Nancy Odegaard is the Conservator Emerita of the Arizona State Museum on the campus of the University of Arizona in Tucson where she is also Professor Emerita with the Department of Material Science & Engineering, the School of Anthropology, and American Indian Studies. She completed conservation graduate studies at George Washington University and the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC, a doctoral degree in Resource, Environment and Heritage Studies in Canberra, Australia, an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Goteborg, Sweden. She had led major conservation projects involving survey, tribal consultation, research, treatment, and storage upgrades for collections of pottery, human remains, basketry, textiles, and pesticide residues. She is the author of numerous articles and books. She is a former President of the AIC.