In Search of Solutions: Exploring Pathways to Repatriation for NAGPRA Practitioners (Part IV): NAGPRA in Policy, Protocol, and Practice

This collection contains the abstracts of the papers presented in the session entitled "In Search of Solutions: Exploring Pathways to Repatriation for NAGPRA Practitioners (Part IV): NAGPRA in Policy, Protocol, and Practice" at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Now in its fourth decade, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) remains one of the most important legislative acts shaping the discipline of archaeology today. To adequately discuss the range of topics and provide examples and case studies incorporating shifting discourses of repatriation, policies, and collections management concerning Ancestors and objects subject to NAGPRA, the Committee on Museums, Collections, and Curation and the Curation Interest Group have arranged a five-part series. NAGPRA impacts every sector of archaeological practice in the United States. Federal agencies and “museums,” including state and local government agencies, universities, private institutions, and even cultural resource management firms, may be required to comply with the law by reporting, inviting consultation, and repatriating eligible collections. Federally recognized Indian Tribes must also follow specific procedures to regain their Ancestral remains and belongings. Many Tribes and institutions have developed NAGPRA policies to guide compliance, while a growing number of professional communities debate best practices for exceeding federal requirements. Yet numerous Tribes and institutions remain new to NAGPRA, and archaeological curricula frequently lack explicit training. This symposium circulates the latest policies, protocols, and practices that facilitate compliance alongside updates from the professional communities moving the field forward.