Bayou Culture Gatherings are monthly meetings to learn and share information about the human dimension of coastal land loss.

Watch previous gathering videos below and CLICK HERE to sign up for the next gathering.

How do we make the past understandable to non-scholarly audiences when lifestyles, livelihoods, landscape, and even the language spoken have so radically changed? In the context of southeast Louisiana, Glen Pitre will look at some of the ways the past can be not only preserved, but also made more broadly accessible. Sign up to receive announcements about registering and other information at https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/HaCPJe8/bayouculturegatherings. The Louisiana Folklore Society offers these gatherings to share perspectives on the human dimension of coastal land loss. In partnership with the Center for Bayou Studies at Nicholls State Univ. and the South Louisiana Wetlands Discovery Center, the Bayou Culture Gatherings are supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Louisiana Division of the Arts, the Office of Cultural Development and the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, and the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program. Recordings of previous Gatherings are posted here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6XX24FtEoSMZJgjUt8TYaA For information about the Gatherings, contact BCC at bayouculturecollaborative@gmail.com.
March 2025 BCC Gathering Recording
Please join the Bayou Culture Collaborative for our February gathering of people and organizations focused on preserving Louisiana’s heritage and examining the effects of land loss on local culture. When: Friday, February 21, 2025, from noon to 1:30 p.m. Central Speaker: Dr. Jennifer Morrison, Assistant Professor, Department of English, Xavier University Title: “John Weatherall and the Reconstruction of Acadiana’s Rural Mardi Gras” Mardi Gras offers us an opportunity to look at community heritage and traditions as indicators of community strength. In this presentation, Dr. Jennifer Morrison will discuss how in recent years, Acadiana Mardi Gras has undergone an interesting evolution. Due to John Weatherall's camera, and the rise of social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram; Acadiana’s Mardi Gras celebration has become a space where community is forming. Dr. Morrison will discuss the cultural implication of John Weatherall's reconstruction of Acadiana rural Mardi Gras and what it means for understanding community. Sign up to receive announcements about registering and other information at https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/HaCPJe8/bayouculturegatherings. The Louisiana Folklore Society offers these gatherings to share perspectives on the human dimension of coastal land loss. In partnership with the Center for Bayou Studies at Nicholls State Univ. and the South Louisiana Wetlands Discovery Center, the Bayou Culture Gatherings are supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Louisiana Division of the Arts, the Office of Cultural Development and the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, and the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program. Recordings of previous Gatherings are posted here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6XX24FtEoSMZJgjUt8TYaA For information about the Gatherings, contact BCC at bayouculturecollaborative@gmail.com.
Bayou Culture Gathering February 2025 | Dr. Jennifer Morrison
The theme for 2025 is Moving Forward with Intention! Please join the Bayou Culture Collaborative for our January 24, 2025 gathering of people and organizations focused on preserving Louisiana’s heritage and examining the effects of land loss on local culture. “We’ve already got the tools, now we need to use them with intention.” Our monthly meetings have shown us that, collectively, we have vibrant ideas and useful tools for this work! In 2025 we will gather information about these tools we have and hopefully create a “toolkit” for Louisiana communities. We will kick next year off with a whirlwind tour of projects and possibilities, with the leadership team briefly talking about their efforts to move forward with intention! Sign up to receive announcements about registering and other information at https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/HaCPJe8/bayouculturegatherings. The Louisiana Folklore Society offers these gatherings to share perspectives on the human dimension of coastal land loss. In partnership with the Center for Bayou Studies at Nicholls State Univ. and the South Louisiana Wetlands Discovery Center, the Bayou Culture Gatherings are supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Louisiana Division of the Arts, the Office of Cultural Development and the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, and the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program. Recordings of previous Gatherings are posted here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6XX24FtEoSMZJgjUt8TYaA For information about the Gatherings, contact BCC at bayouculturecollaborative@gmail.com.
Bayou Culture Gathering January 2025 | Moving Forward with Intention
Announcing the December 13, 2024 Gathering Please join the Bayou Culture Collaborative for our December gathering of people and organizations focused on preserving Louisiana’s heritage and examining the effects of land loss on local culture. Speaker: dix Moore-Broussard, Executive Director of The Neutral Ground Collective Title: “Finding Balance in Our Shifting Landscapes” This presentation explores how communities can foster resilience and healing in the face of ongoing change & adversity. By leveraging trauma-sensitive, somatic-based practices and collective approaches, we can cultivate balance, connection, and adaptability in a moving world. Sign up to receive announcements about registering and other information at https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/HaCPJe8/bayouculturegatherings. The Louisiana Folklore Society offers these gatherings to share perspectives on the human dimension of coastal land loss. In partnership with the Center for Bayou Studies at Nicholls State Univ. and the South Louisiana Wetlands Discovery Center, the Bayou Culture Gatherings are supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Louisiana Division of the Arts, the Office of Cultural Development and the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, and the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program. Recordings of previous Gatherings are posted here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6XX24FtEoSMZJgjUt8TYaA For information about the Gatherings, contact BCC at bayouculturecollaborative@gmail.com.
Bayou Culture Gathering December 2024 | dix Moore-Broussard
Soul, Soléy, and Soil – The Sound of Les Cenelles Les Cenelles is an environmentally inspired string ensemble that mixes Louisiana Creole music with technology. Their music is informed by the ancestors, a multiplicity of diasporas, and the Gulf South climate and environment. Les Cenelles borrows its name from the original Les Cenelles, the first anthology of poetry by Americans of color. Ensemble members include Joseph B Darensbourg, Peter J Bowling, and Denise Frazier. We were joined on this occasion by Joseph and Peter, who spoke eloquently of their work and also performed some songs in Kreyol. The Bayou Culture Collaborative is an initiative of the Louisiana Folklore Society that seeks to connect those interested in 1) the human dimension of land loss, 2) transmitting culture in a time of disruption, and 3) impacts of climate migrations. The Artists and Tradition Bearers Working Group seeks to support writers, craftspeople, and visual and performing artists who are affected by the environmental changes around them. We also welcome any who are interested in creating or who have already created work that responds to these changes in some way, such as to express how it feels to experience environmental disruption or to educate others as to what’s happening. We provide a forum to exchange ideas and share each other’s work, and there is also potential for organizing participatory events with current or former coastal residents. To connect with this group, email bccartistgroup@gmail.com
BCC Artists Working Group Oct 2024 | Les Cenelles
BCC Artists Working Group Nov 2024 | C.E. Richard The Literary Legacy of Louisiana's Vanishing Coastlands C. E. Richard, Flora Levy/BORSF Professor of English University of Louisiana at Lafayette Wednesday, November 20, 2024 at 7 p.m. Central Zoom meeting of the Bayou Culture Collaborative's Artists, Tradition Bearers, and Coastal Issues Working Group There is a surprisingly rich array of literary artifacts, from the 1700s to the present, that record the memory of Louisiana's coastlands, but they are scattered and largely overlooked. Charles Richard presents what he has found so far, reads excerpts, and invites the audience to share their own favorites. If you have suggestions for what he might include in an anthology of such readings, his contact info can be found at https://english.louisiana.edu/node/212. Charles Richard is a native of South Louisiana who fell in love with our coast as a child, fishing the estuarial waters of Lake Pontchartrain, Barataria Bay, and Grand Isle. He has written, produced, and/ or directed more than two dozen documentary films, most of them concerning the history, culture, and ethnography of Louisiana. He wrote the 2015 book Coastal Sketches: Field Notes & Photos from "the End of the World" as well as numerous articles about the loss of people-and-place along the Louisiana coast. Charles is the Flora Levy Professor of English at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, where he teaches creative writing, filmmaking, and Louisiana literature. With co-writer and co-director Conni Castille, his latest work is a one-hour documentary entitled Ancestral Artistry: The Influence of Africans and Creoles of Color on Louisiana Architecture, due for wide release in 2025. The Bayou Culture Collaborative is an initiative of the Louisiana Folklore Society that seeks to connect those interested in 1) the human dimension of land loss, 2) transmitting culture in a time of disruption, and 3) impacts of climate migrations. The Artists and Tradition Bearers Working Group seeks to support writers, craftspeople, and visual and performing artists who are affected by the environmental changes around them. We also welcome any who are interested in creating or who have already created work that responds to these changes in some way, such as to express how it feels to experience environmental disruption or to educate others as to what’s happening. We provide a forum to exchange ideas and share each other’s work, and there is also potential for organizing participatory events with current or former coastal residents. To connect with this group, email bccartistgroup@gmail.com
BCC Artists Working Group Nov 2024 | C.E. Richard
Please join the Bayou Culture Collaborative for our November gathering of people and organizations focused on preserving Louisiana’s heritage and examining the effects of land loss on local culture. Speaker: Angela Chalk, Founder and Executive Director of Healthy Community Services Title: “Preserving Our Culture while Understanding Severe Weather Impacts” Where: Via Zoom, free With every threat of severe weather events, we slowly lose a bit of the culture of South Louisiana. This conversation will look at the historical landscape and see how current weather events threaten the way of life for those of us who call Louisiana home. Learn strategies to mitigate and adapt to these weather threats. Sign up to receive announcements about registering and other information at https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/HaCPJe8/bayouculturegatherings. The Louisiana Folklore Society offers these gatherings to share perspectives on the human dimension of coastal land loss. In partnership with the Center for Bayou Studies at Nicholls State Univ. and the South Louisiana Wetlands Discovery Center, the Bayou Culture Gatherings are supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Louisiana Division of the Arts, the Office of Cultural Development and the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, and the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program. Recordings of previous Gatherings are posted here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6XX24FtEoSMZJgjUt8TYaA For information about the Gatherings, contact BCC at bayouculturecollaborative@gmail.com.
Bayou Culture Gathering November 2024 | Angela Chalk
BCC Artists Working Group Aug 2024 | Paddy Bowman Paddy Bowman, "Working, Teaching, Learning, Living Around the Year: Exploring the Seasonal Round" Wednesday, August 21, 7pm Central Zoom meeting of the Bayou Culture Collaborative's Artists and Tradition Bearers Working Group As a follow up to our July discussion about folklife and education, Paddy Bowman demonstrated her use of the Seasonal Round activity from the Louisiana Voices Educator's Guide, Unit IX The Seasonal Round and the Cycle of Life. https://www.louisianavoices.org/Unit9/edu_unit9_p1.html This activity is used in both formal classrooms and informal education settings such as museums. Feel free to download and print a copy of the Seasonal Round worksheet to try it yourself and with others - versions are available in English, https://drive.google.com/file/d/1HwR_f8WJkhqKW-ZJKke5nbpmAGpPn1Wt/view Spanish, https://drive.google.com/file/d/1642OavNRGubfq2y_HkU_9HJrCqIxTRIo/view and French. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uoMW5-7P8TAZEDwvO8BYBgLRWYvIFbTT/view Paddy Bowman was a key writer of most of Louisiana Voices Educator's Guide and developed this unit. She is founding director of Local Learning: The National Network for Folk Arts in Education https://locallearningnetwork.org/ and co-edits the Journal of Folklore and Education. https://jfepublications.org/
BCC Artists Working Group Aug 2024 | Paddy Bowman
Please join the Bayou Culture Collaborative for our September gathering of people and organizations focused on preserving Louisiana’s heritage and examining the effects of land loss on local culture. When: Friday, September 20, 2024, from noon to 1:30 p.m. Central Speaker: Brooks Frederick, classically-trained artist, painter, and activist Title: “Supporting creative communities in a changing Gulf Coast” Houma native, Brooklyn-based artist and educator Brooks Frederick will share how growing up in bayou culture shaped his artistic sensibilities and increased his advocacy on behalf of his Gulf Coast home during significant environmental and climate-related challenges. Sign up to receive announcements about registering and other information at https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/HaCPJe8/bayouculturegatherings. The Louisiana Folklore Society offers these gatherings to share perspectives on the human dimension of coastal land loss. In partnership with the Center for Bayou Studies at Nicholls State Univ. and the South Louisiana Wetlands Discovery Center, the Bayou Culture Gatherings are supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Louisiana Division of the Arts, the Office of Cultural Development and the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, and the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program. Recordings of previous Gatherings are posted here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6XX24FtEoSMZJgjUt8TYaA For information about the Gatherings, contact BCC at bayouculturecollaborative@gmail.com.
Bayou Culture Gathering September 2024 | Brooks Frederick
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The South Louisiana Wetlands Discovery Center is revolutionizing how we think, teach and learn about Louisiana’s disappearing coast. Our programs focus on developing adaptation skills in our young people. By doing so, we ensure the survival of our culture along with our workforce.

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