In times where turbulence is amplified, how do the archives we sustain, sustain us as keepers of history, culture, and memory? From family photos to library collections to seedbanks, how do these archives prepare us? Along with offering material resources and guidance for everyday thriving, how do the archives we grow require other(ed) ways of knowing such as storytelling, communal reflection, and ecological wisdom? Ways of knowing that can further support collective sustenance in these times? For this keynote talk, Dr. Naya turns to diverse ways of knowing to reflect on these questions - and to create space for pause. Grounded in Black ecologies, BIPOC feminisms, and the Mojave Desert where she lives, she interweaves testimonio or personal testimony about co-creating community archives with insights from desert plants who know much about surviving uncertainty. Throughout, participants will have opportunities to personally reflect on archive-inspired prompts and on their takeaways from the forum.
Participants may want to bring a journal or sketchbook to archive their prompt responses for themselves and their communities. While there will not be breakouts, there will be opportunities to share responses through Q&A and other means if participants choose.
Naya Jones, PhD (she/her/ella) (co)creates where Black ecologies, healing justice, and the arts meet. As a cultural worker and geographer, she brings almost 20 years as a cultural healing arts practitioner to academic research. Personal and collective ancestors inspire her as a Black and Blaxicana artist-scholar. For current research and ritual arts, she archives how Black earth-rooted spiritual traditions continue to be reimagined amid climate injustice. For collaborations, she co-supports Black, Indigenous, and People of Color-led and social justice initiatives as they archive ancestral ecologies and reimagine relationships with the earth. Her solo and collaborative work has been nationally recognized by Culture of Health Leaders (Robert Wood Johnson Foundation), the American Association of Geographers, and the Wisconsin Arts Board (with Ms. Angela Smith), among others. A former professor, Naya holds a PhD in Geography and the Environment from the University of Texas at Austin. She is currently a Research Affiliate with UT Austin and a Master's of Divinity student at Starr King School for the Ministry, where she is training to be a higher ed chaplain and deepening her "roots" in critical religious studies.
