Community Program

Water sustains life and has a significant role in our state’s history. The myths and stories of our indigenous tribes are rich with its references. Immigrants trod and floated Arizona’s waterways enduring great peril. Government surveyors explored and mapped our river systems. Huge dams blocked their flow to create vast reservoirs. This program will share […]

Does Arizona have enough water? How concerned should we be about the state’s dwindling water supply? In this 60-minute session, we’ll discuss where our water comes from, what’s threatening those supplies, and what you and the wider state can do to prepare for a hotter, drier future. Water policy is complex, but the goal is […]

Nanibaa Beck addresses the ways Native women metal smith integrate indigenous knowledge, practice and tradition into their craft. She focuses on four to five metal smiths with a rotation in place, person, and style. This presentation and Nanibaa’s work demonstrate the connection of Native artists to Arizona and beyond as a place and identity. This […]

Ever wonder what Arizona was like one thousand years ago? Step back in time to the eleventh through fourteenth centuries and discover how ancient people in the Verde Valley of Central Arizona lived. Showcasing some of the 50,000 artifacts recovered from the Dyck Cliff Dwelling in Rimrock, Arizona, this program offers a snapshot of daily […]

Pulp fiction magazines sold for a dime and in the 1920s to 1950s, they filled American newsstands. Nobody admitted that they liked them, but everybody read them. They were American pop culture at its best and worst. Western magazines were the most popular. Western pulp fiction, along with movies, helped to create the myths of […]

In 1961 a newspaper article discussed a proposal to build an 18-story, 600-room hotel inside the Grand Canyon descending from the south rim to the canyon floor. A letter-writing campaign ensued that succeeded in blocking the hotel. But lawmakers instead passed a bill that allowed the company to mine uranium there—they never had any intention […]

The first issue of Arizona Highways magazine was published in April, 1925. In this presentation, former publisher Win Holden will share the fascinating story of how a brochure produced by the Arizona Highway Department evolved into one of the most respected and revered publications in the world. With annual economic impact of over $65 million, […]