About the Retreat

Indigenous Nations Poets (In-Na-Po) hosted its sixth annual week-long retreat for emerging Native poets March 28th - April 4th, 2026 in Arizona on the traditional and ancestral homelands of the Tohono O'odham Nation and the Pascua Yaqui Tribe. Our gathering, focusing on "Sacred Spaces of Indigenous Poetry," was held at Amerind Museum, among their beautiful canyon, desert, and mountain lands, and at the University of Arizona Poetry Center, which hosted our evening performances. The retreat offered selected fellows an opportunity to study with distinguished poetry faculty Ofelia Zepada, Laura Tohe, and Rob Arnold, and to become a part of an exciting community of Native writers.

The cohort included both new and returning Fellows. All poets were awarded a full fellowship that covered travel, room and board, as well as tuition.

The gathering created a space for inspiration, set aside dedicated time for participants to develop their craft, and offered guidance on the practice and business of poetry. Among the highlights of the retreat were an outside reading under the full moon featuring Natalie Diaz and Leanne Betasamosake Simpson; the creation and performance of a collaborative “Flag Song” poem; and pottery-making lead by returning fellow Max Early.

About In-Na-Po

Founded in 2020, In-Na-Po—Indigenous Nations Poets—is a national Indigenous poetry community committed to mentoring emerging writers, nurturing the growth of Indigenous poetic practices, and raising the visibility of all Native Writers past, present, and future.
In-Na-Po recognizes the role of poetry in sustaining tribal sovereign nations and Native languages.

In-Na-Po is proud to be a member of The Poetry Coalition, a national alliance of nearly 30 independent poetry organizations dedicated to working together to promote the value poets bring to our culture and the important contribution poetry makes in the lives of people of all ages and backgrounds. The Poetry Coalition and its programmatic efforts are supported by the Academy of American Poets with funds from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.