Conferences, Seminars & Symposia
In this highlight from the presentation "The Process of Constitutional Reform: The Challenge of Citizen Engagement," NNI's Ian Record lays out two critical overarching tasks that those charged with leading a nation's constitutional reform effort must undertake.
Cherokee Nation Attorney General fields questions about the critical role of separations of powers in effective Native nation governance and how the Cherokee Nation instituted an array of separations of powers in the development of their new constitution
Gwen Phillips, Director of Corporate Services and Governance Transition with the Ktunaxa Nation, discusses how Ktunaxa people gained a sense of Ktunaxa identity and belonging traditionally, and the different criteria that Ktunaxa is considering including among its citizenship criteria today.
Former Cochiti Pueblo Governor Regis Pecos shares his thoughts about the ultimate purpose of constitutions, governments and governance from a Pueblo perspective, and argues that constitutional reform presents Native nations with a precious opportunity to reclaim and reinvigorate their cultures and...
University of South Dakota Professor of Law Frank Pommersheim discusses the key constitutional issue of dispute resolution and presents three cases demonstrating how tribes are endowing their constitutions with legitimacy through the careful, thoughtful resolution of disputes.
Several Native leaders and scholars discuss the growing movement away from blood quantum as a primary criteria for determining eligibility for citizenship in Native nations.
Frank Ettawageshik, Joan Timeche and Frank Pommersheim discuss the importance of constitutional legitimacy to effective Native nation governance, and stress that the source of that legitimacy is the very people a constitution is designed to serve.
University of South Dakota Professor of Law Frank Pommersheim fields audience questions about the importance of civic engagement to constitutional reform, removing the Secretary of Interior Approval clause from tribal constitutions, and other important topics.
Formerly the Chairman of the Gila River Tribal Constitution Task Force, Anthony Hill describes the process that the Gila River Indian Community has engaged in as it undertakes reforming its constitution and system of government. Hill also offers some tips and strategies other Native nations should...
Cherokee Nation Councilor Julia Coates presents an overview of the constitutional history of the Cherokee Nation, and chronicles the process the Cherokee Nation followed to reform its constitution in 1999.
