Surveying the Land Back: How a Problematic History can Help Indigenous Nations

Land surveying, often utilized to establish maps and boundaries of ownership, has a long and problematic legacy as a tool used in the ongoing theft of land from Indigenous Nations across the Americas. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute was established in 1824 as a center for science and engineering in which the teaching of surveying—a technique that contributed to the forced displacement of the Indigenous peoples in the region—was a central part of the curriculum.

In this talk, Heather Bruegl, historian of American history, legacies of colonization, and Indigeneity, charts the history of how land surveying was used to cause great harm to Indigenous Nations and how that same profession can be practiced today to support the “Land Back” movement.