merrick, Jenna Hailey, Erika Tracey, Melissa (Lovey) Sanchez, *Xine:wh-ding Inc.* - Sanoe Marfil, *Institute for Native Pacific Education and Culture (INPEACE)* - Danica Parkin, Ami Palmateer, *həłmxiłp: Indigenous Birth Justice* **Moderator:** Tarajean Yazzie-Mintz, *Indigenous Early Learning Collaborative Institute & First Light Education Project* ### 11:15 AM | Break expand\_more Food and drink options in the [Smith Center](https://www.commonspaces.harvard.edu/smith-campus-center/food) ### 11:30 AM | Dialogue 2: "Indigenous Mothering" and Infant Health Landscapes: Continuum of Practice-Policy expand\_more “Indigenous Mothering” references the importance of culturally centered approaches to maternity care, urging health systems to adopt policies and practices that distinctly support Indigenous women. This panel dialogue will focus on the broad spectrum of policy and practice, across a continuum of systems, services, and research initiatives, including discussion of examining women’s preferences for care, support, and Indigenous birthing options. From different maternal and infant health landscapes, panelists will explore Indigenous birthing networks, issues of cost of care, maternity leave, and Indigenous lead care. The panel will conclude with insights on developing research networks, what still needs to be created on the practice to policy continuum, and the broader research needs that may inform tribal, regional, and national policy. **Panelists:** - Tess Abrahamson-Richards, *Hummingbird Family Services* - Pia Long, *Elephant Circl*e - Chelsea Wesner, *University of Colorado - Anschutz* - Meenhakshi Richardson, *John Hopkins University* **Moderator:** Joshua Sparrow, *Harvard University Medical School & Brazelton Touchpoints Center* ### 12:30 PM | Lunch with Harvard Native Students expand\_more Menu TBD ### 1:30 PM | Summative Reflection and Call to Action, Cross Dialogue by Panel Moderators expand\_more Reflection on the day's panels and presentations, with additional time for dialogue between panelists. ### 2:00 PM | Break Before Dinner, Optional Local Activities expand\_more Sign-ups and more information TBD Peabody, Harvard Indigenous Tour, Harvard Archives, Movement for the People ### 6:00 PM | Reflection and Reception expand\_more Reflection of day's discussions presented by Michelle Goodwin. Dinner reception with members of the Harvard Native community. Menu TBD. ## Friday, October 30th Open all sections Close all sections ### 9:00 AM | Breakfast and Welcome expand\_more Menu TBD ### 9:15 AM | Dialogue 3: Going Beyond Anecdotes: Telling Our Stories Across Geographies & Intersections of Health Policy expand\_more Storytelling in the context of practice, research, evaluation, and policy is more than just “anecdotes” — stories are often the center of this work, the data that drive both what we do and the shared understandings about what we do. This session — comprised of practitioners, early career scholars, and graduate students all working on how to tell the story of impact — will feature a collection of ways to tell stories of our work and impact, using a variety of methodologies, including video, photography, music, and spoken word. The purpose of this discussion is to untie us from the academic trappings of research, evaluation, and medical practice, moving toward powerful ways to tell our stories for the purpose of transforming perspective, approach, and connection with families/pregnant women. Focal questions of the dialogue will be: What are our motivations for telling our inquiry story? What are the messages that get lost in translation in practice (medical, research, programming), pregnancy and birth, and broader concepts of Indigenous health and wellness? In what ways does the framing of stories as “anecdotes” undermine the credibility of the knowledge and experience of pregnant mothers and families supporting pregnant women? **Panelists:** - T'leeuh Antone, *Hummingbird Family Services* - Alison Lester-Owen, *Wrexham University* - Danica Parkin, *həłmxiłp Indigenous Birth Justice* - Ami Palmanteer, *həłmxiłp Indigenous Birth Justice* - Nick Terrones, *Rainier Valley Early Learning Campus, University of Washington* - Kari Bañuelos, *New York University* **Moderator:** Ethan Yazzie-Mintz, *First Light Education Project* ### 10:15 AM | Break expand\_more Food and drink options in the [Smith Center](https://www.commonspaces.harvard.edu/smith-campus-center/food) ### 10:30 AM | Dialogue 4: Industry/Healthcare/Funding Streams Supporting Tribes expand\_more Panelists: Karen Diver (Fond du lac), Marilynn "Lynn" Malerba (Harvard Residence) Moderator: Amy Besaw Medford, Harvard Project After listening to all panel discussions and drawing upon your work across Native/Indigenous communities, what are the priorities that emerged for you? Is the landscape the same as you thought it was, how so? How is it different when you consider work that is needed outside federally funded programming? What does the work need to look like? ### 11:30 AM | Summative Reflection and Call to Action, Cross Dialogue expand\_more Details TBD ### 12:30 PM | Lunch expand\_more Menu TBD ### 2:00 PM | Break Before Dinner, Optional Local Activities expand\_more Sign-ups and more information TBD Peabody, Harvard Indigenous Tour, Harvard Archives, Movement for the People ### 6:00 PM Closing Dinner expand\_more Menu TBD