K-State AISES Chapter plans Oregon trip for the national AISES conference

Rita Hazipta smiles softly in a warmly lit, wood-accented setting. (Abigail Reid)

Listen to the full audio feature storyBy Abigail Reid

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This year’s American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) Conference will be held in Oregon on Oct. 14-18, 2026. The conference will feature keynote speakers discussing the latest research in science by and/or for Indigenous populations. I spoke with K-State’s AISES chapter president, Wesley Baldwin, to learn more. Baldwin says the conference covers a variety of fields.

“Anything that has to do with how our land is being affected, from Minnesota to New Mexico,” says Baldwin. “You get to learn about these geological surveys they’ve done; you get to learn about how to best impact your community and how to best lift a lot of these native tribes out of poverty.”

In 2024, Rita Hazipta attended the annual conference in San Antonia with K-State’s Indigenous student body. She says her trip not only helped her find community with other Native Americans but also connected her to a professional network of leaders in Indigenous science. 

“That was a really great experience because the only time I ever saw that many Indigenous people in one space is at Powwows,” says Hazipta. “I never saw Indigenous people together in a professional setting or in an educational setting.”

Although registration for this year's trip ended in September, Baldwin says AISES at K-State is happy to welcome Indigenous and non-Indigenous students on future trips, as events like these help educate Americans on how to best support Native tribes. The chapter provides professional development events like resume reviews and regularly collaborates with the Indigenous student body at K-State. 

“It’s important for a lot of people to learn about these different cultures and how they could be used in society at large,” says Baldwin. “We like to provide professional development for anyone who wants to come to our events.”