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First Nations Development Institute’s Luce Indigenous Knowledge Fellowship Launches 7th Cohort of Native Leaders
LONGMONT, Colo. (March 10, 2026) – First Nations Development Institute (First Nations) this week announced the 10 Native American leaders selected for First Nations’ Luce Indigenous Knowledge Fellowship. This 2026 cohort marks the seventh year of the renowned fellowship, which was launched in 2020 by First Nations and the Henry Luce Foundation (Luce Foundation) to support exceptional Native leaders, knowledge holders, and knowledge makers who are doing noteworthy work to advance Indigenous knowledge.
Since 2020, 74 fellowships have been awarded across seven cohorts, creating a network of intellectual leadership in Native American, Native Hawaiian, and Alaska Native communities across a variety of knowledge fields.
First Nations President and CEO Michael Roberts described how the fellows are chosen based on a broad nationwide outreach followed by a months-long selection process that engages teams of external reviewers. “The 10 new fellows further add to this esteemed group of Native thought leaders who are advancing Native knowledge for the benefit of Indian Country and beyond,” he said.
Raymond Foxworth, Ph.D., Program Director for Indigenous Knowledge Initiative at the Henry Luce Foundation, said, “Historically, Indigenous knowledge has been overlooked or trivialized. But these fellows are an important reminder that the world has so much to learn from Indigenous knowledge systems and leaders. These fellows are doing remarkable work that will help make their communities and the world a better place.”
The 2026 cohort of Luce Indigenous Knowledge Fellows was selected by an Indigenous advisory committee from 306 applicants in a competitive, two-phase application, peer-reviewed process.
Selected fellows receive a monetary award of $75,000 and access to additional resources for training and professional development. They also commit to convening three times during the first year of the two-year fellowship as a Community of Practice to share and grow their knowledge, projects, and drive to achieve their personal and community goals.
The 2026 Luce Indigenous Knowledge fellows are:
Jessica Brown, Elem Indian Colony
Knowledge Field: Tribal Ethnobotanist/ TEK Practitioner
Brown will work at the intersection of Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) and western science to support land, water, and plant stewardship. As a tribal ethnobotanist, TEK practitioner, and monitoring biologist, her work will include monitoring ecosystem health, documenting culturally important plant species, supporting restoration efforts, and sharing knowledge through community-based education. The fellowship allows her to strengthen relationships between science and culture, ensure that management decisions reflect Indigenous knowledge, and help protect ecosystems in ways that honor both tradition and future generations.
Joy Harjo/Joy Harjo-Sapulpa, Mvskoke Nation/Oce Vpofv Ceremonial Grounds
Knowledge Field: Poet, writer, musician, and artist
Harjo-Sapulpa will work with community members and youth to interview culture bearers who are artists, whose art is centered in Mvskoke values and aesthetics. These interviews will be in different formats, available to the community and families, and used especially in curricula for education on the reservation. These interviews might be collected into a book for further community use.
Lduteen Jerrick Hope-Lang, Tlingit and Tsimshian
Knowledge Field: Landback and cultural reclamation activist
Hope-Lang’s will focus on restoration, revitalization, regeneration, repatriation, and reparations. His intent is to be on the path to healing and rebuild stolen generational wealth, one clan house at a time. He seeks to challenge historic preservation models to allow for preservation in ways that feel aligned with lived experience and the experiences of Native people nationwide.
Shaadootlaa Iyall, Tlingit
Knowledge Field: Tlingit teaching artist
Iyall will dedicate her time to nurturing Tlingit cultural arts, carrying ancestral knowledge forward through teaching, mentorship, and hands-on creation. She will weave together Raven’s Tail and Chilkat practices, regalia beadwork, and cultural traditions with contemporary learning, creating living pathways for her community to connect with its heritage. Through workshops, virtual classes, and digital resources, she will share ancestral ways, fostering healing, creativity, and intergenerational connection across urban and remote Native communities. This work honors ancestors, strengthens cultural identity, and ensures that the teachings, stories, and artistry continue to thrive for generations to come.
John Kaneholani Aweau Turalde, Native Hawaiian
Knowledge Field: Kālai Pahu (Drum Carver), Cultural Educator
Turalde has been carving traditional Hawaiian pahu for more than 30 years and has created hundreds of drums, including six rare sharkskin pahu. For 26 years, he has taught and demonstrated the art of kālai pahu (traditional drum carving), dedicating his life to perpetuating this practice within the Indigenous Hawaiian community. Turalde plans to expand his drum-carving and poi board workshops across Hawaiʻi Island—including Miloliʻi, Kohala, Hilo, and Kona—and plans to travel to Molokaʻi and Kauaʻi to teach in Hawaiian communities.
Jaynie Parrish, Navajo Nation
Knowledge Field: Community organizer and civics educator
Parrish will work with partners to help build a more permanent civic framework in Arizona that helps communities understand the nature of their political power and agency. This work will also strengthen intergenerational organizing efforts, build trust, increase civic participation, and amplify the stories of culture-keepers, especially elders and youth.
Kealoha Pisciotta, Native Hawaiian
Knowledge Field: Traditional and cultural practitioner, environmental advocate, and artist
Pisciotta’s fellowship project is two-fold: to perpetuate the practice and exercise of Kapu Aloha for youth and to begin an Indigenous Traditional Ocean Treaty process for the protection/continuation of sustainable ocean lifeways and practices.
tisqeˀ ˀilp’ilp (Harry Slickpoo Jr), Nez Perce
Knowledge Field: Nez Perce language instructor
Slickpoo will continue work to preserve the knowledge of Nez Perce place names while there are still knowledgeable elders. Being able to properly identify village sites; trail systems; rivers; mountains; battlefields; and places where people fish, hunt, dig roots, and pick berries is going to be an ongoing process. Collaboration between the Nez Perce Tribe, the Nez Perce National Historical Park, Washington State University, University of Idaho, the Idaho State Historical Society, and the Nez Perce Circle of Elders is a priority for this project. Slickpoo hopes to work with these institutions to bring a Nez Perce Place Names Atlas to his people, preserving and sharing the connection to the land.
Waawaakeyaash Keller Paap, Gaa-miskwaabikaang Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Ojibwe
Knowledge Field: Language educator
Waawaakeyaash will work to deepen his ability to extend Anishinaabe language proficiency transmission practices and create lasting change for the vitality and longevity of Anishinaabe language and lifeways. He will continue empowering, educating, and mentoring young generations of language carriers, educators, and leaders through community and organizational program improvements, collaboration, and expansion.
Thomas Walker, Jr., Navajo
Knowledge field: Navajo Peacemaker
Walker will prioritize local community consultation and engagement, working closely with leadership, elders, and community representatives. He will document conversations and feedback from community stakeholders to guide the development of training materials that outline the practice and implementation of traditional Navajo Peacemaking. The goal is to create a locally grounded Peacemaking program that the local government can formally adopt and codify within its local governance structure. This collaborative approach ensures the program reflects community values and supports long-term use within local decision making.
With support from the Henry Luce Foundation, First Nations also awarded honorable mentions to 10 candidates who demonstrated a strong commitment to generate, perpetuate and disseminate Indigenous knowledge.
The 2026 Fellowship Honorable Mentions and knowledge fields are:
- Alayna Eagle Shield; Three Affiliated Tribes, Standing Rock Sioux Tribe; Cradleboards
- Brandy Nālani McDougall; Kanaka ʻŌiwi; Literature
- Jackie Larson Bread; Blackfeet; Traditional Arts/Beadwork
- Jennifer Saltalamacchia; Herring Pond Wampanoag Tribe; Deer Medicine Food Sovereignty Cultural Traditions
- Aazhoo-bines John Daniel; Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe; Ojibwe Language
- John Well-Off-Man; Chippewa-Cree; Language
- Lily Hope; Tlingit; Chilkat and Ravenstail Weaving, Mentor, Community Healing Work, Enthuser of Artists, Mother of Five
- Mary W. Thompson; Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians; River Cane and White Oak Basketry
- Monte Randall; Muscogee (Creek) Nation; Mvskoke Language Revitalization
- Wendy K’ah Skáahluwaa Todd; Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Tribes of Alaska; Indigenous Science, Language, and Cultural Knowledge
About the Henry Luce Foundation
The Henry Luce Foundation seeks to enrich public discourse by promoting innovative scholarship, cultivating new leaders, and fostering international understanding. The foundation advances its mission through grantmaking and leadership programs in the fields of Asia, higher education, religion and theology, art and public policy.
Established in 1936 by Henry R. Luce, the co-founder and editor-in-chief of Time Inc., the foundation’s earliest work honored his parents, missionary educators in China. The foundation’s programs today reflect the value Mr. Luce placed on learning, leadership, and long-term commitment in philanthropy.
The Henry Luce Foundation is a private independent foundation based in New York City.
About First Nations Development Institute
Founded in 1980, First Nations works to uplift and sustain the lifeways and economies of Native communities through advocacy, financial support, and knowledge sharing. Through year-end 2025, First Nations has successfully managed 4,405 grants totaling over $110 million to Native American projects and organizations in 46 states, the District of Columbia, U.S. Territory American Samoa, and Guam. We envision a world in which Tribal Sovereignty is upheld, and Native ingenuity and knowledge are honored and respected. For more information, visit www.firstnations.org.
