About

Often in learning communities, words and phrases become the driving force of the work we engage in. Over time, they become the trend-de-jure and the meanings become confused or lost. Examples are sustainability, engagement, interdisciplinarity, and in our case radical reciprocity. Our desire to create a place where folx can come together and learn more about radical reciprocity was driven by our goal to create clarity, new understandings, and inspiration. We envision this learning platform as a space where community members can contribute to the practice of radical reciprocity through germinating, cultivating, or taking root. We purposely choose the three plant terms--germinating, cultivating, or taking root-- to guide the content of the learning platform. These three terms are all different parts of the plant cycle whereby plants can develop, sustain, or create new life. We envision users engaging in a similar process.

The Radical Reciprocity Project was developed in the Residential College in the Arts and Humanities (RCAH) at Michigan State University (MSU). It was funded by the MSU Creating Inclusive Excellence Grant, which supports efforts that demonstrably benefit students and create a more inclusive campus community for all. Today, RCAH – as a college within a land-grant university, continues to learn more about radical reciprocity through its inclusion in its most recent strategic plan, “Radical Reciprocity 2030: A Liberal Arts Commitment to Communities at MSU and Beyond,” and in the development of the RCAH Network for Global Civic Engagement, which, in collaboration with the Michigan State University Federal Credit Union supported many of the projects featured on this website.

Meet the Team

Vincent Delgado

Founding Director of the Michigan State University Program on Sustainability in Costa Rica. Co-founder of the Refugee Development Center, past co-chair of the Power of We Consortium and a former MSU Associate Dean for Civic Engagement, he works globally on migration and sustainability; innovative civic engagement projects; and large systems change networks.
Initially a print journalist covering humanitarian issues in Central America, labor in Mexico, and politics and local government in the United States, Delgado is published in major newspapers, travel magazines and international academic journals. As a one-time Refugee Resettlement Director at Resettlement Director at St. Vincent Catholic Charities, Delgado led resettlement of Afghan families and the Lost Boys of Sudan following 9/11. Fluent in Spanish he has taught English, community college political science and served as a Lansing City Council member.
Areas of interest include nonprofit management; international partnership ecosystems; and civic engagement curriculum development and assessment. He wrote the documentary cookbook A Taste of Freedom: A Culinary Journey with America’s Refugees (2003) and was International Humanitarian of the Year for the American Red Cross Great Lakes Region (2005/2006)
He lives in Monteverde, Costa Rica, with his wife and photojournalist, Becky Shink, and two sons, Diego (10) and Pablo (14).
Dylan AT Miner, PhD

Dylan Miner is an artist, activist, administrator, scholar, and transformational change-maker. He is Dean and Full Professor in the Residential College in the Arts and Humanities (RCAH) at Michigan State University (MSU). For seven years, he served as Director of MSU’s American Indian and Indigenous Studies program. In 2020, Miner was appointed to the University’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Steering Committee, which drafted MSU’s DEI report and plan. He is a founding member of the socially engaged artist collective Justseeds. As an artist, he has hung more than two dozen solo art exhibitions, as well as participated in more than 115 group exhibitions. He has created graphics for numerous community organizations, social justice campaigns, and environmental organizations, like the Natural Resource Defense Council. His book Creating Aztlán: Chicano Art, Indigenous Sovereignty, and Lowriding Across Turtle Island was published by the University of Arizona Press. His writing has also been published and distributed by Duke University Press, Yale University Press, Oxford University Press, University of Arizona Press, University of Toronto Press, Routledge, Palgrave Macmillan, and Blackwell, among many others. His most recent article is “Rivers of Resistance” published in Canadian Geographic (September/October 2022). He is a 2022-2023 Fellow in the Big Ten Academic Alliance Dean’s Leadership Program.
He can be reached through his email or via his website.
Jeno Rivera, PhD

Jennifer “Jeno” Rivera, PhD began her teaching career teaching secondary Agriculture and Environmental Sciences in Page County, Virginia. She pursued a Ph.D. at the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell University to further her studies in education focusing on secondary school assessment and accountability.
Jeno began her tenure at MSU in the  Department of Community Sustainability  researching best practices for secondary teacher preparation. This research spring boarded her curiosities to include community education and engagement. She served as the director of the  Liberty Hyde Bailey Scholars Program and a faculty member in the  Residential College in the Arts and Humanities where she pursued scholarship in development, implementation and evaluation of innovative educational programs that promote self-directed learning.
Currently, she is the Director of the Institute of Agricultural Technology (IAT) in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Founded in 1894, the Institute of Agricultural Technology delivers innovative, educational programs that develop career-ready graduates through intensive, practical learning and skill enhancement in agricultural, environmental, and applied technologies.
When not at MSU, Jeno enjoys sewing, gardening, and playing her violin for her two dogs, cat, and eight chickens. She can be reached through her email.