Sonya Atalay

Sonya Atalay is Professor of Anthropology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and founding Director of the NSF-funded Center for Braiding Indigenous Knowledges and Science (CBIKS). She teaches courses on Indigenous research practices and community-based archaeology within MIT's Anthropology department.

Her research centers on Indigenous science protocols developed through partnerships with Native communities, emphasizing ethical co-creation of knowledge. She has served two terms on the National NAGPRA Review Committee across presidential administrations and pioneered research-based comics documenting repatriation processes under NAGPRA law. Key publications include the foundational text 'Community-Based Archaeology' and 'The Community-Based PhD', with her current book 'Braiding Knowledges' analyzing institutional transformation through Indigenous knowledge systems.

Funded by NSF and Mellon New Directions, her collaborative projects include the SSHRC-supported Intellectual Property in Cultural Heritage (IPinCH) initiative. She directs CBIKS to establish equitable frameworks for integrating Indigenous knowledge with scientific research through sustained community partnerships.