Radley Davis (Iss Awi/Pit River) introduces the traditional cultures of the Pit River People of present-day Shasta, Siskiyou, Modoc, and Lassen Counties in Northern California. Davis will share stories of the connection to ancestral lands and ongoing efforts to preserve language and customs. 

Nevada has been the source of some of the best fossils and fossil hunting in the United States, particularly for those in search of ichthyosaurs, giant aquatic reptiles from the Triassic.  One of the earliest collectors to explore these riches was Annie Montague Alexander, a petit, soft-spoken woman with a passion for paleontology specifically and for field work in general. Barbara Stein, author of On Her Own Terms: Annie Montague Alexander and the Rise of Science in the American West, explores Annie Alexander and her contributions to paleontology and vertebrate zoology.  

About Barbara Stein: 

Barbara Stein was a staff curator and researcher in the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology from 1985-2000, the first museum of two natural history museums founded by Annie Montague Alexander on the UC Berkeley campus.  A symposium in 1994 on women who had made important contributions to the University became the impetus for writing, On Her Own Terms: Annie Montague Alexander and the Rise of Science in the American West.

Dorothea Lange was hired by the federal government in 1942 to document Japanese Americans as they were exiled from their homes on the West Coast and confined in detention camps. Her images of the exiles’ humanity offered a powerful critique of the incarceration program, to the point that her photographs were confiscated and censored for the duration of the war. In this talk, Meredith Oda explores Lange’s images to better understand her perspective and the experiences of the Japanese Americans forcibly removed from their homes and incarcerated without charge.

About Meredith Oda:

Meredith Oda is Grace A. Griffin Associate Professor in American History in the Department of History at the University of Nevada, Reno. A graduate of UC Berkeley and the University of Chicago, her work has been supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Huntington Library, and the Center for East Asian Studies at the University of Chicago. Her first book, The Gateway to the Pacific: Japanese Americans and the Remaking of San Francisco (Chicago 2019) was a transpacific urban history of redevelopment in the city. She has also published scholarly articles as well as non-academic pieces in TIME magazine, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Nevada Humanities’ Double Down, and other popular outlets. Currently, she is working on a second book, People in Motion: Japanese American Incarceration and Resettlement during World War II, that explores the lives Japanese Americans remade as they left the detention centers.

Philip Brookman, Consulting Curator in the Department of Photographs at the National Gallery of Art, explores Lange’s work and the creation of the exhibition Dorothea Lange: Seeing People.  

Presented as part of the Debra and Dennis Scholl Distinguished Speaker Series 

Highlighting the profound significance of Native American poetry and its importance within the broader context of American literature, celebrate National Poetry Month with celebrated Native American poets, Nizhoni Widehat and Nila Northsun, in a conversation moderated by Stacey Montooth, Executive Director of the Nevada Department of Native American Affairs.  

Free for Tribal Community Members.

Meet Judith Lowry and exhibition co-curators Melissa Melero-Moose (Fallon Paiute | Modoc) and Ann M. Wolfe, the Museum’s Andrea and John C. Deane Family Chief Curator and Associate Director, in the gallery for a closing conversation and walkthrough. 

Free with Admission. 

Join legendary broadcaster Peggy Berryhill (Muscogee), the “First Lady of Native Radio,” as she sits down with acclaimed artist Judith Lowry (Mountain Maidu | Pit River | Washoe) for a conversation about the transformative power of storytelling. Drawing from their rich experiences in media and art, they will explore how stories shape identity, preserve cultural heritage, and connect communities across generations. 

Free to Tribal Communities.

Photo by Seve Cardosi

Attend a panel discussion exploring the planet’s oldest tree, the Bristlecone Pine, and its influence on artists and musicians alike. 

The panel will feature Colin Robertson, Charles N. Mathewson Senior Vice President of Education and Research; Laura Jackson, Music Director of the Reno Philharmonic; and composer Marko Bajzer. Musicologist Mark Clague will moderate the discussion.

This program was initially scheduled to take place on February 13th but was canceled due to inclement weather. It has now been rescheduled to March 12th at 6pm. For any questions or concerns, please contact Nevada Humanities directly at glam@nevadahumanities.org

In recognition of the 83rd anniversary of Japanese American incarceration during World War II, join Nevada Humanities and the Japanese American Citizens League for an evening of conversation about remembrance and the power of stories in the Japanese American community. 

The evening begins with a presentation of audio excerpts from “The Magpie of Heart Mountain” – a 2021 episode from the podcast This Is Love featuring the story of Shigeru Yabu. Yabu was nine when he was incarcerated at Heart Mountain, where he befriended a wild baby magpie whom he named Maggie. The program concludes with a discussion with members of the Japanese American Citizens League moderated by Meredith Oda, Associate Professor of History at the University of Nevada, Reno. 

Photo Courtesy of the National Archives and Records Administration