Indigenous cultures worldwide are facing rapid decline, with the United Nations estimating that an Indigenous language becomes extinct every two weeks. This loss erases unique traditions, knowledge, and identities.
At Stony Brook University, a recent panel discussion addressed these challenges and highlighted ongoing efforts to preserve Native American ways of life. The event was moderated by Joseph Pierce, director of the Native American and Indigenous Studies Initiative (NAIS) and associate professor in the Department of Hispanic Languages and Literature. The panel was co-sponsored by NAIS, Diversity, Intercultural and Community Engagement (DICE), and the Paul W. Zuccaire Gallery.
Panelists included Valeria Meiller from the Department of Hispanic Languages and Literature; David Heska Wanbli Weiden from the Department of English; Darcey Evans from the Department of Anthropology; and Vick Quezada from the Department of Art. The discussion coincided with “Weaving Words, Weaving Worlds: The Power of Indigenous Language in Contemporary Art,” an exhibition at Zuccaire Gallery curated by Jeremy Dennis, a Shinnecock artist and Stony Brook graduate.
Judy Jaquez, DICE associate director, opened the event by stating: “We are honored to gather at an exhibition that reminds us that language carries memory, creativity, resistance and legacy. This dialog offers a meaningful opportunity to learn from leading voices in Indigenous Studies relational thinking and community centered scholarship.”
Pierce noted changes at Stony Brook over time: “It’s really great for us to be having all of these new faculty members here. When I first arrived at Stony Brook 12 years ago, this would have been unthinkable. Now, not only is it thinkable, but it’s happening.”
Meiller discussed her book project on biodiversity and linguistic diversity in poetry. She described Ruge el Bosque as a collective research initiative producing six planned plurilingual poetry anthologies featuring poets across Abiayala—a decolonial term for the Americas—united by advocacy for land defense through poetry as a grassroots tool for preserving ecosystems and endangered languages.
Following previous volumes on Southern Cone and Mesoamerica regions, Meiller is now focusing on Amazonian poetry for her next anthology. Future editions will cover other regions including Turtle Island with collaboration plans involving Algonquian language revitalization projects.
Weiden spoke about using narrative to address issues in Native American communities: “As a writer, I believe in the power of narrative to change society,” he said. “I believe that stories can change the world, and that’s what I try to do.” His novel Winter Counts has received critical acclaim but he values its real-world impact more highly.
He highlighted criminal justice problems on reservations due to laws like the Major Crimes Act: “Criminal Justice administration in these communities is a problem because of a law called the Major Crimes Act… Whenever a felony crime is committed on Native American reservations we must call in the FBI and US Attorney’s offices… they then have sole… authority.” He added that federal prosecutors decline many cases—resulting in high rates of violence against residents—and pointed out how his fiction has helped raise awareness among policymakers.
Evans focused on environmental anthropology relating to water stewardship among west coast tribes such as those near Quartz Valley Indian Reservation where she grew up: “Quartz Valley was specifically made to be away from the river… But salmon were unable to make it past [dams],” she said. Her research examines how industrial food production methods affect Indigenous communities closely tied to salmon populations.
She also explored how industries like aquaculture or carbon capture technologies—proposed as sustainable solutions—can conflict with existing forms of Indigenous sovereignty over coastal waterscapes around places like Long Island or internationally.
Quezada shared insights into her mixed media art practice shaped by experiences growing up near El Paso’s border region—a place marked by military presence—which influenced her understanding of citizenship amid intersecting Spanish/Indigenous heritage identities as well as queerness within family dynamics:
“Mapping these intersecting identities required constant negotiation,” said Quezada. “It was a way…to unpack this history… Often we see queerness as deprivation but when I look at my life I saw that queerness demanded an alternative innovation from me.”
The panel demonstrated diverse approaches taken by researchers at Stony Brook University who are working toward preservation—and renewal—of Indigenous cultures through scholarship spanning literature, law reform advocacy, environmental science, art practice, community engagement initiatives.
