Honoring the past, building the futurE
This past year has marked a deeply meaningful milestone in my ongoing collaboration with Picuris Pueblo in northern New Mexico. In June 2025, I had the privilege of working alongside Picuris Pueblo tribal members and anthropology graduate students, Melanie Cotsoona and Charlotte Daweson, to inventory and prepare 265 boxes of artefacts at the Fort Burgwin Anthropology Laboratory (SMU-Taos) for return to Picuris. For me, this work represents the heart of ethical archaeology—building relationships rooted in care, respect, and data soveringty.
Returning More Than Objects
Repatriation, to me, is not just about the return of artefacts—it is about repairing relationships that were interrupted by colonial systems. When we handle archaeological and ethnographic materials, we are not simply cataloguing objects; we are engaging with living histories that still hold meaning for descendant communities. My students along with youth interns from the Picuris Pueblo Museum & Interpretive Centre played an essential role in this process. They assisted in documenting and reboxing materials currently being held by SMU-Taos through a long-term curation agreement with Picuris dating to the 1980s. Each box we inventoried represented a small step toward restoring autonomy to Picuris Pueblo over its cultural heritage. It also reminded us that the work of decolonizing archaeology begins with returning authority and decision-making to communities.
Celebrating the Picuris Museum & Interpretive Centre
In August 2025, the newly renovated Picuris Pueblo Museum & Interpretive Centre opened its doors for the first time. In addition to serving as a repository for archaeological, ethnographic, and archival materials, the museum serves as an educational space for tribal members to engage with their own histories on their own terms.
To support this new chapter, the museum has launched a fundraising campaign. The goal is to expand the exhibition space, develop public programs, and sustain the museum’s operations for generations to come. Community museums like Picuris Pueblos are powerful spaces of self-determination and show that cultural heritage is not only about protecting the past but also about creating new futures grounded in data sovereignty. Support for this fundraising campaign is an important way to contribute to the continued vitality of Indigenous-led heritage preservation and tourism.
Continuing the Work Together
The Picuris Pueblo Collaborative Archaeological Project is an ongoing and evolving effort that extends beyond this summer’s collections work and deaccessioning efforts. In dialogue with John Galuska, the museum director and archivist, we are working to acquire additional funding to support the development of exhibitions and plan future projects that include digital archiving and educational outreach. These initiatives are designed to ensure that heritage work remains community-driven and sustainable.
My approach to archaeology has always been grounded in the belief that knowledge is relational. It is something built together, through trust and shared purpose. The process of returning collections and developing data sovereignty protocols is slow, but it is deeply rewarding. Each conversation, each shared project, and each returned item contributes to a larger story of reclamation and renewal.
Through this collaboration, I have seen firsthand how archaeology can move from being a tool of extraction to one of empowerment. When we center Indigenous leadership and community knowledge, we not only produce better research—we help build a more equitable and inclusive field. As I look ahead, I feel grateful for the opportunity to continue this journey with Picuris Pueblo and with the incredible students and community members who make this work possible.
