Curriculum Vitae Laura Harjo is Academic Chair of Native American Studies at the University of Oklahoma. Her work focuses on Indigenous planning, spatial storytelling, and Indigenous futurity. She is Principal Investigator of the $1M Andrew Mellon–funded Indigenous Futures Research Lab and author of the award-winning Spiral to the Stars: Mvskoke Tools of Futurity. Her work has received national recognition, including the Beatrice Medicine Award and the Patten Teaching Award, alongside ongoing leadership in graduate mentorship, interdisciplinary collaboration, and invited lectures.
Academic Chair, Native American Studies, University of Oklahoma Associate Professor, Native American Studies
Principal Investigator, Indigenous Futures Research Lab (Andrew Mellon Foundation, $1,000,000)
Research: Indigenous planning · Indigenous futurity · spatial storytelling · participatory mapping and GIS · Indigenous feminist praxis
Appointments
Chair, Native American Studies, University of Oklahoma, 2024–present
Associate Professor, Native American Studies, University of Oklahoma, 2020–present
Distinguished Visiting Scholar, Emory University, 2023–2024
Interim Chair, Native American Studies, University of Oklahoma, 2022–2023
Associate Professor, Community and Regional Planning, University of New Mexico, 2019–2020
Assistant Professor, Community and Regional Planning, University of New Mexico, 2013–2019
Major Grants and Honors
Principal Investigator, Indigenous Futures Research Lab, Andrew Mellon Foundation, 2025 ($1,000,000)
Principal Investigator, Spatial Storytelling with Emergent Technologies, University of Oklahoma Seed Grant, 2020–2021
John H. and Jane M. Patten Teaching Award, University of Oklahoma, 2023
Beatrice Medicine Award for Best Monograph, 2020
On the Brinck Book + Lecture Award, University of New Mexico, 2021
Publications (Selected)
Harjo, Laura. Spiral to the Stars: Mvskoke Tools of Futurity. University of Arizona Press, 2019
Harjo, Laura. “Indigenous Planning: Constellating with Kin and Urban Futurity.” Planning Theory & Practice, 2021
Dorries, Heather, and Laura Harjo. “Beyond Policing: Confronting Colonial Violence Through Indigenous Feminist Theorizing.” Journal of Planning Education and Research, 2020
Research and Scholarly Areas
Indigenous planning · Native American and Indigenous studies · geography and spatial methods · Indigenous futurity · spatial storytelling · participatory mapping · community development
Teaching and Mentorship (Recent)
Courses include Indigenous Community Planning, Indigenous Speculative Fiction / Neustadt Seminar, and community-engaged research methods
Ph.D.: 8 · M.S.: 4 · Undergraduate: 3 · Postdoctoral: 1
Ongoing advising across Native American Studies, Anthropology, American Studies, Computer Science, English, Education, and Engineering, including thesis and dissertation supervision
Leadership and Service
President, Faculty Women’s Interest Group, Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning
Editorial and advisory service with Local Development and Society, UC Press “People’s Guide” series, Design Corps and the Indian Land Tenure Foundation
Invited lectures at Johns Hopkins, Yale University, Emory University, University of Maryland, University of Massachusetts Boston, Stanford University, University of California, Berkeley, and Portland State University
Research Project Activity (Selected)
Recent work includes:
- Publication: Auntie Instructions for the Future (World Literature Today, 2025)
- Collaborative Indigenous Futures and AI research initiatives
- Ongoing book manuscript: Community Cartographies of Care
A full CV is available upon request.