CMC’s Sustainability Studies and Ecosystem Science & Stewardship present REMATRIATING THE ROCKIES
Virtual Conference, Friday, April 18, 2025, 9am-12pm
Keynote Presentation: Rematriating the Rockies
How do we shift environmental conservation toward a more equitable and balanced future? Gemara Gifford will share her research on the pathways and barriers to rematriation in the Southern Rocky Mountain Region. “Rematriation” is a movement supporting the direct return of lands to Indigenous Peoples, the return of buffalo to their homelands, and the reclamation and resurgence of Indigenous Knowledge, cultural practices, languages, and lifeways.
KEYNOTE SPEAKER
Gemara Gifford, M.S.
Gemara Gifford, M.S., Owner of Mending Mountains Collective LLC, and Ph.D. Candidate at Colorado State University. A former wildlife scientist, with a background in community-based conservation, nonprofit leadership, and rematriation movements in Latin America, Gem advocates for environmental justice and Indigenous rights. With roots in the Southern Rocky Mountain Region, Gem’s family — Chicano labor rights organizers from the San Luis Valley and coal mining camps of Southern Colorado — instilled in her a deep love and responsibility for animals and the environment.