Draft:Samantha Chisholm Hatfield

Samantha Chisholm Hatfield
Citizenship	American, Siletz
Education	Oregon State University (PhD), Oregon State University (BS)
Occupations	Academic researcher, instructor

Samantha Chisholm Hatfield is a Native American academic researcher and instructor whose work focuses on Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), Indigenous Knowledge systems, and climate change. She is enrolled with the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians and is based at Oregon State University, where she serves as an assistant professor (senior research) in the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences.

Early life and education

A Native of Oregon, Chisholm Hatfield grew up in the Willamette Valley near Salem. She completed American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter training at Western Oregon University in 1992. From 1992 to 1997, Chisholm Hatfield worked as a sign language interpreter for the Salem–Keizer School District, including work as a Deaf-Blind interpreter. From 1997 to 1998, she served as a sign language interpreter at Western Oregon University, followed by extended interpreting work at Oregon State University from 1998 to 2013, interpreting classes, public events, and campus activities, as well as providing instruction related to American Sign Language and Deaf culture.

In 2001, Chisholm Hatfield received a bachelor of science in ethnic studies, with a minor in cultural anthropology, from Oregon State University. During the same year, she completed a paid internship with the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, where she assisted in compiling early Chinook language dictionary materials and supported curriculum development for Tribal language classes.

She pursued her education further at Oregon State University and completed a doctorate in environmental science in June 2009. Her doctoral research focused on Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) of Siletz Tribal members, and her dissertation examined Indigenous ecological knowledge systems and their application to environmental understanding.

Career

Following her doctorate, Chisholm Hatfield taught at different institutions. From 2010 to 2011, she was an American Sign Language instructor at Oregon State University. Between 2011 and 2017, she served as an adjunct instructor of Cultural Anthropology at Chemeketa Community College in Salem, Oregon, teaching introductory courses focused on Native American cultures.

In 2017, she received a Korea Foundation Field Research Fellowship and conducted postdoctoral field research with Mokpo National University, examining Traditional Ecological Knowledge, climate indicators, and cultural practices in South Korea. In the same year, she was invited to participate in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Conference and was interviewed by the Korean Broadcasting System radio.

From 2018 to 2020, Chisholm Hatfield worked at Oregon State University’s Oregon Sea Grant as a postdoctoral research associate and coordinator on projects involving Native American youth and coastal Tribal engagement. During this period, she also began teaching as an adjunct instructor at Oregon State University, developing and delivering courses including Introduction to Traditional Ecological Knowledge, Applications of Traditional Ecological Knowledge, Native American Agriculture, and Ecosystems of Pacific Northwest Indians. These courses continued through subsequent academic years.

Between 2018 and 2019, she worked as a TEK and cultural consultant with the Straub Environmental Center, advising on Indigenous knowledge, climate change education, and Tribal cultural protocols for outdoor education programs.

From July 2013 to January 2022, Chisholm Hatfield served as a postdoctoral researcher, later becoming a research associate and Tribal liaison with the Oregon Climate Change Research Institute at Oregon State University. Her work during this period addressed Indigenous climate impacts, phenology, and collaborative research protocols with Tribes. She helped developthe Tribal Climate Adaptation Guidebook and wrote the Tribal Cultural Resources chapter for the Fifth Oregon Climate Assessment Report.

In January 2022, she transitioned into a research role within the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences at Oregon State University. From January to May 2022, she held the position of research associate, and in May 2022, she was appointed associate professor (senior research). She became the first Native researcher appointed to a dedicated TEK-focused senior research position at the university and established the institution’s first Traditional Ecological Knowledge Lab.

In 2022, Chisholm Hatfield was awarded a Korea Foundation Field Research Fellowship for a second time and returned to South Korea to conduct field research on Traditional Ecological Knowledge and cultural practices, including research on Haenyeo diving communities. She has contributed academically to the topic.

Her work has also included participation in federally funded research initiatives. Beginning in 2022, she joined a multi-institutional research project funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to address environmental stressors in marine ecosystems and incorporate Indigenous perspectives. This work has included collaborations with Oregon State University’s research vessel RV Taani.

Chisholm Hatfield has written academic and public scholarship, contributed essays and blog posts on Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), Indigenous Knowledge (IK), and climate change, and published poetry and prose. She has also published and contributed to books for Indigenous youth and edited anthologies combining photography, poetry, and short-form writing. In addition, she has delivered several public lectures, conference presentations, and a TEDx talk in 2018 addressing her academic path and work in Traditional Ecological Knowledge.

Chisholm Hatfield has participated in institutional, professional, and community organizations related to Indigenous affairs, environmental research, and higher education. She has served on the Oregon State University Kalapuya Land Planning Committee and the Oregon State University President’s Commission on Indigenous Affairs. Her university service has also included participation on the College of Agricultural Sciences Climate, Diversity, and Inclusion Task Force, membership on the Native American Community Advisory Council, service as a board member of the OSU Klatowa Eena Longhouse, and involvement with the OSU Klatowa Eena Alumni Network.

As of 2026, she has been serving as an assistant professor (senior research) in the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences at Oregon State University. Her professional affiliations include membership in the American Indian Science and Engineering Society, the Ecological Society of America, the Native American Fish and Wildlife Society, the Indigenous Phenology Network, and the National Congress of American Indians

Selected publications

Peer-reviewed journal articles

• Chisholm Hatfield, S. (2025). Increasing inclusiveness and vetting valid Traditional Ecological Knowledge: Optimizing climate change work. The Muckleshoot Journal, 7.
• Chisholm Hatfield, S. (2024). The inherent value of nature, Traditional Ecological Knowledge, and the truth of destruction. Earth Stewardship Journal.
• Biedenweg, K., Anderson, L., Chisholm Hatfield, S., Hollender, R., Kintner, L., & Trimbach, D. J. (2023). Seeking consilience: Traditional Ecological Knowledge and Western social science contributions to orca conservation knowledge. Journal for Nature Conservation.

• Chisholm Hatfield, S., Marino, E., Whyte, K. P., Dello, K. D., & Mote, P. W. (2018). Indian time: Time, seasonality, and culture in Traditional Ecological Knowledge of climate change. Ecological Processes.
• Chisholm Hatfield, S., & Hong, S.-K. (2019). Mermaids of South Korea: Haenyeo (women divers), Traditional Ecological Knowledge, and climate change impacts. Journal of Marine and Island Cultures.
• Chisholm Hatfield, S. (2017). Rising songs. Whitefish Review Literary Journal, 21, 57–62.
• Major assessment reports and edited volumes
• Chang, M., Erikson, L., Araújo, K., Asinas, E. N., Chisholm Hatfield, S., Crozier, L. G., et al. (2023). Northwest. In the Fifth National Climate Assessment. U.S. Global Change Research Program.
• Chisholm Hatfield, S., Dalton, M., & Fleishman, E., eds. (2021). Fifth Oregon Climate Assessment. Oregon Climate Change Research Institute, Oregon State University.
• United Nations. (2025). State of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, Volume VI: Climate Crisis. Chisholm Hatfield, S., contributor. Division for Inclusive Social Development.

Books

• Chisholm Hatfield, S. (2025). Cedar Tea. EagleSpeaker Publishing.