9th Annual “Living Breath of wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ”

Indigenous Foods Virtual Symposium “Food is Resistance”

Saturday, June 5th 2021

Hosted by

University of Washington’s American Indian Studies Department and the Na’ah Illahee Fund Find us at: https://livingbreathfoodsymposium.org/ www.facebook.com/UWLivingBreath Twitter - @LivingBreathUW Welcome from our Symposium Committee!

First, we want to acknowledge and pay respect to the Coast Salish peoples whose traditional territory our event is normally held on at the University of Washington’s wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ Intellectual House. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we were unable to come together last year but we are so grateful to be able to reunite this year in a safe virtual format. We appreciate the patience of this community and our presenters’ collective understanding and we are thrilled to be back. We hope to be able to gather in person in 2022.

We are also very pleased you can join us today for our 9th annual “Living Breath of wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ” Indigenous Foods Symposium. This event brings together individuals to share their knowledge and expertise on topics such as Indigenous foodways and ecological knowledge, Tribal food sovereignty and security initiatives, traditional foods/medicines and health/wellness, environmental justice, treaty rights, and climate change.

Our planning committee is composed of Indigenous women who represent interdisciplinary academic fields of study and philanthropy and we volunteer our time to host this annual symposium. We are committed to Indigenous food, environmental, and social justice and recognize the need to maintain a community-based event as we all carry on this important work. We host this event and will continue to utilize future symposia to better serve our Indigenous communities as we continue to foster dialogue and build collaborative networks to sustain our cultural food practices and preserve our healthy relationships with the land, water, and all living things. Our committee has brought together a wonderful gathering of speakers who will share their knowledge, ideas, and strategies with us. And, we look forward to everyone in attendance participating and sharing within this framework of collaboration.

We normally come together in the beautiful wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ (a Lushootseed word meaning Intellectual House). This space pays homage to Coast Salish culture and architectural traditions and will serve as a visible symbol honoring the region’s indigenous peoples. Since we opened its doors to Phase 1, which was completed in 2015, this space has been the hub of exciting activity. Our event symbolizes the living breath of the wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ and embodies the essence of the work we conduct in this intellectual and cultural space. The wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ exemplifies the spirit of sharing, cooperation and commitment to indigenous knowledges and local and national indigenous communities.

In the tradition of the Coast Salish peoples we raise our hands to all of you in thanks and appreciation for helping us make this a successful event! Symposium Planning Team

Courtney Ortanez (Coordinator) is a Senior at the University of Washington. Courtney is currently in the Integrated Social Science program and has a background in Anthropology. Courtney is focused on efforts of regeneration, food sovereignty, and self-healing & decolonization. When not studying or working, you will find Courtney cooking, reading, or spending time with her puppy.

Dr. Charlotte Coté (Tseshaht/Nuu-chah-nulth), Founder and Planning Committee Chair is Associate Professor in the UW’s Department of American Indian Studies and she has dedicated her personal and academic life to creating awareness around Indigenous foods, health, diet and wellness. She is the author of Spirits of Our Whaling Ancestors. Revitalizing Makah and Nuu-chah-nulth Traditions (UW Press, 2010), which raises issues concerning Indigenous self-determination, eco-colonialism, and food sovereignty. Her current book, A Drum in one Hand, A Sockeye in the Other. Stories of Indigenous Food Sovereignty from the Northwest Coast (UW Press, 2021) combines food and Indigenous studies scholarship with stories, case studies, and Indigenous language and philosophy to show how traditional foods play a major role in physical, emotional, spiritual, and dietary wellness. Dr. Coté is chair of the UW’s wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ" Advisory Committee. She serves as series editor for the UW Press’ Indigenous Confluences Series. She also serves on the Na’ah Illahee Fund Board.

Dr. Dian Million (Athabascan) has been teaching in AIS since 2002. Dr. Million received her M.A. in Ethnic Studies in 1998 and her Ph. D. from the University of California at Berkeley in 2004. Dr. Million is an Associate Professor and Chair of the UW’s American Indian Studies Department and an Affiliated faculty in Canadian Studies, the Comparative History of Ideas Program, and the English Department. Dian Million’s most recent research explores the politics of mental and physical health with attention to affect as it informs race, class, and gender in Indian Country. She is the author of Therapeutic Nations: Healing in an Age of Indigenous Human Rights (University of Arizona Press, Critical Issues in Indigenous Studies Series, 2013) as well as articles, chapters, and poems. Dr. Clarita Lefthand-Begay (Navajo) is Assistant Professor in the UW’s Information School (iSchool). She has a PhD in Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences from the University of Washington’s School of Public Health. At the iSchool, her interdisciplinary research focuses on protection of Indigenous knowledge in the United States, tribal water security, climate health and resiliency. Indigenous knowledge systems are foundational to each of her projects. She is currently the Director of the Tribal Water Security Project that examines the water insecurity challenges faced by tribes in the United States and around the globe. As a researcher and tribal community member, Clarita supports efforts to strengthen tribal wellbeing while respecting and honoring self-determination and cultural revitalization.

Susan Balbas (Cherokee and Yaqui Nations) is the executive director of Na’ah Illahee Fund, a Native women-led nonprofit fund that supports and promotes the leadership of Indigenous women and youth in the ongoing regeneration of Indigenous communities in the Pacific Northwest region. Susan holds a Bachelor of Business Administration and a Master of Science in Teaching. She has been an independent consultant working with tribes, artists and nonprofits, and has held management positions in the business, philanthropic and nonprofit sectors. Mother of three and grandmother of three, Susan has studied with elders and herbalists, is an organic gardener, a cook, and voracious reader of all books on Indigenous foodways and the local/healthy foods movement, social and environmental justice issues, and historical novels. She currently serves on the boards of Potlatch Fund, Washington Progress Alliance, Washington Community Alliance and Front & Centered.

Bridget Ray (Ojibwe/Michif) is Director of Philanthropic Relations for the Na'ah Illahee Fund. Bridget is of mixed cultural heritage and was raised by the Salish Sea immersed in coastal Indigenous traditions. She graduated from Evergreen State College in 2003 with a BA/BS in Liberal Arts and Environmental Science with a focus in Traditional Ecological Knowledge. A development professional with over 25 years experience, Bridget is an accomplished Tribal Planner with expertise in integrated environmental projects and Native non-profit management. She is an active participant in Tribal Canoe Journeys, heading up the Green Team effort focused on waste reduction and traditional full circle teachings. Often seen sporting a neon-green cape, her self-proclaimed super power is sorting garbage. Bridget is passionate about sustainable infrastructure for tribal communities, gifting economics, and connecting with and protecting Mother Earth.

Dana Arviso (Navajo) is director of the UW College of Education's Unite:Ed initiative. She previously served as the Executive Director of Potlatch Fund, a Native American-led foundation, where she grew the grantmaking programs to include the Language Preservation, Native Student Success, and Healthy Pathways for Native Youth strategic initiatives. Dana is an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation and grew up on the Bishop Paiute-Shoshone Indian Reservation in California. She earned her bachelor’s degree from California State University, Sacramento in Child Development and worked as an early childhood educator within the tribal family literacy program on the Bishop Paiute reservation. Dana proudly commits herself to improving the lives of youth, families, and communities through education and working for social improvements within the fields of education and philanthropy. Dr. Jessica E. Salvador's scholarship, teaching, and professional experience focus on equity, access, and success to and within post-secondary education for students who are first generation to go to college and from linguistically diverse backgrounds. Jessica earned a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from the University of Washington, a Masters in Education from the University of La Verne and a Bachelors in Science degree in Civil Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley. Currently, Dr. Salvador is Assistant Director for the UW Undergraduate Research Program. Previously, Jessica has served in various educational roles including Executive Director for a non-profit that serviced Latinx families and as a secondary mathematics teacher and coordinator for a college prep program in her hometown of La Puente, California. As part of a family that enjoys potatoes and bananas stemming from their roots in Ecuador, Jessica enjoys plant-based and gluten-free cooking, crafting, and spending time with family, friends, and baby dogs. Saturday, June 5th (All times in PDT)

9:00 - 9:05 AM Welcome by Living Breath Team: Courtney Ortanez, Charlotte Coté, Susan Balbas, Dian Million, Clarita Lefthand Begay, Dana Arviso, Bridget Ray, Jessica Salvador

9:00 - 9:15 AM Welcome/Song by Iisaaksiichaa Ross Braine, Director, wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ Intellectual House

9:15 - 10:15 AM Indigenous food sovereignty, Indigenous law in Praxis Keynote Presentation: Dawn Morrison

10:15 - 10:30 AM Door Prize (must be present) Break/ Breakout

10:30 - 11:15 AM Nimiipuu'neewit: Lifeways of Our Homelands Presenters: Ciarra S. Greene, Maggie Picard

11:15 - 11:30 AM Door Prize (must be present) Break/ Breakout

11:30 - 12 PM Revitalization and Resistance: First Foods in the Columbia Basin Presenters: Gabriel Jacobson, Linda Sampson, Stan Thayne, Thomas Morning Owl (Session 1)

12 - 12:45 PM Lunch Break: Film Screening, Yáa at Wooné (Respect for all Things) and Q&A

12:45 - 1:15 PM Revitalization and Resistance: First Foods in the Columbia Basin Presenters: Gabriel Jacobson, Linda Sampson, Stan Thayne, Thomas Morning Owl (Session 2)

1:15 - 1:30 PM Door Prize (must be present) Break/ Breakout

1:30 - 2:10 PM Indigenous Ecological Philosophies and Regenerative Food Systems Presenter: Mariaelena Huambachano

2:10 – 2:15 Break / Door Prize (must be present)

2:15 - 3:15 PM He kākano i ruia mai i Rangiātea: I am a seed sown from Rangiātea Presenters: Fiona Wiremu, Dr Rāwiri Tinirau, Mate Heitia, Maori youth

3:15 - 3:45 PM Grand finale door prize (must be present) Closing: Sharing and Collaboration Presentations

Indigenous Food Sovereignty, Indigenous Law in Praxis (9:15 - 10:15 am PDT) Presenter: Dawn Morrison, Secwepemc nation, Founder, chair, and coordinator of the Working Group on Indigenous Food Sovereignty (WGIFS) in British Columbia, [email protected]

Abstract: Dawn Morrison will discuss how Indigenous rights to adequate amounts of culturally appropriate foods in the forests, fields, and waterways is based on natural law and should not be constrained by colonial laws and policies. She will discuss how applying Indigenous knowledge and ways of knowing help us better understand how Indigenous food sovereignty can lead towards a more regenerative, holistic health paradigm in the land and food systems.

Nimiipuu'neewit: Lifeways of Our Homelands (10:30 - 11:15 am PDT) Presenters: Sapóoq'is Wíit'es Ciarra S. Greene; Nimiipuu (Nez Perce); Northwest Indian College - Nez Perce Site,[email protected] Maggie Picard; Saddle Lake Cree Nation; Northwest Indian College - Nez Perce Site, [email protected].

Abstract: Nimiipuu'neewit: Lifeways of Our Homelands provides Nimiipuu (Nez Perce) community members an engaging opportunity to learn about our relatives (plants and animals) and homelands, with a foundation in healing (restoration) and protection (conservation) of our sacred environment and ourselves. Nimiipuu'neewit takes place on our homelands and consists of a variety of engagement opportunities in collaboration with our partners. The initiative strengthens participants’ cultural identity, connection to place, stewardship of the land, improves community health by promoting subsistence consumption, outdoor activities, and introduces education and career pathways in fields relevant to the protection and healing of our community and homelands. This initiative helps build relationships between Nimiipuu community members, Northwest Indian College – Nez Perce Site, the Nez Perce Tribe, and surrounding agencies and institutions. We enhance collaborations throughout the seasonal round and academic year. Further, these partnerships improve government to government relations, demonstrate collective impact for the tribal and non-tribal community, and benefit the future generations whose parents, guardians, and community role models are taking action toward race reconciliation.

Revitalization and Resistance: First Foods in the Columbia Basin (11:30 - 12 pm, 12:45 - 1:15 pm PDT) Presenters: Gabriel Jacobson, CTUIR Cultural Resources Protection Program, [email protected]; Linda Sampson, CTUIR Afterschool Program, [email protected], Stan Thayne, Whitman College, [email protected], Thomas Morning Owl, CTUIR Language Program, [email protected] Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Reservation.

Abstract: For the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the battle to defend and restore traditional foods and ecosystems centers on the conceptual and material framework of First Foods. Besides an ordered list of plants and animals that are nutritious and informed the life- ways of pre-colonial Columbia River peoples, contemporary First Foods is a CTUIR initiative to prioritize traditional foods and foodways, through integration into Tribal policies, resource management, and community outreach and events. When contextualized in natural and political history, all of these elements of First Foods illustrate a decolonial movement, with similarities to other First Foods, “deep foods”, food sovereignty, and food autonomy movements around the world. We will contextualize First Foods as a form of decolonial resistance, focusing on contemporary and historical struggles and successes, larger themes such as language and gender, and finally, we will delve into a few current projects as case studies. Our panelists include three CTUIR tribal members and traditional gatherers, who work with the First Foods in a number of ways, and two non-indigenous academics with backgrounds in decolonial theory, working for the tribal Cultural Resources Protection Program, and as a professor at Whitman College, respectively.

Indigenous Ecological Philosophies and Regenerative Food Systems (1:30 - 2:10 pm PDT) Presenter: Mariaelena Huambachano (Ph.D), School of Human Ecology, Department of Civil Society and Community Studies, [email protected].

Abstract: Indigenous knowledge has been recognized within development since, at least the 1980s, for example, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs) highlights the significance of local solutions — not least, those embedded in traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) — for global sustainable development. Yet Indigenous philosophies have had little uptake within mainstream food and environmental policy in charting development grounded in Indigenous knowledge and self-determination. I will discuss how Indigenous philosophies of wellbeing in , , referred to as Mauri Ora and Allin Kawsay or Buen Vivir in Peru conceptualize nourishment and food security in the face of contemporary global challenges such as climate change. I will demonstrate how Indigenous philosophies of Mauri Ora and Allin Kawsay are heralding a sustainable and equitable wellbeing model grounded on a holistic rights-based approach of Mother Earth for Living well. This study elicits teachings from Māori and Quechua peoples’ traditions about sustainable use of the natural resources available on the Land – Mother Earth and managed according to sustainability principles of reciprocity, hospitality, community and family solidarity, and the application and transmission of ancestral TEK to promote human and non-human flourishing. Quechua and Māori people are restoring Indigenous food sovereignty, cultural knowledge, and environmental health today and I conclude that food can play a fundamental role in asserting collective self-determination, for moving beyond colonial approaches to food, and ultimately for pursuing environmental justice.

He kākano i ruia mai i Rangiātea: I am a seed sown from Rangiātea (2:15 - 3:15 pm PDT) Presenters: Ms Fiona Wiremu, (PgDip(MgtSt), BMS (Waikato), NZDipBus); Tribal Affiliations: Tūhoe, Ngāti Ranginui; Executive Director – Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi an Indigenous-University, [email protected]; Dr Rāwiri Tinirau PhD, PGDipBusAdmin, BA (Hons), BBS); Tribal Affiliations: Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi/Whanganui, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Porou, Ngā Rauru, Ngāti Ruanui, Ngāti Apa/Ngā Wairiki, Ngāti Maru, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāi Tūhoe, Te Whakatōhea, Te Whānau-a-Apanui, , Rangitāne, Ngāi Tahu/Kāti Māmoe; Director of Te Atawhai o Te Ao, an independent Māori institute focused on health and environmental research, [email protected]. Mrs Mate Heitia; Tribal Affiliations: Ngāti Pūkeko, Ngāti Awa, Ngai te Rangi, Te Whānau a Apanui, Ngaitai, Tūhourangi, Ngāti Tuwharetoa ki Kawerau; Owner and Director – REKA Trust, [email protected].

Abstract: In New Zealand Māori culture and oral tradition, Rangiātea is both a physical place on earth and one of the uppermost places in the Spiritual Realm. In the Spiritual Realm it was where the source of learning and knowledge was held, before it was brought to earth by the Atua (God), Tane. The metaphorical "seed" represents growth, development, and self-realization. We discuss how seeds (both physical and metaphorical) are a form of resistance, interrupting the cycle of colonial oppression upon our traditional foods and ecological knowledge. A Kaupapa Māori research approach (a philosophical doctrine, incorporating the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values of Māori society) founded within Mātauranga Māori (Māori Knowledge) was developed and underpins a collective framework of key transforming elements pertaining to Kai (Food). Research has been conducted with Māori communities: Whanau (family), Hapu (extended families), (hapu connected through an eponymous ancestor) in Aotearoa, New Zealand. We will discuss the transforming elements, including the inter-generational and trans-generational transference of knowledge and its respective connections to: Mana Atua (spiritual realm); Mana Tūpuna (elders); Mana Whenua & Mana Moana (natural environments); Mana Tangata (the people) and Mana Motuhake (sovereignty/authority through self-determination and control over one's own destiny). The purpose is to create sustainable solutions that will support individual and community health and wellness! Naku te rourou nau te rourou ka ora ai te iwi: With your basket and my basket, we will sustain everyone. Thank You to our Sponsors!

UW Department of American Indian Studies Na’ah Illahee Fund Thank You All for joining us!

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