Lenni Lenapexkweyok

Lenape people were forcibly removed thousands of miles away from our homelands; and we need to come home. When Indigenous peoples are removed from the ecologies they are the caretakers of it causes enormous harm to the human community, as well as to the land itself. We consider ourselves to be one and the same with our homeland. As such, caring for all of its ecological components is like caring for our own bodily health, and is directly tied to the health of our human community. When that caretaking familial relationship with the land is severed the harmful impacts cascade down through generations of the human community via epigenetic and historical trauma, as well as through the rest of the ecology in the loss of its most knowledgeable caretakers. Even those who remain in that ecology as the settler beneficiaries of Indigenous extirpation, will eventually suffer from that loss, as they watch the ecology, climate, and the economies and wellbeing contingent upon those things, collapse around them.

The problem is rooted in the intersection between racism and sexism that has been imposed upon Indigenous Peoples. This is a global issue that Indigenous Peoples across the world face. In the 1600’s, colonizers began to attack Lenape communities in our homelands of Lenapehoking, which covers much of modern-day New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. Settlers committed genocide against our people, displaced us from our homelands, and introduced patriarchy into our traditionally matrilineal and matriarchal societies. In our culture the women are the teachers and leaders of how we care for the land. Our mothers care for our Mother. That is what allowed us to live in our homeland sustainably for countless millennia. For the past 400 years, merely a blink of an eye compared to the thousands of years we thrived in Lenapehoking, we have endured systemic acts of violence and oppression that have created wounds that are yet to be healed in our people, and the land.

Lenape people were displaced to five communities that span two countries (US and Canada). As a result, our people have incredibly high rates of poverty, sexual assault, and suicide. We as a people have never been able to return permanently to our homelands, and many of our people have never even visited. Once the central leaders of our society, women from our communities have not been able to gather together in Lenapehoking again for as long as our elders can remember. We have 25,000 enrolled Lenape individuals that are affected by this issue, and thousands more non-enrolled descendants. The more of us that can return to Lenapehoking and re-establish our caretaker presence there, the better it will be for the healing journey of the land, our people, and the world in general.

Our primary goal is to reconnect Lenape people to Lenapehoking, and promote cultural and historical preservation, education, and community building among the Lenape people through a land-based, matriarchal lens. We intend to restore our matriarchal cultures while reconnecting to our land by gathering digitally twice a month to plan, laugh, culture-share, and storytell together, as well as by organizing trips back to our homelands. We also do this by coordinating multiple annual trips to our homelands to reconnect and practice our traditional land stewardship practices. Through our travel services, we provide a unique opportunity for Lenape individuals to reconnect with their ancestral lands and strengthen their sense of identity and belonging, thus increasing total community wellness. Our long term goal is to acquire land, a place for all our people to come home to, complete with a dance grounds and cultural and interpretive center. Honoring our traditional matriarchal cultures means the matriarchs in our communities are the leaders of this movement. We work to restore the balance that patriarchy attacks and bring the community together again. We are restoring the home we should have in our lands. We work together with local individuals and organizations, organizing digitally and in-person to educate locals about the history of the land they’re on and to move resources from the area to support Lenape homecoming. Our work is part of a global movement to reconnect Indigenous people back to their homelands that is vital due to the impending threat of climate change. Indigenous Environmentalism is key to protecting the earth and humanity’s ability to thrive on it. Being the Indigenous people of New York City, one of the most influential cities in the world, our work sets an example of how locals and Indigenous people can partner to repair centuries-old wounds. Those wounds include countless superfund sites dotted across our homeland, and some of the most polluted ecologies on the continent.  

Our program uses the following technology: social media, Zoom, and Traditional Ecological Knowledge. As a diaspora of displaced peoples, Zoom and Facebook have become vital for us to meet, share ideas, and organize. This is how we gather throughout the month. We use social media to educate local people living in New York with a consistency and platform that was not possible before the internet. We also use Indigenous technology, relying on traditional ecological knowledge paired with land-based knowledge that our local partners have to revive Lenape ways of being on our land. We organize regularly with these partners over email and Zoom, and we hope to implement a blueprint for how to use technology as a vital tool to bring Indigenous presence back into our homelands.

Our solution serves Indigenous Peoples, particularly the five federally recognized Lenape tribes. Colonization has had dire effects on Native people: mental, emotional, spiritual, and physical. Traditional culture and land-based practices are huge determinants of health for Indigenous Peoples. As Indigenous Peoples, we face the highest rates of poverty, sexual assault, and chronic illnesses like diabetes. Our ability to access holistic health is deeply connected to our ability to access our land. By helping our people return to our lands, we are restoring a sense of community health that we have not had access to since the 1700’s. By building power and momentum in the movement to restore Indigenous sovereignty, we will inspire and help all nations and allies to realize justice. Our solution also serves settler allies who wish to engage in processes of reparation and justice for Indigenous Peoples, and gives them a platform to do that work, which is something people are hungry for in New York City. It serves non-Natives by providing an opportunity for education and healing and by restoring the habitats in our homelands that reduce the potential effects of climate change for all.

Our solution primarily serves the 5 federally recognized Lenape nations (insert names of nations). Our Lenape people were forced from our lands through genocidal tactics. Those genocidal tactics have transformed from scalp bounties to economic barriers throughout the years, but the impact remains the same: Lenape people do not have access to our own land. Our solution heals the effects of colonization by reconnecting Lenape people back to their land and giving them a home within it while restoring matriarchy within our communities. 

Our team is the target population. All of our team members, including the Team Lead, are Lenapexkwe, or Lenape women, primarily mothers, grandmothers, and great-grandmothers. We structured our team in this manner to ensure that we had every generation represented, from youth to elders. We are individuals who are deeply connected to our people, and almost all of us live within our tribal communities. We are individuals from our communities who know the dynamics of our specific tribes and are deeply invested in healing our people. We hold various positions in our communities; we work in Native schools, child-care programs, public health, advocacy,  language, medicines, colleges, and more, all for the benefit of our people. We have grown up listening to the desires of our people to reconnect to our traditions and our land. We are the manifestation of their work and the answer to their prayers.

Financial: We need financial support in addition to guidance for how to build a financially sustainable project. Our ultimate goal is not profit, but we need to amass a large amount of funds to bring back as many Lenapexkweyok as possible, to buy land, build homes for our people, and to build a center of learning. We have already created a pathway of funneling resources from organizations in NY to Lenape women, which is a framework that makes sense because every organization in our territory profits off our absence, but we need guidance as to how to make this sustainable. 

Legal: As we intend to acquire land and build on it, we need legal guidance and partners. 

Cultural: Advice on how to create a cultural change strategy could be very helpful. We are looking to influence locals in our homelands to join in pursuit of Lenape justice.

Our team lead is a member of the communities in which our project is based.

Our solution is innovative because it heals a two-part wound that has not been healed since colonization created it. It takes the two largest impacts in our community: the introduction of patriarchy and the displacement off our lands and provides one holistic solution. It is also innovative for its unique approach to partnering locals and Indigenous people. We are using technologies from both communities to pair and become stronger for the purpose of reconnecting our people to the land. Our solution could change the market by driving mass amounts of resources from the most expensive city in the world (NYC) to the most impoverished racial demographic in the country (Indigenous people). It provides a tangible way for locals to support, engage with, and learn from the people whose land they occupy, which is something that people in NY, NJ, DE, and PA do not currently have access to due to the fact that the tribes were driven so far away. This serves the purpose of restoring a traditional “market” which was based off of relationships, not resources. With investments in our community, we can transform resources into projects that center reciprocal relationship with the land and healing. We will be able to restore a sense of balance that those in Lenapehoking have long lost. 

We intend to bring 20 people back twice a year for the next year. The following year we intend to bring 40 people back, twice a year. The following year we intend to bring 60 people back, twice a year. The following year we intend to bring 80 people back, twice a year. Individuals who have been brought back have said it was life changing, that their entire existence as Lenape people has been affected for the better, being able to meet and learn the earth they came from. We will achieve this by continuing to apply for grants, partnerships, fundraising, and growing our revenue sources in order to fund staff and trips. 

With this growth, by year five, we intend to have acquired land. This land either comes from purchase or relationships with locals who gift it. By year five, we want to have plans for farming and building being laid down. We will achieve this through continued fundraising efforts and strategic partnerships with like-minded individuals that are grown through our educational workshops. Once the land is acquired, we will consult our own communities leaders for stewardship plans and will outsource construction planning. 

By year five, we intend to have held dozens of quarterly workshops for our own community members, talking about our work, educating about traditional matriarchal culture, and teaching traditional skills, including Traditional Ecological Knowledge. Some of these will happen in the homelands, some will happen virtually, and some will happen in our home communities. We will achieve this by building on our current work, which uses community organizing strategies to plan events for our people.  

By year five, we intend to have held various workshops for local individuals and organizations based in Lenapehoking, educating about Lenape history and current affairs, forging partnerships, and guiding locals to align themselves with Lenape justice. We want to have built a network of accomplices, both on an organizational level and individual level. We will achieve this by building on our current work, which uses community organizing strategies to plan events for non-Lenape individuals and organizations.  

By 2023:

Have brought 20 Lenapexkwe to their homelands 

By 2024:

Have brought 40 Lenapexkwe to their homelands 

By 2025:

Have brought 60 Lenapexkwe to their homelands 

By 2026:

Have brought 80 Lenapexkwe to their homelands 

By 2026:

Have acquired 4 acres of land back for Lenape people to steward 

By 2030:

Increased rates of mental, emotional, spiritual, and physical wellness in each of our 5 communities. 

By 2030:

Increased the sense of safety and comfort of Lenape women in their communities. 

By 2030:

Have land stewarded by Lenape individuals in the homelands that includes a farm. 

By 2030:

Strengthen chronic disease (such as diabetes) prevention in our communities 

By 2030:

Increase sexual assault prevention in our communities

By 2030: 

Increase amount of Native education for non-Native individuals in Lenapehoking 

By 2030:

Have built a large network of organizations and individuals who are active in organizing for Lenape justice 

By 2030: 

Have increased community sustainability via harvesting, farming, and hunting practices. 

We will be continuously measuring impact via interviews and surveys.

Our theory of change is based on social and ecological determinants of health. Studies have shown that colonialism is a significant determinant of Indigenous health (4) and that specifically, access to land has a large impact on the wellness of Indigenous Peoples (1). To define our theory of change and identify specific outcomes, we built a social ecological model to explain how our intervention is impacting our community. The model presents that the pairing of land and community benefits the following aspects of health: mental, emotional, spiritual, physical, and cultural. From these categories of health comes various community practices, for example, harvesting foods falls under physical, and matriarchy falls under cultural. From these community practices comes individual impacts, so harvesting results in increased nutrition and matriarchy results in safety. Then we see outcomes. From a connection to Indigenous-based nutrition comes a reduction in chronic diseases (2) and from a matriarchal culture comes less sexual assault (3). 

In interviews, 100% of our participants said our programming increased their mental health. 100% of our participants said it inspired them to continue to grow their relationship with the land. 100% of our participants said they felt honored as women. 100% of our participants said they felt more connected to others from the 5 Lenape communities and were inspired to reconnect as a whole community. In interviews, common themes were: overwhelming positive emotional feelings in relation to touching the land, healing ancestral trauma by restoring the relationships with the earth, reconnecting to ancestral processes of harvesting, and the healing power of watching our children know their lands. Clearly, our responses have been overwhelmingly positive. Our intention is to grow this community wellness by increasing the amount of individuals taking trips home in the immediate and by acquiring a permanent place for them to return to in the long term. 

1 Lines, LA., Yellowknives Dene First Nation Wellness Division. & Jardine, C.G. Connection to the land as a youth-identified social determinant of Indigenous Peoples’ health. BMC Public Health 19, 176 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889...

2 Haman, F., Fontaine-Bisson, B., Batal, M. et al. Obesity and type 2 diabetes in Northern Canada's remote First Nations communities: the dietary dilemma. Int J Obes 34 (Suppl 2), S24–S31 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.20...

3 Kalra, G., & Bhugra, D. (2013). Sexual violence against women: Understanding cross-cultural intersections. Indian journal of psychiatry, 55(3), 244–249. https://doi.org/10.4103/0019-5545.117139

4 Czyzewski, K. (2011). Colonialism as a Broader Social Determinant of Health. The International Indigenous Policy Journal, 2(1) . DOI: 10.18584/iipj.2011.2.1.5

We use:

Zoom, Facebook Messenger, Facebook, Instagram, and Tiktok to meet with one another, educate our communities, and educate non-Lenape individuals. We continuously work and meet across two countries (CA and US) digitally to rejoin our five communities together. This is a revolutionary act because our people have never before been able to organize this consistently across the five nations due to radical physical displacement. We also have never had access to the broad community of locals in our homelands the way we currently do through social media. 

Traditional Ecological Knowledge paired with locally-based technologies - By restoring our connections to our homelands, we have the opportunity to practice Lenape Traditional Ecological Knowledge by way of harvesting, planting, and water protecting. We are currently working with locals to pair our traditional plant keeping knowledge with the area. For example, we are using GIS Mapping to track out local watershed locations and identify where specific Lenape families lived and how they caretook the area there in order to connect the knowledge available in the local fauna with our traditional practices. Long term, this work will benefit the local populations by helping to prevent climate change. 

Our approach to including diversity, equity, and inclusivity, is by creating a collective of individuals who are the target population they are trying to serve. We are not bringing in anyone to serve as a token diversity quota, the center of our work IS the people who we serve. The large majority of our organization is mothers, grandmothers, and great-grandmothers who grew up in their communities / reservations.  We strive to center those who are most marginalized in our work and are inclusive of two-spirit and queer individuals who are also leaders on our team.

Executive Summary:

Our collective  aims to provide trips back to their homelands for Lenape individuals by funneling funds from grants, partnerships, donations, goods, and services. Our primary goal is to promote land-based cultural and historical preservation, education, and community-building among Lenape people. Through our travel services, we provide a unique opportunity for Lenape individuals to reconnect with their ancestral lands and strengthen their sense of identity and belonging. Our key customers are Lenape individuals living in different parts of two countries who want to reconnect to their homelands, and our beneficiaries are the Lenape people in these communities who benefit from the cultural exchange, experience, and restored lifeways.

Product and Services:

Our immediate primary product is trips back to the Lenape homelands. We offer travel services, including airfare, lodging, and ground transportation, to Lenape women and children who are interested in visiting their ancestral lands. In addition to transportation and accommodation, we provide guided tours of the homelands, cultural activities, and educational programs that promote understanding and appreciation of Lenape history, culture, and traditions. We also provide networking opportunities for Lenape individuals and communities to connect and collaborate on cultural and community-building initiatives. Our services are tailored to the needs and interests of our customers and beneficiaries.

Customer and Beneficiary Needs:

Our customers are Lenape individuals who want to reconnect with their ancestral lands, culture, and communities. Many Lenape people have been displaced from their homelands due to forced relocation, genocide, and colonization. As a result, many Lenape individuals are deeply disconnected from their territories and are seeking ways to reconnect and learn more about their own lands. Our travel services provide an opportunity for Lenape individuals to visit their homelands, connect with local communities, and learn about their history, culture, and traditions. Our beneficiaries are the Lenape communities who benefit from the cultural exchange, economic support, and community-building initiatives that result from our travel services. By promoting cultural and historical preservation, education, and community-building, we contribute to the well-being and resilience of the Lenape people and their communities. Our beneficiaries need a permanent place to return to and gather at, which we intend to build for them as well. 

Revenue Streams:

Our revenue streams include grants, donations, partnerships with organizations that share our values and goals. We actively seek funding from foundations and philanthropic organizations that support Indigenous rights, cultural preservation, and community-building initiatives. We also accept donations from individuals who want to support our mission and may branch off into the sale of services and goods. Additionally, we partner with organizations that share our goals and values, such as Indigenous-led nonprofits, cultural institutions, and educational institutions. Through these partnerships, we can leverage our resources and expertise to provide more comprehensive and impactful services to our customers and beneficiaries.

To become financially sustainable, our collective will need to diversify its revenue streams and grow our current strategies. Here is our plan:

1. Sustained Donations and Grants: Continue to seek donations and grants from individuals, foundations, and government agencies that support Indigenous rights, cultural preservation, and community-building initiatives. To secure funding, we intend to continue to engage in grant writing, donor engagement, education, and fundraising events.

2. Selling Products or Services: Sell products and services that align with our mission and values. Items we have discussed include: art, consulting, educational programs, and cultural workshops.

3. Raising Investment Capital: Explore opportunities to raise investment capital from impact investors who share the collective's mission and values. The collective will also consider crowdfunding campaigns to raise capital for specific projects or initiatives.

4. Land-Based Business Ventures: As the collective begins to acquire land and build on it, we can explore land-based business ventures that generate revenue, such as ecotourism and agriculture. These ventures could support our long-term sustainability and provide economic opportunities for Lenape communities.

In the long term, we will need to establish revenue streams that cover its expected expenses, including travel expenses, land acquisition costs, and construction costs for the center. To achieve this, we intended to continue to develop a comprehensive financial plan that takes into account revenue streams, expenses, and growth projections. 

Because we are young, this is a key area where we need aid. Our work is community-driven, and we seek to not prioritize profit as our main goal, yet we know that we will need financial sustainability to realize our plans. We do not intend to model our organization off of a business or market, and critique the need to do this, as it does not align with our Indigenous beliefs. We seek to find a medium - a solution that allows us to become sustainable under the current economic systems of the US while also keeping our land-based values at the core of everything we do. 

In total, in just one year, we have amassed $65,305 via grants, partnerships, and donations. We have done this through applications, meeting with NYC-based organizations, and building relationships with institutions that have resources. We identify like-minded collectives and provide educational pitches where we offer the opportunity to partner. Currently, we have a coalition of organizations that are partnered with us to continue efforts of Lenape justice in our homelands.