The University of Oregon (UO) is located on Kalapuya ilihi, the traditional indigenous homeland of the Kalapuya people. Following treaties between 1851 and 1855, Kalapuya people were dispossessed of their indigenous homeland by the United States government and forcibly removed to the Coast Reservation in Western Oregon. Today, Kalapuya descendants are primarily citizens of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde and the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, and they continue to make important contributions to their communities, to the UO, to Oregon, and to the world.

In following the Indigenous protocol of acknowledging the original people of the land we occupy, we also extend our respect to the nine federally recognized Indigenous nations of Oregon: the Burns Paiute Tribe, the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians, the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, the Coquille Indian Tribe, the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians, and the Klamath Tribes. We express our respect to the many more tribes who have ancestral connections to this territory, as well as to all other displaced Indigenous peoples who call Oregon home.

We recognize that these words do not supplant the need for action. The UO is committed to working with stakeholders to ensure we continue to take action.

Introduction

The University of Oregon continues to explore ideals, principles, and practices to raise our ethical standards. Our mission as a teaching and research university includes not just the discovery and sharing of knowledge but modeling strong ethical principles in research and teaching. We have adopted an updated stance on biological specimens in teaching and research in light of ongoing national and international discussion on this topic.

In the acquisition and dissemination of knowledge from understanding human health to the origins of our species, human remains continue to make major contributions to teaching and research. However, the principles regarding the acquisition of those materials continue to change and many of the myriad practices that were acceptable at different times throughout history are unacceptable under current ethical norms.

The UO is firmly committed to repatriation for, and working with, Native American communities. The UO has worked hard to meet or exceed NAGPRA (Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act) guidelines and has already repatriated approximately 90% of the collections. We continue reviews in both letter and spirit of NAGPRA. We remain actively engaged in ways in which we not only comply with the law but are proactively thoughtful surrounding the integrity regarding our collections and how we can continue to move forward.

The UO acknowledges that it maintains collections of human remains from other communities and is committed to ethical best practices for working with those communities to ensure best practice in stewardship and/or return to descendants. Below we outline our principles and processes governing the use of biological specimens and human remains at the University of Oregon.

Principles

1. Commitment to evolving best practice. As legal and ethical norms evolve, so will policy and process to ensure permissible best practice standards continue to be employed.

2. Transparency. Any acquisition that raises concerns should be subject to a transparent process to investigate the concerns including diverse stakeholders in order to ensure that best practice standards are applied.

3. Respect. All interactions concerning acquisitions or past acquisitions must be inclusive of stakeholders and be carried out with mutually respectful dialogue. Ethical and respectful use of collections must be carried out with mutually respectful dialogue.

4. Engagement. Engaging in local, national, and international discussions is an essential part of our commitment to following best practice.

5. Repatriation. Where desired by stakeholders, seek to allow the potential for shared stewardship or the return of human remains to individual descendants or generally recognized claimant communities.

NAGPRA 

As highlighted in our introduction, the UO is firmly committed to repatriation for, and working with, Native American communities regarding human remains. We have already repatriated approximately 90% of the collections. We continue reviews in both letter and spirit of NAGPRA law.

We remain actively engaged in ways in which we not only comply with the law but are proactively thoughtful surrounding the integrity regarding our collections and how we can continue to move forward.

The principles above and the processes below are inclusive of Native American collections but also extend to other collections of human remains and biological specimens.

Questions regarding our commitment to NAGPRA and Native American communities, our principles and processes, can be directed to: vpri@uoregon.edu

Processes

Charging of the Committee. To proactively respond to the changing ethical issues and practices surrounding the use of human remains and biological specimens for teaching and research, a new committee was formed in Fall of 2022, with internal representation from a number of campus constituents.

Development of this statement. The committee was charged with developing this statement as its first deliverable for the Spring of 2023.

Enhanced Annual Inventory. Beyond following the letter of the law under NAGPRA, there is commitment to improved campus-wide inventory process and tracking of all collections (both NAGPRA and others) starting in the Summer of 2023.

Updated Policy Formalization. Augment existing policy to better capture a campus-wide approach expected in Fall of 2024.

Committee Membership FY23

• Sabb, Fred, Office of the Vice President for Research and Innovation (FY23 chair)
• Frost, Stephen, Department of Anthropology
• Runyeon, Jon, Department of Human Physiology
• White, Frances, Department of Anthropology and Museum of National and Cultural History,
• Younker, Jason, Office of the President,
• Price, Jessica, Office of the General Counsel
• Rick, Torrey, Smithsonian Institution [External Advisor]
• Farquhar, William, University of Delaware [External Advisor]

Point of Contact           

• Stay tuned to this website for new policy and process details as they emerge.
• Questions, comments, and requests should be directed to the Office of the Vice President for Research and Innovation (vpri@uoregon.edu).