Abigail Echo-Hawk, M.A.

Abigail Echo-Hawk (Pawnee), M.A., is the Executive Vice President of Seattle Indian Health Board and the Director of their data and research division, Urban Indian Health Institute. She serves on the Robert Wood Johnson Public Health Data National Commission, the University of Washington Population Health Initiative External Advisory Board, the Data for Indigenous Justice Board, and many other boards and committees related to data justice and health equity. She also served on the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) committee to create A Framework for Equitable Allocation of Vaccine for the Novel Coronavirus in 2020.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, Abigail’s voice has been front and center on a national level, ensuring that the urban Native community is represented in data collection. Seattle Indian Health Board has been a leader in the COVID-19 response directly because of Abigail’s leadership and vision. She has co-authored numerous peer-reviewed articles including two for the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report on COVID-19 among American Indian and Alaska Native people and was lead author on a report about the data genocide of American Indians and Alaska Natives in COVID-19 data.

Abigail has also led the way in bringing the issue of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) to the forefront, leading directly to federal, state, and local legislation working to protect Native women. She serves on the Washington State Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and People Taskforce, which she was instrumental in bring to fruition.

Abigail earned her Bachelor of Arts in American Studies with a minor in Human Rights and her Master of Arts in Policy Studies both from the University of Washington. She is a researcher and policy professional specializing in tribal government and urban Indian relations. She successfully leads teams of public health professionals to develop culturally competent and culturally relevant NIH-, CDC-, and HHS-funded health and policy interventions with tribal and urban Indian communities across the country.