PPE Workshop on Indigenous Economics

The Kellogg Center for Philosophy, Politics, and Economics will host a one-day workshop on indigenous economics. The workshop will take place on August 14, 2025, in the Lury and Barbara Goodall Room in the Newman Library at Virginia Tech.

Indigenous peoples had lived in the Americas and developed complex and diverse economic systems for thousands of years before Europeans arrived and began to establish colonies. The interaction of indigenous and colonial economic institutions fundamentally altered conditions for both the peoples that were already here and the new nations that would form. Today, people of Indigenous descent are amongst the poorest in the United States and Canada. Analyzing the role of Federal laws in the evolution of the economic conditions of Indigenous peoples is critical when formulating policies to improve their economic status both on and off of reservations. Furthermore, the economic growth, institutional formation, and distribution of income in North American today is a function of what was here in 1492. A true understanding of American economic development requires clarifying the connections between its past and present.

This workshop will provide a forum for scholars to explore emerging research in indigenous economics, considered from an interdisciplinary perspective.

All faculty, students, and members of the public are cordially invited to attend. The sessions will allow plenty of time for discussion and interaction with the speakers and PPE faculty. 

Please contact Melinda Miller ([email protected]) for questions related to the workshop.