Karim Trueblood
Writer & Educator
Exploring the intersection of law, sovereignty, environment, and spirituality.
Research & Scholarship
An accessible look at how "Indian Country" is defined in U.S. law and how that definition shapes land management, agricultural access, and tribal sovereignty. ​
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This co-authored chapter documents a Jesuit partnership between Creighton University and Mazzolari Teachers College in South Sudan, demonstrating how collaborative online learning can expand access to teacher education. Rooted in Jesuit values and aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the project advances equity, intercultural understanding, and a pedagogy of hope.​
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My doctoral dissertation confronts how overlapping federal, state, and tribal laws restrict Indigenous nations from protecting their own communities. By analyzing real cases and lived impacts, I explore how legal contradictions create harm — and how restoring tribal authority can support justice, safety, and sovereignty.​
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This conference presentation, co-authored with colleagues, examines how the Rancheria Act disrupted tribal sovereignty in California and how Indigenous communities have worked toward restoration and self-determination. We trace the historical and legal impacts of termination policy while highlighting the ongoing resilience of tribal nations.
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Integration of Ignatian Principles in Emergency and Disaster Management Education
​Drawing from Jesuit pedagogy, I argue that education in emergency and disaster management must center the full humanity of those impacted by crisis. This work highlights how reflection, discernment, and cura personalis can guide more ethical, inclusive approaches to preparing responders and protecting vulnerable communities.
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Creative Work
My creative nonfiction explores identity, belonging, displacement, spirituality, and justice — using personal experience to interrogate systems and illuminate the human side of policy and place.​
I Remember What I Forgot (Forthcoming in The Caribbean Writer)
A lyrical exploration of memory, ecological loss, and reconnection with nature grounded in the Caribbean landscape.
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Unpopular Opinion: I Love the American Flag, But I've Never Been So Inspired to Burn One
Published in Another Jane Pratt Thing (AJPT)
A reflection on patriotism, grief, and the contradictions embedded in national identity.
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Unpopular Opinion: Don't Use Our Immigrant Military Kids to Enforce Deportation
Published in Another Jane Pratt Thing (AJPT)
A deeply personal essay about the political misuse of immigrant U.S. service members and their families.
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Ricardo + Kona: My Best Friend is Joining the Marine Corps
A children's story told through the perspective of our Alaskan Malamute, Kona, written as a project of love for my son and for those who serve.
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About
Karim Trueblood
Karim Trueblood is a nonfiction writer and educator exploring the intersection of law, sovereignty, environment, and spirituality. Her work blends research and personal narrative to examine how systems shape lived experience in Indigenous and displaced communities, with a focus on decolonizing knowledge and making scholarship accessible to the people most impacted by it. She lives and writes along the Chesapeake Bay.
