Nathalie Folkerts

I am a student of friendship, echolocation, and speculative fiction.

I am committed to amplifying abolitionist worlds by accompanying my community through the soul-growing work of accountability. My praxis has been formed at the intersections of abolitionist and liberation theologies, deep reading of speculative fiction, generative somatics, hospital and movement chaplaincy, and, always, friendship.

You can likely find me journaling near my backyard tomato plants, reading Ursula Le Guin, avoiding small talk with the help of big questions, or scheming with friends about a new project or themed party idea.

I graduated with an MDiv from Harvard Divinity School in 2024, where I received the Buechner Writing Award for my thesis titled "Accountability: An Abolitionist Prayer with Literature." I also received an MSc in Environmental Management as a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Reading, and a BA in Public Policy Analysis & Biology from Pomona College. I have worked as a community builder, electoral organizer, street outreach worker, and case manager.

Currently, I am...

  • Offering spiritual care as a hospice chaplain

  • Exploring the intersections of friendship, literature, and liberation through various programs, like Rehearsals in Defiance

  • Collaborating with friends on projects like the podcast Sex, Death, and Dragons and on building out resources around how speculative fiction can help us develop transformative justice skills & analysis

  • Penpaling, facilitating abolitionist book clubs, and figuring out how to get involved in abolitionist organizing

  • Learning to support individuals and pods in their accountability work (starting with myself)

My life has been shaped by falling in love in many places: I fell in love with reading in Iowa, with rest and play in France, with people and abolition in California, with nature and friendship in Reading, with healing justice and generative somatics in Seattle, and with singularity and spirituality in Boston. I am currently excited to fall in love again in my new home of Baltimore.