Revisiting Island of the Blue Dolphins

Sara Weld
Germanic and Slavic Studies
UC Santa Barbara

Revisiting the Island of the Blue Dolphins is a public humanities project and an ongoing collaboration between UC Santa Barbara and the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History that will culminate in a public event on August 15, 2023 with the goal of creating a lasting digital impact on the community. This project will deepen the public understanding of Scott O’Dell’s The Island of the Blue Dolphins, which is read by children in schools in California and around the world, by critically revisiting this local Californian story based on the historical figure of the Native California Indian known as Lone Woman of San Nicolas. A diverse public, including K-12 educators and other community members, as well as international scholars and educators, will visit a related museum exhibit, experience cultural performances, and watch a relevant portion of the documentary West of the West followed by an interactive discussion with an interdisciplinary panel of experts representing a range of expertise and perspectives that will deepen understandings of this humanities topic. The collaboration also includes the creation of a public walking tour and digital map to local sites of relevance to the story, for the lasting benefit of the community and visitors.

Image credit: L. Frank, copyright of the UC Press.