Charles Menzies

Charles Menzies (hagwil hayetsk), a member of Gitxaała Nation and enrolled member of the Tlingit and Haida Tribes of Alaska, is a Professor in the Department of Anthropology within the Faculty of Arts at the University of British Columbia. He serves as Director of the Ethnographic Film Unit at UBC and coordinates the ecological anthropology research group Forests and Oceans for the Future. Menzies is also an elected joint-faculties senator on the UBC-V Senate (2020-2026) and previously served on the UBC Board of Governors (2017-2020, 2023-2026).

He completed his undergraduate degree in anthropology and sociology at Simon Fraser University (1988), followed by an MA in Social Anthropology at York University (1988) and a PhD in Cultural Anthropology from the City University of New York (1998).

Menzies' research focuses on Indigenous knowledge systems, natural resource management (particularly fisheries), political economy, contemporary First Nations' issues, maritime anthropology, and the archaeology of north coast BC. His work bridges socio-cultural anthropology with archaeological methods, particularly through the Laxyuup Gitxaaɫa project which documents the traditional territory of Gitxaaɫa Nation. He has conducted field research in north coastal BC, Canada; Brittany, France; and Donegal, Ireland, with a particular emphasis on Indigenous-led approaches to research and knowledge production.

His scholarly output demonstrates consistent engagement with issues of Indigenous sovereignty, collaborative research methodologies, and critiques of colonial power structures. Recent work shows increasing focus on visual anthropology through ethnographic film, Indigenous futurisms, and decolonizing academic research practices. Menzies frequently publishes on the intersection of Indigenous knowledge and environmental management, particularly regarding salmon ecosystems and maritime communities.

Menzies has supervised numerous graduate students whose work focuses on natural resource management, municipal politics, local development projects, climate change, and food security. His students now work in NGOs, government agencies, and academic institutions.

He founded and directs the Ethnographic Film Unit at UBC and established the online journal New Proposals. His current research projects include Laxyuup Gitxaaɫa, which combines archaeological and socio-cultural anthropology to document Gitxaała Nation's traditional territory.