Dear Readers:
It’s true, summer is already winding to a close! It’s been a very busy time of year for me, a time period that has actually kept me from my computer and blogging regularly, mainly because I’ve been in areas where it’s been hard to get an internet connection.
That said, I’m back in Missoula and just spent an amazing weekend with some marvelous women who are dedicated to using science to make their communities a better place to live.
Emerging and accomplished women scientists and like-minded women met in Missoula, Mont., for the second annual gathering of the Indigenous Women In Science Network, a newly formed national organization. About 40 women met Aug. 5-7 at the Payne Family Native American Center on the University of Montana campus to move the group forward and to support each other’s dreams and goals. The group arrived in Montana with an agenda set with informative presentations. In addition, leaders within the IWSN determined it was time to formally select an interim board to help set the organization’s course for the next year.
As an Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Indigenous Graduate Partnership scholar, I’m pleased to be a part of the interim Board, which now includes the following people: President, LaBelle Urbance; Vice-President, Ada Bends; Secretary(s) Wendy Running Crane and Jodi Rave; Treasurer, Claudia Long.
We will all do our best to uphold the group’s mission statement:
The Indigenous Women in Science Network creates a community of mutual support for women scientists from all places. Honoring the wisdom of our elders, IWSN promotes the integration of cultural values with science to achieve harmony and balance for all generations. IWSN members are committed to empowering emerging scientists and celebrating women making contributions to science and community.
All the women shared their reasons for joining forces with the new organization. “I see it as growth,” said Dayle Felicia, a graduate student at Montana State University. “I see it as power. It feels really good.”
Sheila Lopez has kindly provided a record of minutes from meetings and summit reports to provide a better sense of the group’s metamorphosis since 2008. That’s the year the founders first met and decided to create an organization to support women in science. The first IWSN first meeting 2008was held in conjunction with the AISES National Conf in Anaheim, CA. The group held a 2009 IWSN summit in Missoula. The women were quick to establish the IWSN’s first conference in 2009, which was held in Portland, Ore. The 2nd Annual IWSN 2010 conference wrapped up in Missoula on Saturday, Aug. 7.
The newly elected IWSN interim board and the communication committee is working on developing a Web site for the IWSN. Meanwhile, I will keep readers updated here on the Buffalo’s Fire. Feel free to share this post with anyone who might be interested in being a part of this science support network for indigenous women.
Jodi Rave
