Indigenous Delaware

Nanticoke Land Stewardship and Language Revitalization

October 10, 2024
5:00-6:30PM
15 Innovation Way, Newark, DE 19711

Delaware is the traditional and current homeland to many Indigenous peoples and their living cultures and practices. This event uplifts current Indigenous initiatives in the Delaware watersheds, fosters campus awareness, and engages in collective learning for the preservation of our environment and First State Indigenous cultures. Come learn from representatives of cutting-edge Nanticoke land stewardship and language revitalization projects for an educational, hands-on, and community-building experience.

Courtney Streett (Nanticoke Indian Tribe) co-founded Native Roots Farm Foundation (NRFF) and uses her knowledge of Indigenous communities, horticulture, and visual storytelling to lead the organization. Prior to NRFF, Streett was a television news producer at CBS News and a digital news producer Business Insider. She received an MS from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism and wrote her thesis on the local food movement. She earned a BA in Environmental Studies and a BA in Africana Studies from Wellesley College. She focused her undergraduate studies on environmental justice and conducted research in the college’s greenhouses comparing plant responses to organic and conventional growing methods.

Karelle Hall is a PhD candidate in anthropology at Rutgers University.  She received her bachelor’s degree from Dartmouth College in Anthropology with a minor in Native American Studies.  Her dissertation research explores embodied and distributed forms of diasporic Nanticoke and Lenape sovereignty.  She has taught classes in both cultural and linguistic anthropology and has presented her preliminary research at conferences and colloquiums.  As a member of the Nanticoke Indian Tribe, she has represented her nation at numerous events as both a speaker and dancer.  She is actively working on Nanticoke language revitalization, including co-authoring a  Nanticoke language children’s book, and organizing and creating lesson plans for community classes.  She continues to work as an activist and representative for her community, promoting visibility, decolonization, and education.

This event is made possible by the organization of the UD Anti-racist Initiative’s American Indian and Indigenous Relations Committee (UDARI AIIR) and the Delaware Environmental Institute. We thank the following event co-sponsors for their support:

  • UD Department of Anthropology
  • UD Faculty Senate Committee on Cultural Activities and Public Events (CAPE)
  • UD Department of Geography and Spacial Sciences
  • UD Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering
  • UD Department of English

For questions or more information about this event, please contact Sam Clem.