ADOONE’É: Preserving Navajo Language and Culture Through Digital Innovation

ADOONE’É: Preserving Navajo Language and Culture Through Digital Innovation

In a time when Indigenous languages around the world face threat of erasure, ADOONE’É emerges as a powerful proponent of cultural sovereignty. Created to preserve and revitalize the Navajo language, the mobile app is the product of visionary collaboration between educator Miranda Jensen Haskie, EdD (FGU 2002), and software developer Albert Leonard Haskie, founder of Nyzhon Studios.

Miranda Jensen Haskie, EdD

For over twenty years, Dr. Haskie has devoted her academic and community work to sustaining the Diné way of life. She led the initiative for the Navajo Oral History Project—now archived at the Smithsonian and the Navajo Nation Museum—and currently mentors a cohort of Diné students pursuing their Educational Leadership and Change doctorate degrees at Fielding Graduate University. Her work reflects a deep commitment to intergenerational learning and cultural continuity. She co-authored  The Future of Navajo Education, published by Fielding University Press, which explores pathways for Indigenous self-determination through education.

Albert Leonard Haskie, lead developer of ADOONE’É, brings Dr. Haske’s vision into the digital age. As a member of the Lukachukai community on the Navajo Nation in Arizona, he is uniquely qualified to bridge tradition and technology, bringing his deep commitment to language and cultural preservation into the 21st century. “It is my deep-rooted belief that everyone should have access to the resources that support cultural pride and language fluency, and that preserve and celebrate the Navajo/Diné heritage. Together we can foster a world where Navajo/Diné individuals can achieve fluency in the Navajo/Diné language.”

ADOONE’É is more than an app—it is a living legacy. It represents a commitment to intergenerational healing, to cultural pride, and to the future of a people whose language carries the wisdom of its ancestors, and the stories that shape who they are.