Forest S. Haven

Forest S. Haven, Ph.D. (she/her) is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Alaska Native Studies at the University of Alaska Southeast (UAS), Juneau Campus. She holds appointments in the Department of Social Sciences within the College of Arts and Sciences. Her research focuses on Alaska Native Studies, Food Anthropology, and Indigenous knowledge systems, with a particular emphasis on traditional food practices among Indigenous communities in Southeast Alaska.

Education:

• Ph.D. Anthropology, University of California Irvine (2022)
• B.A. Social Sciences, UAS Juneau (2013, with honors)
• A.A. General Education, UAS Ketchikan (2011)

Dr. Haven’s work integrates critical Indigenous studies and sensory ethnography to examine settler colonialism’s impacts on food systems. Her research has been supported by major fellowships including the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship and Ford Foundation Grant. She actively collaborates with Indigenous communities in Alaska, particularly her Ts’msyen La̱xsgiik clan from Metlakatla.

Awards:

• Ford Foundation Fellowship
• National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship
• UCI Oceans Initiative Fellowship

Teaching and mentorship are central to her mission. Known affectionately as “Dr. Aunty” by her nephew, she emphasizes community-centered pedagogy in her courses at UAS. Her current work explores revitalization of traditional foodways through intergenerational knowledge sharing.