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Susan Devan Harness    

Indigenous Award-Winning Author of "Bitterroot: A Salish Memoir of Transracial Adoption"

Susan Devan Harness is a cultural anthropologist, member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, and an American Indian Transracial Adoptee.

Her book "Bitterroot: A Salish Memoir of Transracial Adoption" has received multiple awards including the High Plains Book Award for Indigenous Author and Creative Nonfiction categories, as well as the Sudler Award for the best work of nonfiction or fiction on western American subject by a woman author. Ms. Harnesses cultural anthropology research, Mixing Cultural Identities Through Transracial Adoption, was published by Edwin Mellen Press (2008).

Her most recent writing appears in the anthologies, "When We Become Ours," published by HarperCollins (2023), and "Philosophies of Adoption: Perspectives and Reflections," published by Lexington Press (2024).

Ms. Harness has spoken both nationally and internationally on the topic of American Indian transracial adoption, as well as appeared in various media including podcasts, public radio, and on the TEDxMileHigh stage. She holds MAs in Anthropology and English, both from Colorado State University, where she is an affiliate of the Department of Anthropology and Geography.

Ms. Harness lives in Fort Collins, Colorado with her husband, Rick, her Golden retriever, Max, and a beautiful vegetable garden.

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