Lenape Nation, an Indigenous tribe in Pennsylvania, considers the Delaware River their ancestral home, a place where they often go to pay their respects, write David Schechter and Laura Geller for CBS News Philadelphia.

Clan Mother Shelley Windamakwi DePaul and her son, Chief Adam Waterbear DePaul have spent most of their lives protecting the river.

For them, the significance of the river cannot be overstated.

“There are pragmatic reasons – it’s huge for traveling, of course, it provides food, but the spiritual significance, the cultural significance, the river just communicates so much humility,” said Adam DePaul.

Lenape’s activism revolves around maintaining a balance between nature and development.

“What can we do to keep the balance, or in many cases restore the balance?” asked Shelley DePaul. “Because our early ancestors lived in balance, and now we need to relearn that.”

The tribe’s efforts, often carried out in partnership with other organizations, helped contribute to a ban on fracking in the Delaware River Basin four years ago. In 2002, Lenape Nation also focused on preventing the construction of a dam that would have created a lake stretching between Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

To hear directly from Clan Mother Shelley Windamakwi DePaul and her son, Chief Adam Waterbear DePaul, and to see the Delaware River through the eyes of the Lenape, watch the full story now on CBS News Philadelphia.

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