Following Indigenous Peoples Day on Oct. 12 and into Native American Heritage Month in November, UCLA is hosting a series of events and exhibitions celebrating Indigenous cultures, exploring ancestral traditions and highlighting contemporary experiences.
Many of the events are free and open to the public. The programming provides opportunities to engage with the histories, knowledge and living traditions of Indigenous peoples through art, book talks, lectures and welcome events.
For more events and resources throughout the year, visit UCLA’s American Indian Studies Center, Department of American Indian Studies, Native Nations Law & Policy Center, The Fowler Museum at UCLA and similar campus units and resources.
Through Jan. 31, 2027
Mountain Spirits: Rice and Indigeneity in the Northern Luzon Highlands, Philippines
Join the Fowler Museum at UCLA for an exhibition that explores the world of the Ifugao people of northern Luzon in the Philippines. For generations, the Ifugao have transformed steep mountainsides into rice terraces that are both feats of engineering and sacred landscapes shaped by ritual, community and connections to the land.
Admission is free at the Fowler Museum.
Through May 16, 2027
Uhengaparaoa, Taonga Tuku Iho: Ancestral Gifts and Contemporary Māori Art
Inspired by the legacy of Uhengaparaoa, a renowned Whakatōhea weaver who shared her weaving knowledge across Aotearoa New Zealand, a new Fowler Museum exhibition explores how contemporary Māori artists draw on ancestral traditions and knowledge in their work.
The exhibition centers on a treasured kaitaka (cloak) from the museum’s collection that the Whakatōhea community regards as an ancestor. Contemporary Whakatōhea artists have created new works inspired by the cloak, including woven baskets, garments and pieces incorporating recycled materials and feathers. Together, the works show how Māori weaving traditions continue to be passed down and reinterpreted by new generations.
Admission is free at the Fowler Museum.
Oct. 14, 4 p.m.
UCLA American Indian Fall Welcome
The UCLA American Indian Studies Center and Department of American Indian Studies will welcome the campus community to the fall quarter. American Indian and Indigenous students, faculty, staff and community members are invited to connect over a meal.
The free event is open to all in Rolfe Courtyard. Dinner will be provided. RSVP requested.
Oct. 22, 6 p.m.
Stirring the Pot and the Past: Southeast Asian Food Stories
Part of the “Mountain Spirits” exhibition, this panel explores how Filipino food traditions preserve memory, build community and connect generations. Speakers include cultural heritage preservation advocate Marlon Martin, UCLA anthropology professor Stephen Acabado and visiting professor Arnoud Arps. They will discuss how Filipino and Indonesian food traditions have changed over time and what those changes reveal about trade, colonialism and Indigenous histories.
The free conversation will take place at the Fowler Museum. Advance reservations are required.
Oct. 25, 2 p.m.
Family story time: Amazonian Myths and Kené
Presented in conjunction with the Fowler Museum’s “Paths of Memory, Paths of Healing: Shipibo-Konibo Kené Art,” this family program features storyteller Erick (Ronin) Arias Silvano sharing Amazonian oral traditions, including tales of river serpents and forest spirits. Children and families can also explore Olinda Silvano’s kené murals, as well as the ceramics and textiles on display. The program will be presented in English and Spanish.
The event will take place at the Fowler Museum.
Oct. 28, noon
Join a discussion of Indigenous literature at the American Indian Studies Center Library and connect with others across UCLA.
The free book club is open to American Indian students, staff, faculty and friends. Sign-up required.
Oct. 29, 11 a.m.
Book talk: CHamorus, Filipinos, and the Making of the United States Empire in Guåhan
In her new book, “Territorial Discontent,” scholar Kristin Oberiano examines the history of CHamoru-Filipino relations in Guam amid U.S. imperialism and militarism. She explores how CHamorus and Filipino migrants pursued rights, land ownership, economic opportunities and U.S. citizenship, as well as possibilities for solidarity and decolonization. The talk is presented by the UCLA Department of Asian American Studies and co-sponsored by the UCLA Asia Pacific Center.
The free discussion will take place in A18 Haines Hall.
Oct. 29, 12:15 p.m.
Countering Racism and Violence Against Indigenous and Afrodescendant Women on the Costa Chica
Scholar Mariana Mora Bayo will be a featured speaker in UCLA’s Culture, Power and Social Change Lecture Series. Bayo is visiting from the Center for Research and Higher Studies in Social Anthropology in Mexico City.
The lecture will take place in 352 Haines Hall.
Nov. 4, 5:30 p.m.
Artist talk: Olinda Silvano, Erick (Ronin) Arias Silvano and Sadith Esther Silvano Inuma
Moderated by UCLA professor Shannon Speed, this conversation brings together Shipibo-Konibo artist and cultural leader Olinda Silvano and collaborators Erick (Ronin) Arias Silvano and Sadith Esther Silvano Inuma. They will discuss kené, the intricate geometric designs created by the Shipibo-Konibo people of the Peruvian Amazon, and the cultural knowledge and traditions behind them. The conversation will also explore how Shipibo-Konibo artists preserve their cultural practices in Lima’s urban Indigenous community of Cantagallo.
The free event will take place at the Fowler Museum. RSVP is required.
Nov. 5, 4:00 PM
Reparations and Rematriation: A discussion on the intersection of Black and Indigenous movements
Join community leaders and UCLA faculty for an afternoon of conversation and storytelling around the intersections of Black and Indigenous movements, reparations and rematriation. The event, which is hosted by the department of African American studies, will be moderated by Kyle Mays, an assistant professor of African American studies, American Indian studies and history at UCLA. Featured speakers include Osage writer Chelsea Hicks (Xuedoin) and Mohawk artist Claire Maracle of Words of the People, an Indigenous language and arts nonprofit.
This event takes place in Kaplan Hall. Seating is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis. RSVP is requested.
Nov. 8, 1 p.m.
Story Time Around the World: Ifugao tales
The Fowler Museum will host a reading of “Benita and the Binobodan: An Ifugao Story,” written by Marlon Martin and illustrated by Kizel Cotiw-An. The story follows a girl who initially resists learning to weave but discovers the intricate techniques of binobodan, an ikat textile historically associated with Ifugao elites, and develops a deeper appreciation of her cultural inheritance.
“Mountain Spirits” co-curator Gassia Armenian will lead the reading.
The in-person program will take place at the Fowler Museum. RSVP is required.
Nov. 10, 11 a.m. and 1:10 p.m.
Lecture: Indigenous Law and the Prospects of Treaty-Making in Australia
The UCLA Native Nations Law and Policy Center will host two sessions with legal scholar Kirsty Gover, professor at Melbourne Law School. Gover studies domestic and international law affecting Indigenous peoples in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United States and Scandinavia, including how Indigenous legal traditions can inform reforms to settler-state law and political theory.
The sessions will take place at UCLA Law. RSVP is required as space is limited.
November 14, noon
A conversation on life, incarceration and literature
Join the UCLA American Indian Studies Center and representatives from their project Books and Resources for American Indians in Detention, or BRAID, for an intimate conversation that explores how literature and storytelling can sustain connections to culture, language and advocacy during incarceration.
The event will take place at the UCLA Botanical Garden. RSVP is required.
Nov. 17, 3:00 PM
The Center for the Study of Women | Barbra Streisand Center will host a free film screening of "Warrior Women,” a 2019 documentary about Madonna Thunderhawk, a Lakota leader of the American Indian Movement. Beginning with her contributions to the 1973 Wounded Knee Occupation and ending with 2016 protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline at Standing Rock, the film presents how Thunderhawk’s efforts have led to change.
The free event will be at the CSW|Streisand Center at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs building.
