In this heartfelt episode of Indigenous Insights, host Gladys Rowe sits down with An Garagiola, an evaluator, researcher, writer, and PhD student. An shares her remarkable journey from overcoming personal and systemic challenges to becoming a passionate advocate for Indigenous research sovereignty. She reflects on her work with CEDAR (Community Engagement for Decolonizing and Advancing Research) and the Truth Project, discussing the importance of building trust, centering community voices, and challenging colonial frameworks in evaluation and research.

An offers powerful insights into the role of Indigenous evaluation in healing and empowerment, posing thought-provoking questions about shifting from deficit narratives to strength-based approaches. She also highlights the importance of relationships, cultural frameworks, and grounding research and evaluation in Indigenous ways of knowing.

This episode is a call to action for evaluators, researchers, and institutions to embrace transformation and honor the wisdom of Indigenous communities.

An Garagiola, Bois Forte Band of Chippewa, MPP is a mother, PhD student, researcher, and writer born and raised in the Twin Cities. An’s dissertation focuses on Indigenous research sovereignty. She serves as the Research Manager at CEDAR (Community Engagement for Decolonizing and Advancing Research) a community-based research center at the Native American Community Clinic and GRA in the School of Family Medicine at the University of Minnesota. She works to Indigenize wellness research, identify sources of holistic well-being, and influence systems change through a cultural framework. As a mixed-race Anishinaabekwe of Ojibwe and European descent, An’s work blossoms from relational and place-based roots. An was UMN’s coordinator for The TRUTH Project  and co-author on Misplaced Trust where her research unearthed Minnesota’s system of land speculation and wealth transfer from Native Nations that continues to this day. 

As an Organizational Development Consultant and founder of Echo Maker Consulting, An works primarily with Indigenous practitioners to rematriate Indigenous management, development, research, evaluation, and data sovereignty into internal and external partnerships. She is passionate about designing plans which help systems become more equitable, sustainable, and accessible for people who institutions continue to marginalize. She frames her work in the following: “How might systems maximize equitable transformation for Indigenous and communities of color, and how might relational ways of knowing and being merge with anti-colonial efforts that transform systems into ecosystems of holistic well-being?

Show Notes

NACC’s website: https://nacc-healthcare.org/

Towards Recognition and University-Tribal Healing (TRUTH)

An’s Personal websites:

Email: [email protected] 

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