Research Project Summary
Listening to the Water: Indigenous Cultural Relationships, Access and Well-Being in South Jersey is an exploratory, community-engaged research project that centers Indigenous knowledge systems and lived experience to better understand how water shapes health, safety, and well-being among Indigenous communities in South Jersey. Led by a collaborative team from Rowan University, Diversity in Aquatics (DIA), and the Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape Tribal Nation, this Catalyst project asks: How do Indigenous communities in South Jersey describe their cultural, spiritual, and lived relationships with water, and how do these relationships shape present-day experiences of access, safety, and well-being?
Using a qualitative, community-engaged design, the project will conduct facilitated community listening sessions and narrative-based focus groups in partnership with Tribal leadership. These sessions will explore cultural and spiritual meanings of water, intergenerational knowledge, experiences of access and exclusion, and the connections between water, health, and well-being. A community validation process will ensure that emerging themes accurately reflect participant perspectives and cultural context.
Rather than producing generalized findings, this project prioritizes listening, relationship-building, and meaning-making as the foundation for future research and action. While the study does not directly intervene in drowning prevention or water safety, it establishes essential cultural and contextual understanding needed to design effective, community-defined strategies. By centering Indigenous voices and strengthening academic–community partnerships, this Catalyst project builds a scalable qualitative evidence base to inform future mixed-methods research, culturally grounded programming, and policy initiatives focused on equitable access to water and improved health outcomes across South Jersey.
Research Project Goals
Listening to the Water aims to elevate Indigenous voices and experiences to better understand the role water plays in cultural identity, health, and well-being across South Jersey. The goals of the project are to:
Lift up Indigenous stories and knowledge by documenting how community members describe their cultural, spiritual, and historical relationships with water.
Explore current experiences with water access and safety, including the opportunities and barriers Indigenous residents face when engaging with waterways for cultural, recreational, and wellness purposes.
Strengthen trust-based partnerships between Indigenous communities, researchers, and public health practitioners through a collaborative, community-led research process.
Lay the groundwork for future action by creating a shared understanding that can inform culturally responsive water safety programs, public health strategies, and policy initiatives.
This project is designed as a listening and learning effort. By prioritizing community voices and lived experience, Listening to the Water creates a foundation for future research and initiatives that support safer, more equitable access to water and promote long-term health and well-being for Indigenous communities in South Jersey.
Research Project Objectives
The Listening to the Water project is guided by a set of objectives focused on understanding, respect, and collaboration. Through a community-engaged research approach, the project seeks to:
Document Indigenous perspectives on water by gathering stories and reflections that describe water’s cultural, spiritual, and historical significance within Indigenous communities in South Jersey.
Highlight lived experiences related to water access and safety, including how community members navigate opportunities, barriers, and risks connected to waterways and aquatic spaces today.
Honor intergenerational knowledge by capturing how traditions, practices, and teachings about water are shared across generations and continue to shape community well-being.
Ensure community accuracy and integrity through a validation process that allows participants and Tribal leadership to review and affirm emerging themes.
Support future solutions rooted in community voice by generating insights that can inform culturally responsive water safety efforts, health initiatives, and policy conversations.
Together, these objectives reflect a commitment to listening first—recognizing that effective public health strategies and water safety efforts must be grounded in the knowledge, values, and experiences of the communities they are intended to serve.