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Robin tours widely and has been featured on NPRs On Being with Krista Tippett and in 2015 addressed the general assembly of the United Nations on the topic of Healing Our Relationship with Nature. Kimmerer is a SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor of Environmental Biology, and the founder and director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment, whose mission is to create programs which draw on the wisdom of both indigenous and scientific knowledge for our shared goals of sustainability. Reciprocity also finds form in cultural practices such as polyculture farming, where plants that exchange nutrients and offer natural pest control are cultivated together. Dr. Kimmerer is a mother, plant ecologist, writer and SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse, New York. Robin Wall Kimmerer is a plant ecologist, educator, and writer articulating a vision of environmental stewardship grounded in scientific and Indigenous knowledge. Robin Wall Kimmerer, botanist, SUNY distinguished teaching professor, founding director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment, and citizen of the Potawatomi Nation, appeared at the Indigenous Women's Symposium to share plant stories that spoke to the intersection of traditional and scientific knowledge. -by Robin Wall Kimmerer from the her book Braiding Sweetgrass. Mosses have, in the ecological sense, very low competitive ability, because theyre small, because they dont grab resources very efficiently. 14:28-31, Kimmerer, R.W. Her grandfather was a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, and received colonialist schooling at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. 2008. Kimmerer, R.W. African American & Africana Studies AWTT has educational materials and lesson plans that ask students to grapple with truth, justice, and freedom. Kimmerer is the author of Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses (2003) as well as numerous scientific papers published in journals such as Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences and Journal of Forestry. TEK refers to the body of knowledge Indigenous peoples cultivate through their relationship with the natural world. Journal of Ethnobiology. Her essays appear in Whole Terrain, Adirondack Life, Orion and several anthologies. [music: If Id Have Known It Was the Last (Second Position) by Codes in the Clouds]. And it was such an amazing experience four days of listening to people whose knowledge of the plant world was so much deeper than my own. Thats how I demonstrate love, in part, to my family, and thats just what I feel in the garden, is the Earth loves us back in beans and corn and strawberries. Robin Kimmerer Home > Robin Kimmerer Distinguished Teaching Professor and Director, Center for Native Peoples and the Environment Robin Kimmerer 351 Illick Hall 315-470-6760 rkimmer@esf.edu Inquiries regarding speaking engagements For inquiries regarding speaking engagements, please contact Christie Hinrichs at Authors Unbound The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy . Kimmerer has helped sponsor the Undergraduate Mentoring in Environmental Biology (UMEB) project, which pairs students of color with faculty members in the enviro-bio sciences while they work together to research environmental biology. Elle vit dans l'tat de New . Disturbance and Dominance in Tetraphis pellucida: a model of disturbance frequency and reproductive mode. I sense that photosynthesis,that we cant even photosynthesize, that this is a quality you covet in our botanical brothers and sisters. In Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants (2013), Kimmerer employs the metaphor of braiding wiingaashk, a sacred plant in Native cultures, to express the intertwined relationship between three types of knowledge: TEK, the Western scientific tradition, and the lessons plants have to offer if we pay close attention to them. Robin Wall Kimmerer is the author of Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teaching of Plants. Tippett: Sustainability is the language we use about is some language we use about the world were living into or need to live into. In the beginning there was the Skyworld. But I came to understand that that question wasnt going to be answered by science, that science as a way of knowing explicitly sets aside our emotions, our aesthetic reactions to things. In addition to her academic writing on the ecology of mosses and restoration ecology, she is the author of articles for magazines such asOrion, Sun, and Yes!. Trinity University Press. It is distributed to public radio stations by WNYC Studios. 2011 Witness to the Rain in The way of Natural History edited by T.P. So Im just so intrigued, when I look at the way you introduce yourself. Robin Wall Kimmerer, a scientist, MacArthur "genius grant" Fellow 2022, member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation and author of the 2022 Buffs One Read selection "Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants" will speak at the Boulder Theater on Thursday, December 1 from 11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. And its, I think, very, very exciting to think about these ways of being, which happen on completely different scales, and so exciting to think about what we might learn from them. So thats also a gift youre bringing. And the last voice that you hear singing at the end of our show is Cameron Kinghorn. Balunas,M.J. As a botanist and professor of plant ecology, Robin Wall Kimmerer has spent a career learning how to ask questions of nature using the tools of science. But the way that they do this really brings into question the whole premise that competition is what really structures biological evolution and biological success, because mosses are not good competitors at all, and yet they are the oldest plants on the planet. And I think of my writing very tangibly, as my way of entering into reciprocity with the living world. And the two plants so often intermingle, rather than living apart from one another, and I wanted to know why that was. Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses. I agree with you that the language of sustainability is pretty limited. "[7][8], Kimmerer received the John Burroughs Medal Award for her book, Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses. and R.W. The school, similar to Canadian residential schools, set out to "civilize" Native children, forbidding residents from speaking their language, and effectively erasing their Native culture. The derivation of the name "Service" from its relative Sorbus (also in the Rose Family) notwithstanding, the plant does provide myriad goods and services. Our elders say that ceremony is the way we can remember to remember. Pember, Mary Annette. and Kimmerer, R.W. Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants 154 likes Like "Know the ways of the ones who take care of you, so that you may take care of them. Wider use of TEK by scholars has begun to lend credence to it. 2003. If good citizens agree to uphold the laws of the nation, then I choose natural law, the law of reciprocity, of regeneration, of mutual flourishing., Robin Wall Kimmereris a mother, plant ecologist, nature writer, and Distinguished Teaching Professor of Environmental Biology at the State University of New Yorks College of Environment and Forestry (SUNY ESF) in Syracuse, New York. Kimmerer: That is so interesting, to live in a place that is named that. There is an ancient conversation going on between mosses and rocks, poetry to be sure. One of the leaders in this field is Robin Wall Kimmerer, a professor of environmental and forest biology at the State University of New York and the bestselling author of "Braiding Sweetgrass." She's also an enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, and she draws on Native traditions and the grammar of the Potawatomi language . You remain a professor of environmental biology at SUNY, and you have also created this Center for Native Peoples and the Environment. Kimmerer, R.W. Americans Who Tell the Truth (AWTT) offers a variety of ways to engage with its portraits and portrait subjects. Kimmerer: I am. ( Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, . Her enthusiasm for the environment was encouraged by her parents, who began to reconnect with their own Potawatomi heritage while living in upstate New York. Restoration of culturally significant plants to Native American communities; Environmental partnerships with Native American communities; Recovery of epiphytic communities after commercial moss harvest in Oregon, Founding Director, Center for Native Peoples and the Environment, Director, Native Earth Environmental Youth Camp in collaboration with the Haudenosaunee Environmental Task Force, Co-PI: Helping Forests Walk:Building resilience for climate change adaptation through forest stewardship in Haudenosaunee communities, in collaboration with the Haudenosaunee Environmenttal Task Force, Co-PI: Learning fromthe Land: cross-cultural forest stewardship education for climate change adaptation in the northern forest, in collaboration with the College of the Menominee Nation, Director: USDA Multicultural Scholars Program: Indigenous environmental leaders for the future, Steering Committee, NSF Research Coordination Network FIRST: Facilitating Indigenous Research, Science and Technology, Project director: Onondaga Lake Restoration: Growing Plants, Growing Knowledge with indigenous youth in the Onondaga Lake watershed, Curriculum Development: Development of Traditional Ecological Knowledge curriculum for General Ecology classes, past Chair, Traditional Ecological Knowledge Section, Ecological Society of America. She is a vivid embodiment, too, of the new forms societal shift is taking in our world led by visionary pragmatists close to the ground, in particular places, persistently and lovingly learning and leading the way for us all. These are these amazing displays of this bright, chrome yellow, and deep purple of New England aster, and they look stunning together. November 3, 2015 SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry professor Robin Wall Kimmerer, Ph.D. is a leading indigenous environmental scientist and writer in indigenous studies and environmental science at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. Kimmerer, R.W. ", "Robin Wall Kimmerer: Americans Who Tell The Truth", "Robin Wall Kimmerer: 'Mosses are a model of how we might live', "Robin W. Kimmerer | Environmental and Forest Biology | SUNY-ESF", "Robin Wall Kimmerer | Americans Who Tell The Truth", "UN Chromeless Video Player full features", https://www.pokagonband-nsn.gov/our-culture/history, https://www.potawatomi.org/q-a-with-robin-wall-kimmerer-ph-d/, "Mother earthling: ESF educator Robin Kimmerer links an indigenous worldview to nature". It doesnt work as well when that gift is missing. SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. I dream of a time when the land will be thankful for us.. But reciprocity, again, takes that a step farther, right? An herb native to North America, sweetgrass is sacred to Indigenous people in the United States and Canada. She holds a BS in Botany from SUNY ESF, an MS and PhD in Botany from the University of Wisconsin and is the author of numerous scientific papers on plant ecology, bryophyte ecology, traditional knowledge and restoration ecology. Kimmerer then moved to Wisconsin to attend the University of WisconsinMadison, earning her master's degree in botany there in 1979, followed by her PhD in plant ecology in 1983. (1989) Environmental Determinants of Spatial Pattern in the Vegetation of Abandoned Lead-Zinc Mines. Forest age and management effects on epiphytic bryophyte communities in Adirondack northern hardwood forests. Scientists are very eager to say that we oughtnt to personify elements in nature, for fear of anthropomorphizing. Syracuse University. And by exploit, I mean in a way that really, seriously degrades the land and the waters, because in fact, we have to consume. Because those are not part of the scientific method. Tippett: Now, you did work for a time at Bausch & Lomb, after college. 2011. Kimmerer, R. W. 2010 The Giveaway in Moral Ground: ethical action for a planet in peril edited by Kathleen Moore and Michael Nelson. But this is why Ive been thinking a lot about, are there ways to bring this notion of animacy into the English language, because so many of us that Ive talked to about this feel really deeply uncomfortable calling the living world it, and yet, we dont have an alternative, other than he or she. And Ive been thinking about the inspiration that the Anishinaabe language offers in this way, and contemplating new pronouns. Kimmerer, D.B. In Michigan, February is a tough month. and M.J.L. Biodiversity loss and the climate crisis make it clear that its not only the land that is broken, but our relationship to land. So, how much is Robin Wall Kimmerer worth at the age of 68 years old? It's cold, windy, and often grey. To love a place is not enough. Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses (2005) and Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants (2013) are collections of linked personal essays about the natural world described by one reviewer as coming from a place of such abundant passion that one can never quite see the world the same way after having seen it through her eyes. It is centered on the interdependency between all living beings and their habitats and on humans inherent kinship with the animals and plants around them. The Fetzer Institute,helping to build the spiritual foundation for a loving world. But that is only in looking, of course, at the morphology of the organism, at the way that it looks. BY ROBIN WALL KIMMERER Syndicated from globalonenessproject.org, Jan 19, 2021 . And thats all a good thing. Tippett: Take me inside that, because I want to understand that. Abide by the answer. What were revealing is the fact that they have a capacity to learn, to have memory. Tippett: One way youve said it is that that science was asking different questions, and you had other questions, other language, and other protocol that came from Indigenous culture. The Michigan Botanist. You went into a more traditional scientific endeavor. Edited by L. Savoy, A. Deming. Thats what I mean by science polishes our ability to see it extends our eyes into other realms. Mauricio Velasquez, thesis topic: The role of fire in plant biodiversity in the Antisana paramo, Ecuador. Wisdom Practices and Digital Retreats (Coming in 2023). She was born on 1953, in SUNY-ESF MS, PhD, University of Wisconsin-Madison. She lives on an old farm in upstate New York, tending gardens both cultivated and wild. Center for Humans and Nature, Kimmerer, R.W, 2014. and C.C. In the absence of human elders, I had plant elders, instead. Thats one of the hard places this world you straddle brings you to. Any fun and magic that come with the first few snows, has long since been packed away with our Christmas decorations. 2002. I was a high school junior in rural upstate New York, and our small band of treehugging students prevailed on the principal to let us organize an Earth Day observance. Dr. Robin Wall Kimmerer is a mother, scientist, decorated professor, and enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. [music: All Things Transient by Maybeshewill]. American Midland Naturalist. Drew, R. Kimmerer, N. Richards, B. Nordenstam, J. Spring Creek Project, Daniela Shebitz 2001 Population trends and ecological requirements of sweetgrass, Hierochloe odorata (L.) Beauv. [3] Braiding Sweetgrass is about the interdependence of people and the natural world, primarily the plant world. Dr. Kimmerer is the author of numerous scientific papers on the ecology of mosses and restoration ecology and on the contributions of traditional ecological knowledge to our understanding of the natural world. February is like the Wednesday of winter - too far from the weekend to get excited! In part to share a potential source of meaning, Kimmerer, who is a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation and a professor at the State University of New York's College of Environmental Science. Intellectual Diversity: bringing the Native perspective into Natural Resources Education. She is the author of Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants, which has earned Kimmerer wide acclaim. Tippett: Heres something beautiful that you wrote in your book Gathering Moss, just as an example. Some come from Kimmerer's own life as a scientist, a teacher, a mother, and a Potawatomi woman. Kimmerer: What were trying to do at the Center For Native Peoples and the Environment is to bring together the tools of Western science, but to employ them, or maybe deploy them, in the context of some of the Indigenous philosophy and ethical frameworks about our relationship to the Earth. Tippett:I was intrigued to see that, just a mention, somewhere in your writing, that you take part in a Potawatomi language lunchtime class that actually happens in Oklahoma, and youre there via the internet, because I grew up, actually, in Potawatomi County in Oklahoma. Potawatomi History. So much of what we do as environmental scientists if we take a strictly scientific approach, we have to exclude values and ethics, right? She holds a BS in Botany from SUNY ESF, an MS and PhD in Botany from the University of Wisconsin and is the author of numerous scientific papers on plant ecology, bryophyte ecology, traditional knowledge and restoration ecology. The center has become a vital site of interaction among Indigenous and Western scientists and scholars. Robin Wall Kimmerers grandfather attended one of the now infamous boarding schools designed to civilize Indian youth, and she only learned the Anishinaabe language of her people as an adult. And I sense from your writing and especially from your Indigenous tradition that sustainability really is not big enough and that it might even be a cop-out. Shebitz ,D.J. In this breathtaking book, Kimmerer's ethereal prose braids stories of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, the science that surrounds us in our everyday lives, and the never ending offerings that . P 43, Kimmerer, R.W. "Moss hunters roll away nature's carpet, and some ecologists worry,", "Weaving Traditional Ecological Knowledge into Biological Education: A Call to Action", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Robin_Wall_Kimmerer&oldid=1139439837, American non-fiction environmental writers, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry faculty, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry alumni, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, History. Host an exhibit, use our free lesson plans and educational programs, or engage with a member of the AWTT team or portrait subjects. 2104 Returning the Gift in Minding Nature:Vol.8. This comes back to what I think of as the innocent or childlike way of knowing actually, thats a terrible thing to call it. It means a living being of the earth. But could we be inspired by that little sound at the end of that word, the ki, and use ki as a pronoun, a respectful pronoun inspired by this language, as an alternative to he, she, or it so that when Im tapping my maples in the springtime, I can say, Were going to go hang the bucket on ki. In this book, Kimmerer brings . And if one of those species and the gifts that it carries is missing in biodiversity, the ecosystem is depauperate. Tippett: I keep thinking, as Im reading you and now as Im listening to you, a conversation Ive had across the years with Christians who are going back to the Bible and seeing how certain translations and readings and interpretations, especially of that language of Genesis about human beings being blessed to have dominion what is it? The science which is showing that plants have capacity to learn, to have memory were at the edge of a wonderful revolution in really understanding the sentience of other beings. Kimmerer works with the Onondaga Nation and Haudenosaunee people of Central New York and with other Native American groups to support land rights actions and to restore land and water for future generations. It feels so wrong to say that. Kimmerer: Sure, sure. We dont call anything we love and want to protect and would work to protect it. That language distances us. Kimmerer, R.W. A group of local Master Gardeners have begun meeting each month to discuss a gardening-related non-fiction book. If citizenship is a matter of shared beliefs, then I believe in the democracy of species. The Bryologist 108(3):391-401. Robinson, S., Raynal, D.J. What was supposedly important about them was the mechanism by which they worked, not what their gifts were, not what their capacities were. Were these Indigenous teachers? Kimmerer: Yes. But that, to me, is different than really rampant exploitation. It turns out that, of course, its an alternate pronunciation for chi, for life force, for life energy. In aYes! Learn more at kalliopeia.org; The Osprey Foundation, a catalyst for empowered, healthy, and fulfilled lives; And the Lilly Endowment,an Indianapolis-based, private family foundation, dedicated to its founders interests in religion, community development, and education. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 32: 1562-1576. and Kimmerer R.W. The Bryologist 98:149-153. In 2022, Braiding Sweetgrass was adapted for young adults by Monique Gray Smith. Rhodora 112: 43-51. [laughs]. A recent selection by Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teaching of Plants (published in 2014), focuses on sustainable practices that promote healthy people, healthy communities, and a healthy planet. As a writer and a scientist, her interests in restoration include not only restoration of ecological communities, but restoration of our relationships to land. Kimmerer is also a part of the United States Department of Agriculture's Higher Education Multicultural Scholars Program. As a Potawatomi woman, she learned from elders, family, and history that the Potawatomi, as well as a majority of other cultures indigenous to this land, consider plants and animals to be our oldest teachers. 2004 Listening to water LTER Forest Log. Im Krista Tippett, and this is On Being. Delivery charges may apply And it seems to me that thats such a wonderful way to fill out something else youve said before, which is that you were born a botanist, which is a way to say this, which was the language you got as you entered college at forestry school at State University of New York. Robin Wall Kimmerer, 66, an enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi nation, is the founder and director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment at the State University of New York. Kimmerer is an enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. Kimmerer, R. W. 2008. Adirondack Life. Its an expansion from that, because what it says is that our role as human people is not just to take from the Earth, and the role of the Earth is not just to provide for our single species. Ive been thinking about the word aki in our language, which refers to land. Born into an upstate New York farm family, Jordan attended Cornell and then became an itinerant scholar and field researcher until he landed at Indiana University, where his . : integration of traditional and scientific ecological knowledge. My family holds strong titles within our confederacy. And were at the edge of a wonderful revolution in really understanding the sentience of other beings. Robin Wall Kimmerer is the State University of New York Distinguished Teaching Professor at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse. We have to analyze them as if they were just pure material, and not matter and spirit together. So thinking about plants as persons indeed, thinking about rocks as persons forces us to shed our idea of, the only pace that we live in is the human pace. She works with tribal nations on environmental problem-solving and sustainability. She shares the many ways Indigenous peoples enact reciprocity, that is, foster a mutually beneficial relationship with their surroundings. Does that happen a lot? NY, USA. She is the New York Times bestselling author of Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teaching of Plants, which has earned Kimmerer wide acclaim.Her first book, Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses, was awarded the John . She is the author of Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants and Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses. We see the beautiful mountain, and we see it torn open for mountaintop removal. Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants. And so there is language and theres a mentality about taking that actually seem to have kind of a religious blessing on it. She is currently Distinguished Teaching Professor and Director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment at the State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry. And we reduce them tremendously, if we just think about them as physical elements of the ecosystem. (1991) Reproductive Ecology of Tetraphis pellucida: Differential fitness of sexual and asexual propagules. Island Press. Robin Wall Kimmerer is a mother, plant ecologist, writer and SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse, New York. Kimmerer: I have. March 2, 2020 Thinking back to April 22, 1970, I remember the smell of freshly mimeographed Earth Day flyers and the feel of mud on my hands. They are just engines of biodiversity. Traditional knowledge is particularly useful in identifying reference ecosystems and in illuminating cultural ties to the land. She is active in efforts to broaden access to environmental science education for Native students, and to create new models for integration of indigenous philosophy and scientific tools on behalf of land and culture. She was born on January 01, 1953 in . Robin is a botanist and also a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. Aug 27, 2022-- "Though we live in a world made of gifts, we find ourselves harnessed to institutions and an economy that relentlessly asks, What more can we take from the Earth? As an alternative to consumerism, she offers an Indigenous mindset that embraces gratitude for the gifts of nature, which feeds and shelters us, and that acknowledges the role that humans play in responsible land stewardship and ecosystem restoration. Learning the Grammar of Animacy in The Colors of Nature, culture, identity and the natural world. Jane Goodall praised Kimmerer for showing how the factual, objective approach of science can be enriched by the ancient knowledge of the indigenous people. Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences 2(4):317-323. The Power of Wonder by Monica C. Parker (TarcherPerigee: $28) A guide to using the experience of wonder to change one's life. Kimmerer, R.W. Kimmerer also has authored two award-winning books of nature writing that combine science with traditional teachings, her personal experiences in the natural world, and family and tribal relationships. Connect with the author and related events. The virtual lecture is presented as part of the TCC's Common Book Program that adopted Kimmerer's book for the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 academic years. Kimmerer, R.W. However, it also involves cultural and spiritual considerations, which have often been marginalized by the greater scientific community. And it comes from my years as a scientist, of deep paying attention to the living world, and not only to their names, but to their songs. I was lucky enough to grow up in the fields and the woods of upstate New York. For inquiries regarding speaking engagements, please contact Christie Hinrichs at Authors Unbound. Kimmerer, R.W. We want to make them comfortable and safe and healthy. And so there was no question but that Id study botany in college. Today, Im with botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer. Tippett: And I have to say and Im sure you know this, because Im sure you get this reaction a lot, especially in scientific circles its unfamiliar and slightly uncomfortable in Western ears, to hear someone refer to plants as persons. Its always the opposite, right? Robin Wall Kimmerer is a mother, scientist, decorated professor, and enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation.She is the author of Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants, which has earned Kimmerer wide acclaim.Her first book, Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses, was awarded the John Burroughs Medal for . Kimmerer presents the ways a pure market economy leads to resource depletion and environmental degradation. So I think, culturally, we are incrementally moving more towards the worldview that you come from. ". . . An integral part of her life and identity as a mother, scientist, member of a first nation, and writer, is her social activism for environmental causes, Native American issues, democracy and social justice: Knowing that you love the earth changes you, activates you to defend and protect and celebrate. The storytellers begin by calling upon those who came before who passed the stories down to us, for we are only messengers. is a question that we all ought to be embracing. The program provides students with real-world experiences that involve complex problem-solving. She is engaged in programs which introduce the benefits of traditional ecological knowledge to the scientific community, in a way that respects and protects indigenous knowledge.