Native American Heritage Celebration

Meet a Scientist: Jesse Peltier, PhD. Jesse is an Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, with an affiliation in Chemical Engineering at Northeastern University. He is a citizen of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa and White Bear First Nations.

Juan Gonzalez. This presentation will feature Juan Gonzalez discussing the Mayan contributions to STEM, specifically highlighting their advanced knowledge in astronomy, complex mathematics, and medicine.

Meet a Scientist: Alvin D. Harvey, PhD. Alvin D. Harvey is a postdoctoral fellow in aeronautics and astronautics and citizen of the Navajo (Diné) Nation whose research is focused on Indigenous Research Methodologies and Methods (IRM&M) in aerospace engineering. Alvin’s graduate research encompassed studies of partial gravity human performance and mechanisms of simulating partial gravity environments, and a doctoral thesis shaped by several goals: co-creating and applying Diné and Indigenous pillars of knowledge in aeronautics and astronautics; developing Indigenous space ethics, astrophilosophy, astrobiology, and shared engineering methodology; and capacity building and pathfinding in systems and complex theory, curriculum design, and bioastronautics. As a postdoctoral fellow Alvin’s work includes centering Indigenous systems theory and knowledge in sustainable human and satellite space systems engineering, developing the first Indigenous Space Conference, and training a research team for a space analog mission grounded in Indigenous Methodologies.

Rosalba Solis, La Pinata. Aztec dance worksop sharing the permit for dance and the beauty of Mother Earth/TONANTZIN traditional Aztec dance and songs from prehispanic time.

Pumawari Tusuy-Boston. Pumawari Tusys Boston is a non-profit organization 501(c)(3) that promotes the customs and traditions from Peru through traditional dances. It is composed from Peruvian-American kids and their parents from different towns around Boston. We will be performing 2 dances: Valicha and Festejo where we will interact with the audience.

The Dancing Chickens of Ventura Fabian: The Visiting Mexican Artists Program. The Dancing Chickens of Ventura Fabian is a multicultural bilingual arts education program designed to share and celebrate the art and craft of Oaxacan woodcarving through direct contact with the artists.

Kasibahagua Cultural Society Dance Group. We represent the island of Boriken pre colonization and educate through dance our Taino Cultural and how it continues today.

Meet a Scientist: Nepphi Craig, BHT, ACRPS. Chef Nephi Craig has 27 years culinary experience in America and abroad in Canada, Mexico, London, Germany, Brazil, Japan, Italy, and France. Nephi Craig is White Mountain Apache and half Navajo. Chef Nephi Craig provides training, workshops and lecture sessions on Indigenous Foods for Health to schools, restaurants, universities, behavioral health agencies, and tribal entities in America and abroad. Chef Craig was featured in the James Beard Award winning film ‘Gather’ in 2020, which showcases Craig’s leadership in the Indigenous Food Sovereignty movement now spreading across the United States and around the world. Chef Nephi Craig is a 2023 James Beard Foundation Nominee for ‘Best Chef Southwest’ and holds an honorary degree of PhD in Visual Arts: Philosophy, Aesthetics, and Art Theory from the Institute for Doctoral Studies in the Visual Arts.

Redhawk Native American Dance Troupe. Redhawk Native American Dancers will be sharing Indigenous history, dance, music and cultural traditions of Indigenous People of North America.