Volume 6, Issue 2, Winter 2017

Resilience and Resistance: Why the World Needs Langscape Magazine is an extension of the voice of . It supports our mission by educating the minds and hearts about the importance and of biocultural diversity. We aim to promote a paradigm shift by illustrating biocultural diversity through scientific and traditional knowledge, within an appealing sensory context of articles, stories, and art.

ABOUT THE COVER PHOTOS Front: Dub Kanche checks whether everything is OK with the audio Photo: Thor Morales, 2016

Back: A child gazes at the ocean. Photo: Manuel Maldonado, 2015

Terralingua thanks the Reva and David Logan Foundation and Kalliopeia Foundation Langscape Magazine is a for their generous support. Terralingua Publication Editor: Luisa Maffi Editorial Assistant & Web Support: Coreen Boucher Graphic Design: Imagine That Graphics Printing: Hillside Printing Learn about Terralingua: www.terralingua.org Receive Langscape Magazine by subscribing or by purchasing single copies. Details at www.terralinguaubuntu.org Learn about Langscape Magazine: www.terralinguaubuntu.org/langscape/home.htm Read past articles on Medium: medium.com/langscape-magazine ISSN 2371-3291 (print) ISSN 2371-3305 (digital) © Terralingua 2017 . . . . LANGSCAPE MAGAZINE nature VOLUME 6, ISSUE 2, Winter 2017 Resilience and Resistance: Why the World Needs Biocultural Diversity

Table of Contents

Editorial...... 4 Monocultures of the Fields, Heal the Land, Monocultures of the Mind: Heal the People: Ideas The of Indigenous Farming Strengthening Relationships at Cornerstone of Resilience: Communities of Odisha, India Hwaaqw’um in the Salish Sea Reflections on the Diversity Kanna K. Siripurapu, Sabnam Afrein, Joe Akerman ...... 68 of and and Prasant Mohanty...... 36 Shle’muxun: Olga Mironenko...... 8 Bahadar’s Almanac: Reconnecting with Listening to Our Ancestors: Oral Tradition in Northern the Salish Sea Bioregion Makes People Resilient and Prepared for Biocultural Diversity through Daniel Kirkpatrick...... 74 the Indigenous Lens Natural Disasters 42 Jon Waterhouse...... 12 Zubair Torwali...... Rooted in Place: Hta: Web Extras How Karen Farming Saved a Forest Exercises in Belonging, Photo gallery: “Tsurushibina” Ecological Awareness, and Love in Thailand and Its Poetry Changed International Policy photos, complementing Mariia Radhika Borde...... 16 Ermilova’s article, at https://medium. Viveca Mellegård...... 47 com/langscape-magazine/photo-gallery- Reflections Story Map: tsurushibina-260e2f3fcd40 Never for Sale: Youth Reconnect to Place and Photo gallery “Story Map” Biocultural Heritage in Colombia Listening (or Not) to the photos, complementing Jennifer Language of the Land Jennifer McRuer...... 52 McRuer’s article, at https://medium.com/ Page Lambert ...... 21 Visions from Within: langscape-magazine/photo-gallery-story- The Obvious Mirror: Another Shot for Biocultural map-250dceef6e22 How Biocultural Diversity Is Reflected in Conservation in the Cradle of Humankind the Natural World Thor Morales...... 57 Nejma Belarbi...... 26 Action Dispatches Special: Reconnection and Tsurushibina: Reconciliation in the Salish A Traditional Japanese Craft Helps Sea, Pacific Northwest Maintain and Restore Biocultural Knowledge and People’s Connection Sustain, Benefit, Celebrate: with Nature Embedding Nature in Our Culture Mariia Ermilova...... 31 Rob Butler...... 64

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 3 Editorial C ir Circlecle of S oftorie Lifes, Luisa Maffi t was the end of a long day twenty-six years he resumed after a while, “I think I’m going to start a Iago in the highlands of Chiapas, Mexico’s circle of stories. I see that we’re losing a lot from not southernmost state. I was part way into my two- telling our stories anymore. I’ll invite Don Antonio year stint as a doctoral researcher among the Tzeltal and other elders to come to my house on Saturdays, Maya. That day my Mayan field collaborator, Petul, when the kids are home from school, and I’ll tell the and I had been recording Tzeltal elder Don Antonio neighbors to join us as well. This should be good!” telling old stories about people, , places, and spirits. In spite of his age, the old man had been So it went. And by that stroke of serendipity, in at talking for hours on end, hardly showing any sign least one Mayan household in the Chiapas Highlands of fatigue. Petul and I, instead, were exhausted. the old stories began to be told again. As we sat back, taking a rest, I casually remarked: “Well, Petul, I guess that’s what people here I was reminded of that distant episode a few days usually do at night—sit around and listen to elders ago when an article that argues for the value of telling stories?” Indigenous storytelling for conservation crossed my computer screen.* Revitalizing the Petul looked at me, puzzled. “Huh,” he said after practice of storytelling, the authors point out, is a moment of reflection, “actually, that’s the way it crucial for the intergenerational transmission used to be… But now, you see, the kids are going of traditional environmental knowledge (TEK). to school, and when they come back at the end of And ensuring the continuity of TEK is crucial for the day (if the school is close enough that they can biodiversity conservation: TEK embodies millennia come back daily at all), they have homework to of keen observations of and skillful adaptations to do. So that’s what happens at night: they sit at the the natural world that have allowed Indigenous table under the light bulb and do their homework. Peoples and local communities to live sustainably for Plus, some of the people now have TV, so at night countless generations. The retelling of those stories they sit around and watch TV programs instead. We benefits both the tellers and the non-Indigenous don’t spend that much time visiting one another conservation practitioners who do care to listen. and listening to stories anymore. And the kids often think that the old stories are weird, anyway, because But the importance of storytelling definitely of what they learn at school or see on TV…” doesn’t end with the practical goal of making conservation efforts more effective and equitable He paused, pondering. We had been working by linking them to storytelling—valid and valuable together for several months by then. Going around as that purpose is. Oral traditions have been at the with an anthropologist interested in the “old ways” core of ’ and local communities’ had made him keenly aware of how things had identities, serving as the principal means to express changed in his community and beyond. He had started asking himself questions about why things * Fernández-Llamazares, A., & Cabeza, M. (2017). Rediscovering had changed the way they had, and whether people the potential of Indigenous storytelling for conservation practice. were better or worse off for that. “You know what?” Conservation Letters. doi:10.1111/conl.12398

4 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 their diverse worldviews, cultural and spiritual new narratives that will unseat the long-dominant values and beliefs, and precepts about how to live one of profit-driven economic growth, technology- in a spirit of reverence, respect, and reciprocity driven “progress,” market-driven consumerism, and with one another and with the . That sense relentless accumulation of material goods—all at of interconnectedness and interdependence has the expense of the flourishing of life in its myriad conferred resilience to Indigenous and all other forms and of our ability to experience the true wealth societies living in close contact with the natural of “livingness” and the comfort of emotional and world, allowing them to persist and resist over time, spiritual well-being. in spite of tremendous assimilation pressures from dominant Western or Westernized forces. That’s what we set out to do with this issue of Langscape Magazine: bring together voices from And it goes even deeper than that. Diversity in all corners of the world that, collectively, weave nature and culture is the hallmark of life on earth, strands of the new narrative we so urgently need. the spontaneous expression of the evolutionary As if by the hand of a master weaver, many different forces that bring life forth. The more diversity there threads unite here into a colorful tapestry, in which is, the more vital and resilient the whole planet is. recurrent patterns emerge: the value of language And the more attuned we are to diversity, the deeper and oral traditions, the importance of traditional the sense of “livingness” we can perceive and live by, knowledge and sense of place, and the need to (re) as Terralingua co-founder Dave Harmon puts it.* The connect to biocultural heritage, other people, and loss of that sense in Western thought has been one the land to heal ourselves, each other, and the earth. of the primary sources of the global environmental and social predicament we experience today. A diverse group of thinkers graces the pages of our “Ideas” section. Olga Mironenko, an environmental In today’s globalized and ever more homogenized scientist, offers a fresh perspective on the diversity world, we are rapidly losing touch with the of species and cultures and the importance of both importance of diversity in both nature and culture. diversities as “cornerstones of resilience.” She We watch with indifference as our own actions ponders our “baffling proclivity” to seek uniformity wantonly erode that diversity, as if it were of no whereas “nature’s recipe for survival has been consequence to us. But not so! The more we chip diversity,” and invites us to remind ourselves that away at diversity, the more we fray the web of life diversity in all its forms is “one of the critical factors of which we are a part, reducing our options for the that will enable us to ensure our future”—a future future. And the more, as Dave Harmon also warns that will be both kinder to the earth and free from us, we narrow the scope of experience and cultural intolerance. undermine the very essence of our humanity. Jon Waterhouse, a storyteller and activist, brings With ever-growing and accelerating signs of social an Indigenous lens to bear on the dramatic loss turmoil and ecological disruption worldwide, we of biocultural diversity that we are experiencing seem to be all too close to that dangerous cusp now. “while focused so intensely on propelling ourselves It may be tempting to look away from this disturbing further into the future.” We have much to (re)learn, and daunting picture and just “get on with our lives.” he argues, about our “place in nature and within Yet, around the world today, there is a widespread the diverse condition of the planet—a condition malaise, an unsettling sense that “things are not that, as , it is our obligation to preserve.” well.” Many people are motivated to act but feel at a And we can do so by listening with open minds and loss about how. It’s more important than ever, then, hearts to the knowledge of the ancestors—the age- to remind ourselves of why we need biocultural old and evermore relevant wisdom of Indigenous diversity as a source of ecological and social cultures that “have not only survived in their place resilience and resistance. And it’s more important for millennia,” but indeed “have thrived.” than ever to hear ideas and stories that speak to the value of that diversity for the future of our Radhika Borde, a social scientist and conservationist, species and all other species on earth. We all need asks what it means to be “rooted in place” in today’s world of disconnected city living and massive human * Harmon, D. (2016). Biocultural diversity: Reason, ethics, migrations toward cities. Can the idea of biocultural and emotion. Langscape Magazine, 5(1), 10–13 diversity, usually applied to rural contexts, be

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 5 extended to life in the built environment? It can, with deep cultural significance, embodying both she suggests, if urban dwellers will make conscious practical and symbolic connections with nature. efforts to grow roots “in and into” cities by becoming Practicing the craft, Mariia thinks, can serve to more conscious of them as biophysical places that revitalize Japanese traditional knowledge and to owe immensely to their natural surrounds, both foster environmental education, by helping people historically and in the present. When cities are learn or relearn the “biocultural code” inscribed seen in that biocultural light, they can then begin to in this art. “speak to a person’s soul and nourish it.” Kanna K. Siripurapu, Sabnam Afrein, and The two contributors to “Reflections” provide Prasant Mohanty introduce us to the Kandha telling examples of what happens when people do people of eastern India, who have followed their (or do not) let the land speak to them and nourish “biocultural code” for generations, practicing their souls. Page Lambert and her family have been shifting agriculture and developing a great listening to the language of the land for decades on diversity of heirloom seeds adapted to different their beloved ranch in rural Wyoming. But someone conditions. Their annual festivals celebrate this else isn’t listening: the Wyoming Department of agro-biodiversity and the resilient community Transportation, which wants to realign a highway spirit manifested in the sharing of labor and the right through the ranch. As worldviews clash, Page exchanging of seeds. Now urgent action is needed to sees the heart of the ranch (and her own) sliced safeguard this rich and diverse biocultural system open by an “eminent domain fissure.” Yet she finds from the forces of acculturation. comfort and resilience in the long view: the land, she muses, will endure far beyond the scars left The Torwali people of northern Pakistan, we behind by human action. hear from Zubair Torwali, are holding on to their traditional knowledge—and to Bahadar’s farming That’s what Nejma Belarbi learns when she first almanac. Zubair goes back to his home village to hears “earth’s language” in an unlikely place: on learn more about the sophisticated agricultural the side of a dirt road trampled by feet and car calendar developed orally by villager Bahadar 150 tires, where tiny “ people” reveal themselves years ago, which has been transmitted and used by to her once she begins to focus her attention. local farmers since then. Along with an ingenious That’s the start of her journey away from the system for sharing irrigation water, also devised by disconnected “urban industrial paradigm” she Bahadar, the almanac has helped and continues to had experienced most of her life and back to the help farmers grow their crops and be resilient to teachings of her North African elders, who speak famine and natural disasters. of “our connection to all living things through the light that animates us.” Along the way, she reflects Viveca Mellegård travels to northern Thailand on how nature raises a mirror to our faces so that where the Karen people have also held fast to we may recognize human diversity as an intrinsic their farming traditions, in spite of rampant part of the diversity of life. encroachment of logging and a government ban on their shifting cultivation practices. They found Our “Dispatches” from the field bring us stories strength in their hta—stories, poetry, and songs that of biocultural resilience and resurgence as diverse convey their traditional knowledge—to fight a long as the people and places they portray. Yet each battle against logging and for recognition of their story has the same moral: the value of traditional farming methods. They won, and their lands have knowledge and practices and of connection to place regenerated. Ironically, they now risk eviction from for maintaining and restoring the “inextricable those lands, which the government wants to turn link” between humans and nature and thus for into a national park. ensuring the thriving of life. The Afro-Colombian communities of Isla Grande, Living in , Mariia Ermilova learns a on the Caribbean coast of Colombia, have also traditional craft that, long neglected, is attracting long seen their territorial rights trampled and are practitioners again: the colorful art of making making efforts to re-affirm their connection with tsurushibina, or “hanging doll” decorations. The their ancestral lands and biocultural heritage. “dolls” are mostly figures of plants and Jennifer McRuer tells their story in a photo essay

6 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 on a youth group project. Through photography imperative” to be aware of, celebrate, and sustain and mapping, the youth are promoting a process of local nature—an effort from which he anticipates collective reflection and action that, by recognizing immense benefits for the health of both people and and strengthening relationships to place, aims to the land. Walking the talk, he then embarks with “innovate, adapt, and build resilience in the face of his family and others on a celebration of nature in global change.” the bioregion.

New media are also central to language and On Salt Spring Island in the Salish Sea, Joe Akerman culture revitalization efforts in northern Kenya, comes home—literally and metaphorically—to where members of the Gabbra, Borana, Konso, Hwaaqw’um, a village site of his Quw’utsun (Coast and El Molo Indigenous communities learn to use Salish) ancestors, as a place to “heal the land, participatory video to create a “vision from within” relationships with one another, and the people and for biocultural conservation. Thor Morales, who communities around us as we find ways to reconnect provided the training, watches in awe. In his photo to the natural systems that give our lives deeper essay, he shares the extraordinary experience of meaning.” Hwaaqw’um is now a sacred space for witnessing the video teams craft a “new form of Joe’s Quw’utsun relatives to gather again and to resilience… using modern gear to revive the past engage with members of the Salt Spring community and keep it going in a new but authentic way.” in a caring dialogue on “reconcili-action.” New forms of resilience are indeed emerging worldwide as Indigenous Peoples and local One island over, on Galiano, Daniel Kirkpatrick communities strive to maintain or reconnect to takes part in “Reconnecting,” an event that their histories, , cultures, and lands as likewise aims to heal relationships with both they move toward the future. At the same time, First Nations and the land. From a Penelakut non-Indigenous people are beginning to realize (Coast Salish) elder, he learns about shle’muxun, they have a lot of reconnecting to do, too: to nature, the Indigenous notion of stewardship, which sees by recognizing once again that humans are part of the land as alive and calls for responsible, caring it, not separate from it; to place, by growing back tending of the land that sustains you. Shle’muxun, their place-specific roots; and to First Peoples, by he feels, is an “attainable and necessary goal.” And engaging in reconciliation with them after centuries as this process unfolds in the Salish Sea, he muses of colonization, displacement, oppression, and that what happens here “may become a model for often brutalization. other bioregions around the globe.”

One place in which reconnection and reconciliation Perhaps it will—only time can tell. But one thing are starting to occur is the very bioregion from which seems clear: the more we come together locally and Langscape Magazine hails: the Salish Sea in the globally in a circle of stories, and the more intently Pacific Northwest, across the border between Canada we listen to one another and to the land, the closer we and the USA. Original home to Coast Salish Peoples, get to (re)building a collective narrative—one that is this bioregion has witnessed over 150 years of harsh as ancient as it sounds new—about our rightful place colonial history, which has left deep scars on both on earth: within the biocultural circle of life. the Indigenous inhabitants and the land. We devote a special “Action” section to a variety of inspiring Bioculturally yours, initiatives that are taking place in this bioregion to heal the wounds of that history and rebuild respectful Luisa Maffi and resilient relationships of people to people and of Editor, Langscape Magazine people to place. Co-founder and Director, Terralingua Salish Sea resident Rob Butler calls for a “renewal of our ancient relationship with nature”—one that has long been embedded in Indigenous ways but has largely been lost by settler populations. As a path toward that renewal, he proposes that people develop a “Nature Culture”: a “cultural

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 7 CornerstoneCornerstone ResilienceResilienceText by Olga Mironenko ofof Photos by David Rapport nature, and they occupy slightly or very different niches. Interbreeding normally happens within a population of a given species, to preserve and pass Reflections on the population’s genes. This is conditioned by shared habitat and relative seclusion from other on the populations. But in the great scheme of things, this is simply how a species is trying to preserve its Diversity of gene pool. What does any of this have to do with our cultures, Species and you will ask? We know that humans are just another species on the planet, among many. And, as humans, we ur planet is populatedCultures by an incredibly wide do recognize one another as members of the same Ovariety of creatures. Coming in different species. Yet, at the same time, we are often inclined sizes and with different sets of adaptations to their to fight with one another because of cultural or respective environments, they inhabit the so-called ethnic differences, as if those differences made planetary envelopes: hydrosphere, cryosphere, lower human groups into different species. layers of the atmosphere, and upper layers of the We may well be doing this as a reflection of the lithosphere, creating a unique envelope, the biosphere, biological urge to preserve a population’s genes, but that interweaves with and changes the others. we humans take this urge much farther than any of We are used to hearing about species—if not our planetmates do, ignoring the great value of this from our school courses or from nature diversity. Ethnic differences, in fact, may not even observations, then from the media: there is much play as significant a role as cultural differences do. well-grounded talk about species extinction, Many ethnicities can live in a country, or a certain accelerated up to 10,000 times by what we humans part of a country, sharing one culture, traditions, and do, and resulting in a serious decline of biodiversity. values. As a result of , there may be a homogeneous culture while ethnic differences If you could take a look at our planet Earth from persist (although they may also even out over a above, wearing special glasses that would allow period of time). It is especially in terms of our cultural you to see large, complex communities of life differences that we mostly choose to draw boundaries forms, you would see umpteen species, broken among ourselves: around religions, values, traditions, down into populations, distributed all over its customs. Being a single species, Homo sapiens, but surface. Species may interact with one another in divided into different cultural “populations,” we often many ways, but they usually do not interbreed in tend to think that the human bearers of a different set of customs and beliefs are alien to us and that Above: Life’s traces #1. 2017 there can be little or no common ground for mutual

8 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 understanding. This is the very root of our issues with serve the stability of an . For instance, if racial and cultural intolerance. stress factors drive out or bring about a substantial decline in one species performing a particular When we draw these parallels—which often is a function, this species will be replaced by another good exercise in systems thinking—it is important species present in that ecosystem, whose functions to remember that humanity is one species, and are the closest to those of the species that could the cultures we divide up into correspond to not respond to the stress well enough. By much the populations within that species, and that the ecological laws valid for a given species remain “In nature, the more biodiverse the valid for any population of that species. ecosystem, the more resilient it is. The more So, with this in mind, why do we need diversity, room there is for a variety of responses to both in nature and in terms of our human cultures? various stress factors, which are always The fact is that, in nature, the more biodiverse there in nature, the higher the chance of a the ecosystem, the more resilient it is. The more room there is for a variety of responses to various successful response and, hence, of survival.” stress factors, which are always there in nature, same logic, the more populations within a species, the higher the chance of a successful response and, the higher the odds of survival for the entire species hence, of survival. It is crucial to remember that because at least one of the populations may be able every species occupies a certain ecological niche in to adapt to whatever the stress on the entire species an ecosystem, and all the niches are interconnected. is. So, you can imagine that the wider the choice of Nothing in nature exists in isolation. The various options, the higher the chances of withstanding any correlations and interactions between niches also kind of pressure or challenge.

Above: Life’s traces #2. 2017

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 9 “Diversity also contributes greatly to the overall health and well-being of the entire ecosystem. … Nature doesn’t know monoculture, unless perhaps in certain extreme conditions where only one species can thrive.”

Diversity also contributes greatly to the overall health and well-being of the entire ecosystem. For example, monoculture forests or agricultural fields are particularly vulnerable to pests and, once attacked, stand few chances of survival. Monoculture forests have actually been described as “green deserts” rather than forests—and for a good reason. Or next time you go out for a walk, take a look under your feet. If you are a city dweller and are lucky enough to find any semblance of nature in the outskirts of the city, what you will most likely see will be mixed herbaceous meadows. Nature doesn’t know monoculture, unless perhaps in certain extreme conditions where only one species can thrive.

That is why biodiversity matters so much. We, as humans, might not care for the survival of , but that happens only when we’re short-sighted and don’t see that we are a part of the entire system, in which our survival depends entirely on the survival of other species.

All these principles also hold for us and our cultures. That means that the more cultures there are, with a diverse set of approaches, worldviews, and strategies arising from them—and therefore the more varied the responses we give to a multitude of stress factors we are faced with—the more resilient we become as a global society. In light of the environmentally depleted future that is already becoming our today, our survival depends greatly on this resilience.

Ongoing globalization has already wiped out many cultures. Globalization per se—a result of our quest for unrestrained economic growth coupled with our ever more advanced means of transportation, which give us a virtually limitless ability to move from one end of the earth to the other—combines with that baffling proclivity of ours for replacing biodiverse meadows with monocultural Top: Life’s traces #3. 2017 Inset Top: Life’s traces #4. 2017 mowed lawns. We tend to want things more uniform, that Inset Bottom: Life’s traces #5. 2017 is, more easily comprehensible and controllable. That way

10 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 our brain, which spends a lot of energy processing large volumes of new data, can spare some precious effort and pull notions and concepts out of ready- made boxes it sorts everything into. That cognitive process has its upsides, such as the ability to process more information faster. Yet its downsides are fraught with peril. Granted, uniformity is convenient, but how many survival stories can you remember that happened within the comfort zone, in the convenience of the habitual? Nature’s recipe for survival has been diversity.

We have to face our current reality. We live in a world where a wonderfully colored patchwork blanket of cultures, with all that they comprise, is being bleached into a white sheet, leaving behind blurry borders between what used to be fascinatingly patterned patches and a feeling of loss that cannot be undone. There is a multitude Above: Life’s traces #6. 2017 of things we can ask ourselves: How deeply does each of us look into our own culture and respect These questions are valid for all times, not just for others? How does our passion for globetrotting— times of crisis such as the one we are heading into which each of us can relate to for the sheer beauty now. They would matter as much in ideal times of of this planet that everyone, understandably, wants plentiful resources, a healthy environment, and zero to capture with their own eyes—eventually work as that bleaching agent? How do we eradicate cultural concerns about our immediate future. But we can’t go intolerance from our minds, and instead explain to back to such long-gone times, and the stakes are now ourselves that the survival and success of our own higher than ever. So, we have to constantly remind “population”—our culture—depends on others being ourselves that diversity—both in the species around there, being different, and surviving and succeeding us and within ourselves as yet another species—is as well? And how do we celebrate these differences one of the critical factors that will enable us to ensure as the cornerstone of our common resilience? our future on this intrinsically diverse planet.

Olga Mironenko is an environmental scientist based in Moscow, Russia. She holds an MA in languages and international relations, and an MSc in environmental science. Her current research focus is on marine sustainability issues and marine pollution.

David Rapport earned a PhD in economics and then spent many years shedding economic dogma and learning what makes life on earth tick. When he is not writing about ecosystem health, he can often be found wandering in the woods and along beaches, marveling at the diversity of life’s patterns. Further Reading Harmon, D. (2002). In Light of Our Differences: How Diversity in Nature and Culture Makes Us Human. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press.

Maffi, L. (ed.). (2001).On Biocultural Diversity: Linking Language, Knowledge, and the Environment. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press.

Meadows, D. H. (2008). Thinking in Systems: A Primer. White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green.

Odum, E. P. (1953). Fundamentals of . Philadelphia, PA: Saunders.

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 11 Text by Jon Waterhouse Listening Photos by Mary Marshall to OurOur Ancestors

Biocultural Diversity through the Indigenous Lens e are now living in the digital era, when Wpractically every component of our lives appears to be moving at an ever-increasing, unstoppable pace. In many instances it is clear that we humans are not capable of keeping up with is significantly threatened and has demonstrably the technology we are creating, even as access to declined. Instead of embracing the many benefits information and knowledge is more abundant and that this first-hand exposure to other ways of life easier than ever. So, as we barrel ahead with our presents, we are insisting that all citizens adopt hair on fire, I’m compelled to stop and ask: What a uniform existence and eliminate the traits and are we sacrificing while focused so intensely on characteristics that set us apart. propelling ourselves further into the future? Personally, I believe this fact might appall our Sure, looking around the globe we can see the ancestors. Thinking of my own grandfather and his innumerable benefits of technological advancements. love for worldly knowledge (as evidenced by his vast But when we stop to assess the current human of National Geographic and World Book condition, as well as the state of this planet we call Encyclopedia), I truly believe he would be thrilled home, isn’t it obvious that our eagerness to arrive at to cross paths in his local grocery store or favorite tomorrow is costing us much of what has sustained diner with folks from various Asian, Russian, Latin us and made us who we are today? Top: Traditional community on the Giraffe River (Bahr-el-Zaraf) All over the world, cultures are mingling like in South Sudan. 2011 never before, and countless opportunities to gain Inset: Traditional Kwakwaka’wakw carving from knowledge and wisdom from people different from Alert Bay, British Columbia. 2014 us are presented with regularity and ease. Yet, as the Facing Page: Memorials to Haida Ancestors at SG̱ang Gwaay world’s population increases, biocultural diversity on Gwaii Haanas, Haida Gwaii, British Columbia. 2016

12 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 American, or African cultures. And he certainly and main water source. The Indigenous people using would not insist that they give up their traditions, peaceful protests and civil disobedience were pitted assimilate, and live in the same manner as our family. against a fully militarized state and federal force that was supplemented by private security contractors. Yet, well-meaning but misguided representatives The contrast in each side’s approach was stark: from Eurocentric groups and organizations are thousands of people protesting peacefully versus descending on Indigenous communities from hundreds of heavily armed police reinforced by to and all points in between military armored vehicles, water cannons deployed to offer “help.” They are bringing the concepts in freezing temperatures, and attack dogs. The of Western education and opportunity to light draconian response by the authorities against Native for these people, whom they view as in need of Americans protecting their homelands and future is a “domestication.” But why? These Indigenous dark repeat of earlier wrongs and shows that we are cultures have not only survived in their place for still not willing to learn the lessons of the past. Some of our lack of understanding and confusion “Indigenous cultures have not only about biocultural diversity finds its roots in the survived in their place for millennia— long-standing dismissal of Indigenous people as “primitive,” “savage,” and/or “unintelligent.” We must they have thrived.” find it within ourselves to move past to millennia—they have thrived. Sure, the arrival of embrace their knowledge—knowledge that should development activities in their regions and onto not be viewed as in conflict with contemporary their lands has taken a toll, as many corporate science, but rather as complementary to it. This practices pollute, drive the extinction of species, and ancient wisdom and perspective can offer guidance more. The problem of corporate infiltration in their for the modern world to understand and accept the regions or globally, however, will certainly not be many benefits of biocultural diversity, propelling us mitigated by efforts that result in alienating people to a level far beyond where we are today. from their own places and ways of life. As an Indigenous person who has spent decades working with various small populations and Most devastatingly, and paramount to this cultures across the globe, I’d like to share a bit discussion, we cannot overlook the hard fact about Native American knowledge and wisdom that, over the last 500 years, we have witnessed specifically—and possibly surprise you with a few imperialistic domination of non-Eurocentric human tidbits that you may not have known. societies, which on the best of days demands cultural assimilation and on the worst complete For instance, did you know that science and subjugation or total annihilation. Again, examples technology are nothing new to Indigenous Peoples? abound: the U.S. Federal Indian Policies of the We have been practicing science and its applications nineteenth and twentieth centuries; the ruthless rule of the Belgians in the Congo (1908–1960); the Rubber Baron Era in South America (1879–1912); the extermination of the Marsh Arabs in Southern Iraq by Saddam Hussein in 1991—you name it.

Even today, the list of human domination and atrocities against other humans goes on and on. Take the high-profile case of the 2016 occurrences at Standing Rock Indian Reservation, spanning across the border of North Dakota and South Dakota in the USA. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, joined by thousands of protesters, stood against the rerouting of the Dakota Access Pipeline away from the predominantly white community of Bismarck, North Dakota, and through their tribal reservation lands

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 13 to technology since time immemorial. The same can be said of the Indigenous approach to conservation and sustainability. Indigenous (or Native) cultures have always grasped the importance of understanding and nurturing every component of what sustains them, so to that end they have operated as scientists and conservationists by default. Whether in regard to developing the most effective methods for growing food, making tools, catching or game, building homes or canoes, or even managing the land, the concept of “research and development” has been an integral part of being Indigenous, simply out of necessity to survive. Inca stone-shaping, and other examples of What we as contemporary society often tend to forget is ancient Indigenous technology continue to that much of our modern technology originated within baffle scholars and scientists. Yet, if we can Indigenous cultures from all over this planet. marvel at these grand structures and skills of the past, developed by humankind through Many historical achievements of First Peoples around the the ages, then why would we today ignore globe have literally carried us to this very moment in time. and reject the Indigenous knowledge, science, Just to give you an idea, here are but a few of the items we and understanding that gave rise to them use regularly that were conceived, created, or first discovered and that has existed since time immemorial? and harnessed by Indigenous cultures within Native America Especially since this vast knowledge predates specifically: almanacs, aspirin, anesthetics, bullet-proof vests, “modern science” by thousands of years and calendars, canals, canoes, chaps (leather leggings), chewing has passed countless tests of time. gum. Oh. And chocolate. As you can see, I’ve shared only a few of the items from the very top of the alphabetical list. Take the case of the concept of caring for future generations, a principle so important So I often wonder: While we marvel at the great monuments to Native Americans as a guide for the success of the past and at the complex design and execution required of a society that it was codified in the Iroquois to create them, how can so many of us completely disregard Great Law of Peace. In turn, as the U.S. Senate the Indigenous science that brought them forth? We are acknowledged in a 1987 resolution (U.S. S. Con. awed by the pyramids of Giza and Teotihuacan, the temples Res. 76, 2 Dec. 1987), that document served as of Petra and Machu Picchu, and countless others. The ancient fish ponds found in Hawai’i are impressive. Yet we ask: How could an ancient, primitive, non-European people Top Left: Traditional ways still followed today: an Evenk reindeer herder in Kostetem, Sakha Republic, have possibly been sophisticated or intelligent enough to Russian Federation. 2008 accomplish these technological “miracles”? A few of us would Inset Top: A Sakha shaman at the “Flowers on the rather give credit for these feats of technological superiority Tundra” celebration in Yakutsk, Sakha Republic, to alien beings or divine intervention. Russian Federation. 2016 Inset Bottom: Communicating with youth using their Why is it so difficult to accept the ingenuity of ancient favorite medium: Instagram. Yakutsk, Sakha Republic, Indigenous cultures? Mayan astronomy, Polynesian wayfaring, Russian Federation. 2016

14 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 a model for the U.S. Constitution. Unfortunately, no acknowledgement of the principle of responsibility to future generations was included.

The First Salmon Ceremony of the Pacific Northwest, which was witnessed and documented by Lewis and Clark in 1806, is the ultimate representation of conservation practices. It offered a clear picture of ideal sustainability efforts practiced within a community. Farther afield, the Olonkho epic tale has been instilling cultural methods, beliefs, and philosophies among Siberia’s Yakut people for centuries. Less well known but no less important is the 500-page Traditional Encyclopedia created by the Matsés people of the Amazon to record their ancestral medicinal knowledge. The Matsés created this document in Above: Evenk Elder Evdokia shares a moment with Jon in Zhigansk, Sakha Republic, Russian Federation. 2015 their language and will not translate it, in an effort to protect its content from exploitation. state. In this regard, Indigenous knowledge and its In each of these examples, like so many others, applications to the preservation of biodiversity and the message is designed to enlighten and inspire biocultural diversity are essential. But again, if we thinking beyond oneself. These invaluable accounts ignore these facts rather than embrace them, we will of human existence and survival illuminate one’s enter a bleak future that will surely bear witness to place in nature and within the diverse condition of an unspeakable loss of diversity of cultures, species, the planet—a condition that, as humans, it is our and knowledge systems. obligation to preserve. This is a call to action. I ask that we all relax our A vast library of untapped knowledge regarding current way of thinking and open our minds to our planetary system exists. It has been passed the world of Indigenous knowledge. I can promise down through generations of Indigenous Peoples via you that no harm will come from this effort, and oral traditions and ceremony, containing life lessons the future will look much brighter when viewed applicable and perfectly suited to our current through an open mind and heart.

Jon Waterhouse is an environmental steward, Indigenous advocate, and storyteller. Driven by his belief that blending Indigenous knowledge with contemporary science is key to understanding our planet, he partners with members of often remote, voiceless populations, providing them with technology to collect and share their place-based science. Mary Marshall, an author and photographer, is passionate about empowering Indigenous populations around the globe. While she and her partner Jon Waterhouse work alongside Indigenous groups to monitor their water quality, she also provides them with the technology and training to tell their story, in their own words, to the audiences of their choosing. Further Reading Hance, J. (2015). Amazon tribe creates 500-page traditional medicine encyclopedia. Mongabay. Retrieved from https://news.mongabay.com/2015/06/amazon-tribe-creates-500-page-traditional-medicine-encyclopedia/

Mohawk Nation News. (2013, April 19). Energy balance [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://mohawknationnews.com/blog/tag/the-united-states-senate-con-res-76/

Native American Contributions. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Native_American_contributions

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 15 Rooted Radhika Borde in Place Exercises in Belonging, Ecological Awareness, and Love hat does it mean to have roots? In most possible to learn a language in adulthood and speak Wcases the metaphor implies a genetic legacy, it with the fluency of a native speaker. Can we learn a cultural inheritance comprising a set of values or relearn to cultivate roots in a similar way? and beliefs, or a connection with a place that comes from having spent one’s childhood there. In each Growing a root in and into a place, just as a plant of these cases there is an assumption that roots are does, would allow a place to speak to a person’s passed down through family generations or are soul and nourish it. This might go a long way cultivated when a person is very young. towards alleviating what can be seen as a new type of anomie that fractures the Earth’s power to offer Today many people—particularly urban dwellers solace, nurture, and connection to diverse peoples —have become placeless and rootless, often living in diverse places. in a virtual world more than they do in a physical space that they can connect to with their senses. The idea of biocultural diversity, which implies How might they learn to reconnect with place? that cultural and biological diversity are linked, has Also, with increasing numbers of people migrating been primarily developed in relation to non-urban from place to place for work and to escape war and areas. Here, I wish to explore its applicability to poverty, it becomes ever more crucial to explore urban contexts, for two interrelated reasons: over whether and how a person may be able to cultivate and establish roots in a new place—understood as Below: Seeking roots in a new city. Photo: Radhika Borde, 2017 a culturally interpreted biophysical context. It is

16 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 half of the world’s population now lives in cities, for further and more nuanced hybridization. This and it is cities that generally function as destinations would foster a process of globalization without for humans on the move. homogenization, since the strength behind this cultural process would stem from the unique Cities are often argued to be hotspots of cultural character of the biophysical features of cities as diversity, but it is hard to make the case that they places and from the uniqueness of the culturally are also rich repositories of biological diversity. influenced roots that people would grow into them. On the other hand, it is easy to argue that they are superb examples of the impact that the biophysical Many, if not most, people would agree that places, features of a place have had on the development of in all their biophysical splendor, are unique and human culture. Cities have usually been founded should be appreciated and respected as such. We in areas with distinctive and advantageous natural usually take it for granted that the planet is much features that have facilitated the flourishing of more interesting for the fact that there are tropical human : on hills, beside rivers, or along rainforests, deserts, and temperate grasslands. coastlines. It may be difficult to find an example of When culture is open to the influence of place, we a city that does not owe its achievements at least in can be sure that there will be biocultural diversity— part to a natural environment that was conducive and perhaps even a renewed and enhanced respect to enhancing the effects of human labor, creativity, for the diversities of both nature and culture and enterprise. around the globe. The debt that cities owe to nature is sometimes “Today many people—particularly forgotten in our contemporary world, in which the significance of cities is credited to their position urban dwellers—have become in the space of “flows”—flows of data or capital— placeless and rootless, often living rather than in the space of “places”—physical loci in a virtual world more than they that can be tangibly experienced. Since the natural environment of cities has had such a huge impact do in a physical space that they can on culture, the concept of biocultural diversity connect to with their senses.” might be expanded to emphasize, for urban So, how do we rediscover cities as biophysical contexts, the importance of being receptive to the places? How do we open ourselves up to being influence that the biophysical features of a city have culturally influenced from the ground up, so to had, and can continue to have, on culture. Within speak? There is extensive scholarly writing on such a framing, the biocultural diversity of a city place-making in urban contexts—that is, on how might be understood as the intricate web of cultural people engage with such contexts, relate to them, influences that a city as a biophysical place has had and recreate them as places for work, life, and and could have on the diverse communities that call leisure. There have also been scholarly discussions it home, and conversely the diversity of meanings of biodiverse place-making in cities through and interpretations that these communities would such practices as nature volunteering and urban ascribe to the city as a place. gardening. Issues of have not been neglected in these discussions, but the focus has Yet, as important as cities are as places, it would been mostly on the ability (or inability) of diverse be unhelpful if not impossible to ignore that they ethnic communities to reclaim urban green spaces, also are hubs that exist in a space of flows. Cities the differing and sometimes conflicting cultural can be imagined as having tendrils that span the valuations of biodiversity in cities, and so on. In globe. And the people who come to live in them can other words, much of the discussion on this topic be understood to bring offshoots of the rhizomatic has been political. networks of culture that they are part of. When these culturally diverse peoples grow roots in and into a What I believe is needed is a phenomenological city as a place, this might facilitate rich processes of approach—one that addresses the vital question of cultural hybridization. These hybridizations might how we can develop roots in and into cities as places, then reach other places through the tendrils that regardless of whether we grew up in a given city or are constantly curling out of cities, thus allowing have cultural roots elsewhere. What can individuals,

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 17 Above: The phenomenology of a midnight walk in a snowy city. Photo: Frantisek Borde-Havelka, 2017

groups, and institutions do to develop and foster founding myth related to the auspicious sighting of a deeper experience of, and connection to, a city an eagle sitting on a cactus and holding a snake in (whether native or adopted), as well as an enhanced its mouth. It is said that Prague was built after its feeling of ecological responsibility toward it? founding princess stood on a hill overlooking the River Vltava and had a vision of a city whose fame To get to know and experience a city as first a would touch the stars. biophysical place, and then a biocultural one, one might start by seeking out the natural features around which the city has developed—be those a “Growing a root in and into a river, a bay, or a cluster of hills—and then spend place, just as a plant does, would time in vantage points that allow for contemplation allow a place to speak to a person’s of these natural features, as well as engage in exploring the history of the city’s development in soul and nourish it.” symbiosis with those natural features. Engaging in these exercises is quite distinct from spending time in urban green spaces, which may Another useful exercise would be an immersion be understood as zones where humans have made into the mythical history of the city’s founding (if “concessions” to nature. Contemplating the natural such a history exists and has been recorded). The feature or features to which a city owes its existence biophysical features of cities such as Rome, Mexico would reposition people as not just stewards of, but as City (Tenochtitlan), and Prague are linked with debtors to nature. Paying homage to how a native or prophecies, festivals, and legends. The ancient adopted urban home was nourished by its biophysical Septimontium festival in Rome celebrated its seven environs would allow for a similar, contemporary hills. The Aztec city of Tenochtitlan, literally the experience of personal or communal nourishment. “place of the prickly pear cactus,” was linked to a

18 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 The next exercise might be to experience a places. For example, a seasonal fruit may be used heightened awareness of the physical nourishment in the cuisine that is local to a place, but this does that the biophysicality of a city and its environs not restrict it from being adopted by a culinary can provide—such as by tasting and smelling tradition that originated elsewhere. This process of local produce, along with understanding how the culinary adoption might benefit from some degree soil and climate of the city and the agricultural of continuity between the historical bioculture of a lands that supply it have influenced the tastes place and its contemporary manifestations. By engaging in such exercises, newcomers to a “The debt that cities owe to nature place, as well as people who feel rootless despite is sometimes forgotten in our belonging to families that have been living in the contemporary world, in which the same urban context for several generations, would most likely experience some feelings of rootedness. significance of cities is credited to their But why is this important? In today’s cosmopolitan position in the space of ‘flows’—flows world, rootlessness may not necessarily be seen as of data or capital—rather than in the a negative experience and may be thought to imply freedom. Why this emphasis on both newcomers space of ‘places’—physical loci that and local city dwellers developing roots in place? can be tangibly experienced.” The first answer to this question is that there is and smells that are being experienced. Gathering scant evidence that local communities will necessarily available wild foods and gaining an appreciation embrace newcomers. If the people you have come to of local ecological and seasonal cycles would also live among are less than welcoming, developing your be beneficial. This exercise would emphasize that own strong roots into that place may be helpful. the biophysicality of a city belongs to all who understand and enjoy it and that it can be mediated Below & Inset: The water that birthed a spa and a city: geothermal not only by cultures that are local to the place geyser and spa at Karlovy Vary, the Czech Republic. but also by cultures that were nourished by other Photos: Radhika Borde, 2014 Secondly, in many countries, there are heightened care. Most of us can only think and act locally, and security concerns surrounding immigrants or ecological action will most likely be much more refugees who may appear not to “integrate.” Now, effective if the need for it is felt viscerally. Also, if the idea of “integration” implies merging into a new we (both newcomers and those who have preceded cultural context that might be at odds with the one them) feel rooted in a place and discover how that a newcomer is familiar with, and that is the to cherish it, there is no reason why we couldn’t wrong thing to expect—at many levels. Rather than have multiple roots in multiple places that we may using the language of “integration,” it may be more have experienced and enjoyed and may continue valid to speak of “connection”—which may mean to treasure—thereby giving a new meaning to the connection both to the place one finds oneself in concept of “rooted cosmopolitanism” that some and to the communities one finds oneself among. philosophers argue we should aspire to.

Last but not least, it is crucial for all people to develop roots into the biophysicality of the places we live in. The planet as a whole is far too large Below: Ripe with unseen promise: a city and an urban vinyard prepare and too abstract an object to elicit our ecological for winter. Photo: Frantisek Borde-Havelka, 2016

Radhika Borde has a PhD in from Wageningen University in the Netherlands. She has studied and written on Indigenous nature spiritualities and environmental activism. She is a steering committee member of the IUCN specialist group on Cultural and Spiritual Values of Protected Areas and edits the group’s newsletter. Further Reading Buizer, M., Elands, B., & Vierikko, K. (2016). Governing cities reflexively: The biocultural diversity concept as an alternative to ecosystem services. Environmental Science & Policy, 62, 7–13.

Castells, M. (2004). Space of flows, space of places: Materials for a theory of urbanism in the information age. In S. Graham (Ed.), The Cybercities Reader (pp. 82–93). London, England: Routledge.

Cheah, P. (2006). Cosmopolitanism. Theory, Culture & Society, 23(2–3): 486–496.

Dirlik, A. (1999). Place-based imagination: Globalism and the of place. Review, 22(2), 151–187.

Escobar, A. (2001). Culture sits in places: Reflections on globalism and subaltern strategies of localization. Political Geography, 20(2), 139–174.

20 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 Page Lambert Nforever Sale

Listening (or Not) to the Language of the Land ohn and I are driving down an unfurling Jribbon of highway en route to the Black Hills of Wyoming and the small town of Sundance, population 1222. I’m doing battle with the State’s Department of Transportation, which has decreed to realign a major state highway through the like their great-grandparents, five generations back, pristine heart of the ranchland where my children when the first grandparents left Maine by wagon were reared. to bring their asthmatic son to the healing, high I was a mere caretaker of my children compared country air of the Rocky Mountains. to the land that raised them. My daughter ran up Today, I can barely catch my breath. An eminent and down deer paths. My son explored high ridges domain fissure has sliced open my heart. The and deep gullies. They gathered sheep off the hayfield before nightfall, howled at coyotes before Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) bedtime, fed calves before daybreak. They saved has become my nemesis, my Goliath—and, like the money they earned from raising and selling David, I’m grasping at stones to slay the giant. their animals toward college tuition and weanling In a few hours, John and I will walk the ground colts. They helped old cows die and young ones be on the heels of an archaeologist hired by the born. They learned the lay of the land, her meadows and oak forests, her rolling hills and steeply rooted Department to look for cultural artifacts as part ponderosas. The land taught them to speak an of the Environmental Assessment required by the ancient language—to seek southern slopes during National Environmental Policy Act. “Have John go winter storms, to protect brittle grasses during seasons of drought. Above: Pristine heart of the ranchland: mountain prairie on the Lambert Ranch, Sundance, Wyoming, before the rerouting By the time they were teens, my children of Highway 14. Photo: John Gritts, 2012 understood the concept of a shared landscape clear Inset: Sarah Lambert sitting in a historic barn at the Lambert Ranch to the marrow of their bones. They understood it in the early 1990s. Photo: Page Lambert, 1992

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 21 with you,” friends advised. “Even if he never opens his mouth, it will make the archeologist sit up and take notice.” At 6 feet 4 inches tall, John can be imposing. He’s a full-blooded, enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation. It would be rare to unearth Cherokee artifacts in the Black Hills of Wyoming, but that doesn’t dissuade me from silently pleading with John’s ancestors from Georgia. Maybe they could lead us to a Sioux burial site. That would stop the archaeologist in his tracks, and possibly the entire project. Not long ago, John and I were having dinner with some Navajo friends. I told them about WYDOT’s plans to reroute the highway through the ranch. “The Doctrine of Eminent Domain is the ace up their sleeve,” I said. “If I don’t Above: John Gritts out on the ranchland. Photo: Page Lambert, 2009 agree to sell, all they have to do is condemn my ownership of the land, claiming that it’s in the public’s best interest for the State to own it. I’ve Stand at sunrise, facing east on the high ridge where never even considered selling.” the highway department plans to cut gashes as wide as 360 feet across, and you’ll see Sundance Mountain backlit Belvin took a sip of his iced tea, arching by morning glow. Stand on the same ridge at sunset, pivot one eyebrow. “The government wants to slightly to the south, and watch long shadows fall across take your land?” he asked, smirking not the flanks of Inyan Kara Mountain, the “mountain within unsympathetically. “Guess now you’re an a mountain.” Tribal people have been knapping quartzite Indian too.” We laughed, but the truth is that at Inyan Kara for at least 10,000 years. the Black Hills had been promised to the Sioux Indians in the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie. Less Stand on that same ridge in June when the Lakota are than ten years later, the government seized the holding their Sundance Ceremony at Mato Tipili (the Hills along with all its gold. Bear Lodge, renamed Devils Tower when it became our nation’s first national monument in 1906), pluck a sprig “The Kiowas, Kiowa-Apaches, of sage, pivot due west, face into the wind, and listen for Arapahos, Cheyennes, Lakotas, Crows, the echo of drumbeats rising from the distant silhouette Shoshones have all been camping, of its ancient volcanic core. fasting, and holding ceremonies in In 1980, the U.S. Government offered the Sioux Nation the Black Hills for generations.” a settlement of $102 million for portions of the Black Hills. Set aside in a trust, the funds have grown to well The Kiowas, Kiowa-Apaches, Arapahos, over one billion dollars. The Sioux Nation refuses to Cheyennes, Lakotas, Crows, Shoshones have accept a penny, believing any payment to be invalid. all been camping, fasting, and holding ceremonies in the Black Hills for generations. Why? Because the land was never for sale. Known as “an island in a sea of plains,” here I tried that argument on WYDOT. “Do you see a For Sale the grassland oceans of the U.S. Great Plains sign around here anywhere?” I asked. No, of course not. (North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Yet orange surveying flags already pockmark the land. Kansas) lap up against the rocky shores of the West (Montana, Wyoming, Colorado). The Bear This earth holds the bones of the dogs my family has Lodge Mountains, one of three mountain loved. It holds the bones of the faithful horses that have ranges that comprise the Black Hills, shelter carried us across tallgrass prairies, through burr oak the ranchland that still tethers my soul. woods and ponderosa forests. None of this land is for

22 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 sale. Beside the fact that ownership of any land can be I’ve hiked this land for nearly thirty years. debated, kinship with this land makes me angry and The fox skulls I’ve found, the red-tailed hawk protective. The siege is on. feathers that have drifted onto my prayer knoll, the ammonites and the tapered, broken I do not give up hope. Yet the stones I grasp flake away crinoid stems of ancient marine creatures that like slivered mica. I’ve stumbled across—none of these, I fear, will save this land from the bulldozers. “If you see Twenty-five miles east of here, when WYDOT anything that looks like historic trash,” friends surveyed the route for Interstate Highway 90 in the advised, “any chert, obsidian, or quartzite bits 1970s, they discovered a large limestone sinkhole. of stone on the ground, point them out. The bits WYDOT graded a crude road down into the sinkhole of stone are probably lithic debitage, debris and drilled several holes in the bottom. The drill from stone toolmaking. Do you know of any brought up bone fragments—a lot of them. A large historic building foundations out there? Odd “jump” was discovered—a natural trap into which bison depressions in the ground? Ask for a copy of were herded, killed, and butchered in the centuries the Bureau of Land Management’s search for before the Plains Indians had domesticated horses. historic homesteading.” The interstate’s route was redirected to protect this historic site. Archaeologists now know that the remains John and I wait for the Department’s of thousands of bison lay buried at what is now known archaeologist to arrive. He is a nice guy. Hiking as the Vore Buffalo Jump. Ceremonial circles of bison the mapped realignment takes several hours. skulls and canid skulls from hybrid wolf–dogs have When I show him the artifacts I have gathered been discovered beneath the layers of red earth. over the years—scrapers, chipping debris, fossils—he tells me, “Unless I find them in situ, they can’t go into the report.”

In situ. In place. Not moved from the original place of deposition. Like John’s Cherokee ancestors, forced to walk the Trail of Tears? Like the Lakota? Like Belvin and Lynda’s Navajo people? If only I could recruit a breeding pair of bald eagles to take up residence in a gangly ponderosa, or entice a few shy orchids like the threatened Ute Ladies’-tresses to bloom in the damp gullies.

John and I walk behind the archaeologist, side to side, across the breadth and length of the proposed route. He examines each rock I lift from the ground, shakes his head, and tosses it aside. We find no bones other than the ribcage of a deer, no burial site, no sinkholes filled with bison remains. I point toward the highest ridge. We hike there. I show him two cairns and one stone alignment.

“Lithic scatter,” he nods, “but no associated artifacts or charcoal staining.”

Top: Participants in a Wyoming Highway Department Public Comment “Any chance they would stop the project?” Meeting on the Rupe Hill Realignment in Sundance, Wyoming. Photo: John Gritts, 2012 “No. Might even mean that the highway Bottom: Artifacts and fossils gathered at the Lambert Ranch (all except realignment moves deeper into your land. the lower jaw fragment). Photo: Page Lambert, 2012 We’ll have to contact the appropriate tribes.”

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 23 By the time he drives away, I’m utterly I am slayed, speechless. The “highest and best discouraged. John understands my need to wander use” of this land is to provide soil for the roots of alone, to gaze at the expanse of virgin high grass needle-and-thread grasses, crested wheat, bluestem, prairie, to lay—heart to the ground—and weep. golden aster, western flax, and Wyoming sagebrush, to provide a home for whitetail deer, sharp-tailed Weeks later, the Department releases its grouse, kestrels, and red-tails, antelopes, mountain environmental assessment report. On the tail of lions, foxes, and coyotes. The best use for the land the assessment comes the FONSI—the Finding is to provide sloping hillsides and hidden trails for Of No Significant Impact report. “A bald eagle boys and girls. was observed eating carrion,” wrote the highway department biologists, “but no nests were seen.” After three years, the battle has been lost, the The archaeologist writes that the cairn features ground relinquished. There is no David and Goliath “are sodded in, suggesting they are of prehistoric ending. “Thanks for fighting for the land, Mom,” my age.” The Threatened and Endangered Species son and daughter console, “for all you’ve done to try section of the FONSI states, “Project not likely to and save it.” adversely affect threatened or endangered species. No mitigation required.” The Paleontology section I love the viewshed that will be destroyed—the way of the FONSI mentions in the fine print that there the eye flows from the clusters of low-growing burr is “potential for impacts to fossil resources. On-site oak to the open expanse of prairie, from the dark monitoring will be completed during construction.” green pine-covered mountains to the deep washes of iron red earth. Millions of years of erosion have The last stone within my reach is the hope that cut into these hillsides, leaving gullies and carving bulldozers will pull from the once-unbroken land mini-canyons. The arroyos are as red and smooth as something deemed worthy of protecting. an earthen floor tamped down with blood by bare feet that know the contours of a land by heart. The report concludes: “The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has determined that the Within a few months, more than a dozen boreholes Preferred Alternative—which will realign an mark the land—twenty, forty, sixty feet deep. Each approximate one-mile section of US 14—will have pulls from the earth stories of her geological past, no significant impact on the human or natural environment.” The real estate appraiser hired by Below: Not listening to the language of the land: the rerouting the Department states that the “highest and best use of Highway 14 through Page Lambert’s ranchland. of the land is for development.” Photo: John Gritts, 2016

24 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 recorded in science-speak. Project: DR 41319. The engineer points to a right-of-way that will cut Potential Realignment. Log of Boring. Sample recovery. a gouge into the earth “as large as a football field.” Blow count (in value). Vane Sheer. Unconfined. Water Content. Liquid Limit. Plasticity Index, slightly moist, I am mute. We do not even speak the same language. silty clay with sand and minor gravel, medium stiff to Later, I find solace in knowing that the stories I stiff color change: dark brown to light brown to beige in have written about this land will endure. Within the the cuttings, silty clay to claystone with silty infillings: pages of those books, at least, the memories are safe. Mottled grey, yellow and brown; Iron staining min natural breaks harder with depth. Bolstered, I pick up one last stone. I Google, “What is the lifespan of a road?” Pavement: 39 years. Nothing about this is natural. Sprayed seal surface: 26 years. Asphalt: 26 years. A mere blink of the eye! I sigh, relieved. It all comes At the next meeting, I stare at the engineer’s into perspective. The land does not measure a span map, stretched across a six-foot conference table. of time in years, but in eternities. The highway will pass directly over a deep gully where rain gathers to seep into a natural spring that Above: Hope springs eternal: green season of summer renewal flows downstream to a pond where animals water. on the ranch. Photo: Page Lambert, 2010

Page Lambert is a Senior Associate with the Children & Nature Network, member of the International League of Conservation Writers, and Rocky Mountain Land Library advisor. She has been writing about the landscape and leading nature retreats for twenty years. Her latest essay, “Mother Tongue,” appeared in the journal Sojourns: Landscapes for the People. Further Reading Gunderson, M. A. (1988). Devils Tower: Stories in Stone. Glendo, WY: High Plains Press. Greenhouse, L. (January 19, 1982). Sioux lose fight for land in Dakota. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/1982/01/19/us/sioux-lose-fight-for-land-in-dakota.html?mcubz=1 Lambert, P. (1996). In Search of Kinship: Modern Pioneering on the Western Landscape. Golden, CO: Fulcrum. Lambert, P. (2007). Birth, death, and renewal: Living heart to heart with the land. In L. Pritchett, R. Knight, & J. Lee (Eds.), Home Land: Ranching and a West That Works (pp. 149–159). Boulder, CO: Johnson Books. Lambert, P. (2011). A shape-shifting land. In L. Stegner & R. Rowland (Eds.), West of 98 (pp. 203–207). Austin, TX: University of Texas Press.

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 25 Nejma Belarbi The Obvious irror How Biocultural Diversity isM Reflected in the Natural World “All things in creation are sacred and have others at some point or another. But later I thought a diversity much beyond our understanding.” that perhaps I couldn’t see them because my eyes ―My grandmother, Fakhita Jazouli were figuratively closed, as I had a preconceived idea as to how medicinal plants grew and where: in et on your hands and knees on the side of the a meadow, of course, or in the forest—anywhere but “Gdirt road and look down to find medicinal on this driveway on which I walked weekly! What plants. A square foot will do.” I immediately felt that lived in my mind was entirely segregated from an would be all but impossible. When my herbology experience of connection or relatability. Teachings mentor Carol McGrath asked us, her apprentices, from my elders came back to me, however, anchoring to do this, I thought: “How could medicinal plants all the sayings I had heard throughout my childhood grow in this environment? And in a square foot no regarding our connection to all living things through less!” But we did what were told, and on we knelt. the light that animates us. An echo of experiencing this connection resounded back to me from childhood. Initially I only saw dirt and some blades of grass—some greenery I couldn’t identify. Then there was a moment when, unknowingly, the run-on commentary in my mind stopped, most likely to just catch its breath, and I saw a violet. Impulsively, in my surprise, I thought: “Hello!” I had been kneeling for a good ten minutes before violet made herself known. And then following her came plantain, couch grass, and a tiny dandelion. All of these plant people I hadn’t noticed! This was very puzzling to me. I had been taught their shapes and their properties, had handled them, had seen them growing in the meadow—and yet I had failed to recognize them, even though I had been staring at them for ten minutes. Top: Reflection of the natural world. A glass ball in a child’s hand. Photo: Uschi, 2016. Available on Pixabay; reproduced Perhaps the reason I didn’t see them is that they with artist’s permission. were very small and dusty. It was hard to identify the Above: The medicinal community: Purple dead-nettle, Cleavers, Ivy, shapes of their leaves. Some of them had been run and other plant people on a side street, Vancouver Island. over by cars and trampled by my shoes and those of Photo: Nejma Belarbi, 2006

26 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 In a way, the taught paradigm separated me The short window when my faculties retreated from nature. I had lived in cities my whole life, to the background allowed a pull of my intuition followed conventional educational models that to deeply recognize these plants as people, as were entrenched in Western history, and was intelligent beings. It was as though a mirror was held taught to think of nature as a resource that dwelled up, whereby “seeing” these plant people triggered a somewhere else. Although I longed from a very reflection of the web of interconnections between young age to be immersed in the natural world and all existing beings and myself and an understanding flee the industrialized human world, there seemed of just how much wealth that connection holds. The to be no possibility to do so aside from learning urban industrial paradigm, which I had so resisted about it in the way I was taught. Nature and even and yet is so prominent in the world, came apart, medicinal plants were something I read about, saw and I felt the rebirth of communication through pictures of, and related to as something “other.” intuition rather than cognition. Even in my handling of them, I perceived them in my mind rather than within my experience. I “The hearing that is only in the ears is one thing. realized at that moment just how “illiterate,” like The hearing of the understanding is another. many others, I was—the missing element being But the hearing of the spirit is not limited to any earth’s language, which in my mind is present in all one faculty, to the ear or to the mind. Hence, it of the world’s tongues. I speak three languages and demands the emptiness of all the faculties. And have heard earth’s language whisper through all when the faculties are empty, then the whole being of them. That language is part of the foundational listens. There is then a grasp of what is right there concepts and experience corresponding to nature before you that can never be heard with the ear or and our interconnection with it. understood with the mind.”

Below: The city of termites. Walbran Valley, Vancouver Island. ―Zhuang Zhou Photo: Nejma Belarbi, 2007

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 27 Often, when I looked outside, there was a in balance. As each language and culture holds disconnection. I saw a sea of green, the word knowledge of the place in which it dwells, it is a TREE written on all the standing giants, SHRUB on reflection of a given ecological niche permeated all the shorter plants, but mostly the color green with specific instinctive knowledge that allows its and some texture. Even though I memorized the denizens to survive symbiotically. botanical names and common names of species, their medicinal properties and habits, for me the If we are born on this earth, we are part of it—that concepts were purely intellectualized and sterile. much is undeniable, and it is clear that flipping our Regardless of the language, it was the learning perspective from “separated from” to “part of” offers process that was integrally embedded in concepts of a wealth that is incomparable to the value of what we separation rather than experiential relation. as a species understand “wealth” to be in our current economic worldview. If there is a general malaise as rampant profit-based perspectives throw their weight “Teachings from my elders came around, it is because there is not enough “wealth” to saturate the void created by our separation. We could back to me, anchoring all the go on desecrating the earth and consuming products sayings I had heard throughout my made with little integrity, and yet it would never be childhood regarding our connection enough to fill the emptiness caused by the severance of the connection to our environment. Information to all living things through the on our interconnection with land and other species light that animates us.” is often found in the tools that traditional knowledge gives us—tools that we have accumulated for Diversity is present in everything we see, and centuries to denote this connection and foster it. there are innumerable species that share this planet The sad thing is that the present dominant system with us, each of them supporting the continuity of of values has us filling this void with constant life just by their mere existence. Krill and whales distractions and systems that create and perpetuate have a relationship that decreases atmospheric cultural and biological degradation and engender carbon. Earthworms are imperative to the growth of a cognitive dissonance that tears us away from the plants. Plants have medicine in them that balances potential to be fully human. soils, animals, and people; they are a fundamental part of the food web that supports everything. This symbiotic relationship is readily apparent—yet, although the current leading paradigm may recognize it intellectually, the experiential and most important facet of it is often disregarded.

Still, this diversity is intrinsic to our existence and is often a mirror to our very selves. A mirror because, if the world is so diverse in its makeup, where no single species stands alone without symbiotic relationships with other species, perhaps our own cultural and linguistic diversity can be seen as a reflection of that very same process. Through culturally diverse perspectives that foster our interconnection with all other species, we mimic the symbiotic Above: Hawthorn: heart medicine showing its brightness. Vancouver Island. relationship that allows us to live Photo: Nejma Belarbi, 2017

28 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 Above: The Chellah, a medieval fortified necropolis in Rabat, Morocco. Phoenician, Carthaginian, Roman, and Muslim conquerors have come and gone. Nature endures, slowly chipping away at our attempts to separate and control our environment. Photo: Nejma Belarbi, 2015

It was the very experience of finally “seeing” The resilience of these trampled diverse little the plant people—the living, breathing, intelligent beings was amazing to me: Why even try to survive individuals I had up until then unknowingly when you would be stepped on or driven over at any disregarded as such—that helped me realize time? Well, the answer was loud and clear: because just how the current deep-seated paradigm life is inherently resilient. Biological diversity is had influenced this separation. The feeling proven to sustain the health of ecosystems, as of connection and recognition was familiar, each species has a role in keeping the balance however; perhaps an essence of it remained from of the whole. The diversity of languages and my childhood. Once I felt my kinship with plants, cultures follows a similar pattern, as each of them I felt it with all the other beings that surrounded is responsible for a piece of the global mosaic that me, a web much greater than myself. The diversity teaches us how we truly are part of a greater whole. that existed in that small square of dirt grew into not just the medicinal plants, but the ants that The separatist paradigm and the homogenizing used the path, the microbes in the soil, and the tendency that have taken over the globe through insects in and above the soil—all symbiotically colonialism, industry, and warfare have led us related to one another, affecting one another, and to believe that this is the only valid perspective. together supporting the continuity of life. If life Other perspectives and voices—Indigenous, can have such interspecies diversity that mutually spiritual, traditional—are still being silenced and supports the general survival of all, surely we invalidated. Our diversity as a species, however, could entertain the idea that we have intraspecies continues to find ways to survive and seeps into diversity for the same reason! our collective conscious.

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 29 system that was used to strip people of their family, language, knowledge, and connection to land and place. In that quest for safety, our cultures have survived and continue to do so. Traditional knowledge is still disseminated to future generations no matter how hard the separatist paradigm tries to eradicate it. The obvious mirror held up by creation and nature quietly persists, gently opening the eyes of our intuition little by little. Although it may seem unthinkable for some of us that a paradigm and worldview shift is possible, there are many examples that point to the contrary. There is space for voices to be heard and for Above: Fusion: I am the landscape; the landscape is me. High Atlas, Morocco. language like “biocultural diversity” Photo: Nejma Belarbi, 2011 to be created and disseminated. Sovereignty claimed by Indigenous Peoples and policies affirming the Historically, there are many cases in which Rights of Mother Nature and cultural and spiritual knowledge keepers fled to mountains and other relations with sacred natural sites are leading us remote places to avoid both persecution and all away from a separatist perspective that has now assimilation by colonizers or conquering cultures. run its course. In each generation there is a growing In my ancestral story, the Chluh people in North tendency to claim heritage and connection. The Africa barricaded in the mountains for centuries. creative force that unleashes our need for diversity In the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island, British and its ability to connect us and heal us from this Columbia, I heard stories from Elder Deb Modeste painful separation can be seen through the rising about how many Indigenous parents fled with their possibilities that prompt us to open our eyes to children to the mountains, and even across the U.S. nature’s obvious mirror. border, to protect them from the residential school

Nejma Belarbi, MSc, MH, is a North African–Canadian ethnobotanist and herbalist committed to researching and promoting humanity’s connections to the environment in all of its diversity. She is an advocate for initiatives that address traditional ecological knowledge protection and promote underrepresented voices and perspectives. Her work explores how traditional perceptions in medicine foster connections to the environment. Further Reading Buhner, S. H. (2002). The Lost Language of Plants: The Ecological Importance of Plant to Life on Earth. White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green.

Kimmerer, R. W. (2013). Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants. White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green.

King, R. (2010). People on the Move: An Atlas of Migration. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

Ruru, J. (2014). Tūhoe-Crown settlement – Te Urewera Act 2014. Maori Law Review. Retrieved from http://maorilawreview.co.nz/2014/10/tuhoe-crown-settlement-te-urewera-act-2014/

30 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 Text, photos, and drawings by Mariia Ermilova

TsurushibinaTsurushibinaA Traditional Japanese Craft Helps Maintain & Restore Biocultural Knowledge & People’s Connection with Nature

disasters also contributed to the development of a peculiar mix of spiritual reverence for nature and “Nature is painting for us, day after day, pictures of superstitious fear of it. infinite beauty if only we have the eyes to see them.” During the Heian period (794–1185), however, –John Ruskin urbanization and the consequent alienation from want to tell you the story of a Japanese craft rural nature gave rise to a “romanticized” and I that impressed me for its deep connection with “poetic” view of and affinity for nature among the the culture and customs of the people. As a regional aristocracy, which later spread to commoners. planning researcher, my attention was first drawn to One of the ways in which the commoners’ view of this craft because of its ability to forge local identity nature found expression is the tsurushibina craft. and contribute to the resilience of local communities. Tsurushibina translates as “hanging doll decoration.” Then I started practicing the craft myself—and, as I gradually learned the symbolic meaning of its The craft arose around the celebration of the elements, I began to feel that the practice might help important spring festival known as Hinamatsuri regain a lost connection with nature by revitalizing (Girls’ Day), which is held to pray for the health and traditional environmental knowledge. The craft happiness of girls. During the festival, the nobility seems to have a “biocultural code” inscribed in it, would exhibit expensive dolls that portrayed sitting which people can learn or relearn to read. figures of the Emperor, Empress, courtiers, and The roots of Japanese people’s relationship with musicians. As a more affordable way for commoners nature are found in Japan’s two main religions: to celebrate, mothers and grandmothers started Shintoism, which is close to shamanism, and using scraps of kimono silk to make small hanging , with its reverence for all living creatures. figures of plants, animals, and household items that Japan’s frequent exposure to terrible natural had a symbolic protective value for girls. In so doing, women also transmitted traditional knowledge Above: Sketch of a Japanese Shinto shrine. 2015 from one generation to the next.

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 31 From the Edo period (1603– 1868) on, the tsurushibina craft became a widespread tradition in , but it went into decline with the advent of the industrialization era, just like everything else considered to be “old-style.” It took a long period of economic crisis in Japan, starting in the early 1990s, along with a growing concern for environmental issues, to revive the craft. People started remembering the old Japanese concept of avoiding a wasteful use of resources, which was expressed in the word mottainai (translating Above: The Hinamatsuri Festival in Higashiizu, which attracts 900,000 more or less as “don’t waste”). Making tsurushibina visitors every year. Hanging doll decorations are displayed on the figures from silk scraps was in line with those stairs of the Shinto shrine along with the sitting dolls. 2017 environmental concerns, and the craft began to Below: A local shop at Izu-Inatori in Higashiizu sells ready-made flourish as a popular activity once again. tsurushibina ornaments and do-it-yourself materials for the craft, and provides tourists with a list of the symbolic protective meanings Today, a high level of economic development in of the most popular ornaments. 2017 Japan encourages people to save less and spend Bottom Left: Silk fabric scraps in a handicraft shop. 2017 more, but the tsurushibina tradition continues. As kimono silk, like all vintage materials, has Bottom Right: Learning the craft by myself by using a manual and materials from a handicraft shop. 2017 gone up in price, handicraft shops offer synthetic analogues of silk and instruction manuals for making tsurushibina ornaments. Paradoxically, the traditional tsurushibina craft has now become an expensive hobby for those who can afford the time and money to learn the craft from a master. Yet, the craft continues to transmit Japanese folk knowledge and wisdom about human-nature interactions to future generations.

My research brought me to Higashiizu town— one of the three places in Japan where the hanging

32 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 Top Left & Right: Tsurushibina craft ornaments in Higashiizu town, showcasing medicinal and edible plants as well as the local marine biodiversity. 2017 Bottom Left, Middle & Right: Drawing of a peach flower and a peach fruit ornament. Drawing of a red pepper ornament. 2017 doll ornament craft originated and developed a medicinal use, typical ornament motifs are also in a unique way. There I observed the Girls’ Day camellia, plum, and chrysanthemum. Festival and interviewed local craftspeople about The list of motifs also features edible plants the meaning of the craft. My observations led me such as bamboo shoot, turnip, radish, carrot, lotus to conclude that most of the fruits and vegetables root, pumpkin, mandarin orange, peach, plum, featured as motifs in the hanging decorations are strawberry, and persimmon. Many different commonly used in daily life and that plenty of them animals are also represented in tsurushibina motifs: have medicinal properties. clam, shrimp, red sea bream, flounder, kinmedai (or ) fish, boar, horse, mouse, rabbit, “Urbanization and the monkey, dog, pigeon, chicken, nightingale, crane, consequent alienation from swallow, white-eye, sparrow, owl, cicada, butterfly, rural nature gave rise to a frog, turtle, and others. ‘romanticized’ and ‘poetic’ view This huge variety of motifs is associated with of and affinity for nature.” distinctive symbolic meanings, which may be conveyed by physical characteristics such as color The main plant associated with the Girls’ Day or shape, or even by intangible connotations such as celebration is the peach tree. Flowers, seeds, fruits, wordplay. Let me give you some examples. and leaves of the peach tree are widely used in Chinese medicine (many elements of which were Color adopted into the Japanese herbal medicine system known as Kampo) for the purification of the female Tsurushibina decorations are dominated by the body and the treatment of various diseases. The color red, which is believed to repel evil spirits. most valued healing property of the peach seed Some of the ornamental elements are associated is its effect of promoting good blood circulation. with proverbs about the color of fall fruits, which In particular, it can be applied to treat scarce are supposed to bring health. One such proverb menstrual flow or even absence of menstruation goes: “When persimmons turn red, doctors turn in women. blue.” The season in which these fruits are eaten results in fewer patients, so that doctors worry Another good example is the red pepper. It keeps about losing their jobs and get pale faces. This insects off, so it is supposed to drive undesirable Japanese proverb has similarities with the English lovers away from young women. Among plants with one: “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.”

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 33 Top Left: Craftswoman Saito-san from Higashiizu shows a Girls’ Day Shape Festival altar in her house. The red color dominates. 2017 Top Inset: The red fish is akinmedai , or splendid alfonsino, A bifurcated radish (futamata daikon) has a considered an auspicious sign and used in celebrations. shape reminiscent of the the legs in a human Also visible is a red persimmon. 2017 body. Usually farmers do not eat such radishes Below: Bifurcated daikon radish. 2017 when they find them in their fields, but instead bring them to a roadside shrine, praying for healthy legs. In addition, the resemblance of a bifurcated radish to a woman’s body makes it a symbol of fertility. This kind of radish is called a “bride of Daikoku,” Daikoku being one of the seven lucky gods. Radish has a detoxifying property and is widely known for its beneficial effect on the human body. An old proverb says: “Eating pungent radish and drinking hot tea will leave starved doctors begging on their knees.” Clam shells are symbols of fidelity, as two valves make a unique match. Some of the animals—for example, owl and sparrow—have a round shape, a concept expressed by the word fuku, which sounds the same as the word for “good fortune” (also pronounced fuku).

34 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 Japan is a country in which contemporary culture and technology coexist with ancient rituals and superstitious religiosity. The practice of the tsurushibina craft expresses the creative power of nature and helps revive people’s connection with nature and with the places they live in. By both drawing inspiration from nature and drawing attention to nature, it has served and can continue to serve the purposes of environmental education, if only Wordplay people are willing to read the “biocultural code” in it Okada san, a local craftswoman of Higashiizu, told once again. me that plenty of symbolic meanings come from Japanese tales, proverbs, and forms of wordplay such as homophones, as in the case of fuku above. Commonly known as nandina, heavenly bamboo, or sacred bamboo, in Japan as well as in China the nanten plant symbolizes a sacred celebration. The sound of the plant’s name is homophonic with nan wo tenzuru, or “hardship reversal.” Additionally, the dried berries are used as a remedy for cough in traditional Chinese medicine, whereas tonics derived from the roots are used for eye conditions, flu, muscle pain, rheumatism, fever, and gastrointestinal illness. From my interviews with practitioners of the tsurushibina craft, I drew the impression that they do not consciously attach special importance to how knowledge about nature can be learned from this Top Left & Right: Drawings of the red berries of a nanten craft. They do reach into it unconsciously, however, plant, a common tsurushibina ornament, and of an ornament learning the protective symbolism of the figures representing the berries. 2017 while creating beautiful natural patterns. Above: Learning the craft in a local studio in Higashiizu town. 2017

Mariia Ermilova is pursuing a PhD degree in Landscape Planning at Chiba University’s Graduate School of Horticulture, Japan. Part of her research focuses on the links between arts and crafts and citizens’ knowledge and perception of their natural environs. As an artist, she sketches urban scenes and traditional Japanese crafts. Further Reading Kinunokai Tsurushi Bina Production Association. (2017). Welcome to Silk Association [Japanese]. Retrieved from http://www.kinunokai.com/ Land of the Huled Chicks. (2017). In Tsurushi Encyclopedia. Retrieved from http://www.tsurushi.jp/origin/index.html Mihara, N. (2009). Consideration about the Tsurushikazari Ornament: The Revival and Future of Hina Tsurushikazari Ornament [Japanese]. Tokyo Kasei University Museum Bulletin, 14, 133–149. Murguia, S. (2011). Hinamatsuri and the Japanese female: A critical interpretation of the Japanese Doll Festival. Journal of Asia Pacific Studies, 2(2), 231–247. Shirane, H. (2013). Japan and the Culture of the Four Seasons Nature, Literature, and the Arts. New York, NY: Columbia University Press.

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 35 Monocultures of the Fields, Monocultures of the Mind The Acculturation of Indigenous Farming Communities of Odisha, India

Kanna K. Siripurapu, Sabnam Afrein, after the language they speak, known as Kui loku, Kui enju, or Kuinga, which belongs to the Dravidian and Prasant Mohanty linguistic group.

he connection between agriculture and The agrarian Kandha community worships Tmajor festivals of India, traditionally and nature, and their main festivals are celebrated predominantly an agrarian society, is unmistakable. around agriculture and agro-biodiversity. The four The Indigenous agro-biodiversity and cultural main Kandha festivals all have a strong connection diversity of the Indian subcontinent likely co- and are directly linked with the crop-growing evolved over thousands of years in synchrony season and agricultural practices and with agro- and harmony with each other. The winds are biodiversity. The agriculture season opens with the fast changing, however, and there is a shift observation of the festival known as Podho Jatara in traditional culture and practices across the (or Meriah Jatara), followed in by Bihan Puja subcontinent, perhaps from the influence of (or occasionally Burlang Jatara), Tako Jatara, and globalization and aggressive industrialization of Anaka Jatara. the agriculture sector. Fortunately, a few pockets By and large, the Indigenous agricultural system of the subcontinent, inhabited predominantly by maintains the vestiges of the ancient shifting Indigenous communities, still retain remnants cultivation culture and practices and still follows a of the otherwise fast-eroding Indigenous agro- similar cycle. At the beginning of the cycle, people biocultural diversity. hold Podho Jatara. Podho Jatara is a communal event, This is the story of the agro-biocultural diversity of which is celebrated once in three to seven years by a the Kandha community, one of the main Indigenous group of six to seven neighboring villages that work communities of the eastern Indian state of Odisha, together to clear a patch of forest for cultivation. The India. The Kandha population is unevenly dispersed three- to seven-year cycle of the festival coincides across the state, with main concentration in the with the local shifting cultivation cycle. That cycle, central and southwestern regions of the state. The however, varies for different groups of villages, and word Kandha means “hillock,” a name given to these people by mainstream society. The members of this Above: A Kandha woman with the distinct facial tattoos of her community, however, prefer to identify themselves sub-group (Kutia Kandha). Photo: Sue Price, 2017

36 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 so does the celebration of Podho Jatara. As the villages livestock, or grains towards celebration of the usually are a large network of extended families who festival. The festival includes Indigenous rituals and are invited to participate in the celebrations, that animal sacrifice, usually the buffalo podho( meaning circumstance makes this festival an annual event for “buffalo” in the local Kui language), to satiate Dharani most of the villages. Penu. The celebration normally lasts three to four days, and a buffalo will be prepared for sacrifice. On Depending on the local seasonal pattern, Podho the first day, it will be taken on a procession around Jatara takes place in March or April, in anticipation all the participating villages. After the procession, the of the upcoming kharif season (agricultural season, during the monsoon period). Preparations for the buffalo will be brought to the host village, put on a celebration, however, happen much in advance. leash, and tied to the totem pole (Dharani Manda) The chieftains and priests of different villages come carved out of a huge log and usually standing right in together during the months of January and February the middle of every Kandha village. to talk about which fertile forest patches in the hills On the second day, residents of all the participating to choose for cultivation. The hills are locally called villages congregate at the host village. Guests gudia, hence the word gudia chaso (hill cultivation). are invited into the village, and a feast filled with After the decision is made on the hill to be chosen traditional music, songs, and dance follows. Guests and the patch of forest to be cleared for shifting are offered the local beer (called katul), which is cultivation, the village leaders will send a message to all the partner villages. Either the village chieftain brewed from little millet (Panicum sumatrense). or the priest takes the lead and decides which Both women and men relish katul, as it is believed rituals should be performed during the clearing of to be an amazing body coolant for this time of the forest vegetation and the following Podho Jatara year, which is the hottest season, heralding the celebration. The village priest performs a brief onset of summer. The festival also provides a crucial ritual at the forest patch selected for cultivation. A opportunity for socializing and for strengthening tiny earthen mound, called a terupapkoni, is erected, and reinforcing social bonds and social networks. and chicken are sacrificed to satiate Mother Earth, locally known as Dharani Penu.

The residents of all the participating villages share both the costs of the festival and the labor needed to clear the forested land. People donate money,

Above: Symbol of Dharani Penu (Mother Earth). Photo: Aditya Singhdeo, 2015 Right: Dharani Munda, the totem pole of Mother Earth. Photo: Aditya Singhdeo, 2015

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 37 of the buffalo are carried up the hill to the forest patch that has been selected for cultivation and are offered to Mother Earth. After satiating Mother Earth, the forest patch is cleared communally, and the land is prepared for cultivation before the advent of the monsoon season.

Following Podho Jatara is another communal festival, Bihan Puja (seed festival), celebrated in May or June, just before the inception of the sowing season. During the annual Bihan Puja, heirloom seeds are collected from every household of the village and deposited in one place, usually near the totem pole of Dharani Penu. The heirloom seeds thus collected are piled in a heap and mixed together. The heap is divided into equal parts, proportionate to the number of households present in the village. Above: Little millet beer served during a communal feast. Every household receives its share of heirloom Photo: Aditya Singhdeo, 2014 seeds, which the family will use for cultivation. There are many remarkable aspects of this During Podho Jatara, men play the traditional extraordinary festival: among others, it secures musical instruments, and both men and women heirloom seed availability for every household sing duets, which are as follows: of the village, it helps in conservation of the Indigenous agro-biodiversity, and it reinforces Men: “Oh! My dear brothers and sisters and social bonding. The equal-sharing mechanism everyone, please come together; let’s go, let’s go and prepare the land, together.” “The agrarian Kandha Women: “Yes! Let’s go, let’s go… let’s prepare!” community worships nature, Men: “Oh! My dear brothers and sisters and and their main festivals are everyone, please come together, let’s give Mother Earth celebrated around agriculture the presents of food, grains, chicken, beer, and wine.” and agro-biodiversity.”

Women: “Yes! Let’s give, let’s give to Mother Earth!” ensures that every household receives the same amount of heirloom seeds regardless of the amount Men: “Oh! Mother Earth, we are neither rich nor a person contributes, and nobody is deprived of affluent; we are poor and can’t offer you expensive gifts every year. So, we offer you the gift of a buffalo, seeds, thereby ensuring food security for the entire food, and wine once in three to seven years; please village. In some instances, when a person develops accept our gift, and protect our seeds and crops and an improved seed variety, that variety too will be bless us with the bounty of harvest.” distributed among the entire village through the equal-sharing arrangement, thus improving and Women: “Oh! Mother earth!!” conserving the Indigenous agro-biodiversity. The entire village is served a feast with traditional food After two days of feast filled with traditional food, (usually of millets and both cultivated and wild drink, music, and dance, the buffalo is sacrificed, yam and leafy veggies), country beer of little millet, and its blood is offered to Mother Earth and to water and country wine prepared from the flowers of the bodies located in and around the village. Residents mahua tree (Mahua longifolia). of all the participating villages receive small amounts of buffalo blood, which they will carry back Burlang Jatara is a similar festival, but celebrated and offer to Mother Earth and water bodies in their only occasionally at a much larger scale by a respective villages. Both the carcass and the blood group of villages. Burlang Jatara (burlang meaning

38 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 “punnet,” or small basket for fruit and vegetables, in the local language) is celebrated only during a large-scale seed deficit or an unexpected natural calamity due to which heirloom seeds are lost in the entire region. Several villages come together as a group to celebrate this festival, during which they will display and exchange heirloom seeds. The festival usually lasts for over a week. The host village will be selected by the chieftains, and a message will be sent to all the neighboring villages. Both men and women arrive at the host village in Top: Kandha women performing a traditional dance during the a procession, usually men playing the Indigenous Burlang Jatara celebrations. Photo: Aditya Singhdeo, 2013 musical instruments and women carrying different Inset: Villagers guarding the cache of seeds deposited during varieties of Indigenous heirloom seeds encased in Burlang Jatara. Photo: Aditya Singhdeo, 2014 small, decorated earthen pots or punnets.

The host villagers invite their guests with are worshipped for the entire week. While the merriment. Country beer brewed from little community is engaged in socializing, the chieftains millet is served, and a weeklong feast filled with stand guard over the cache of seeds, to protect them traditional food, music, songs, and dance follows. from potential damage or theft. At the culmination Women arriving from different villages carry of the festival, heirloom seeds are exchanged and different heirloom seeds and place them together distributed among the participants; amid dance and at a single spot, usually an elevated stage specially music, guests leave for their respective villages with built for that purpose. The containers with seeds seeds to start the cropping season.

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 39 The next main Indigenous festival is Tako Jatara (millets) and pulses that had been grown under the (tako meaning “mango seed” locally), which is Indigenous millet-based mixed farming systems. celebrated in September or October. This festival Instead, they adopted monocultures of rice, hybrid marks the harvest of Indigenous maize, millet, and maize, and cotton. certain strains of Indigenous rice, also known locally as the “early harvest.” The panicles of Indigenous The Kandha communities have also started to barnyard millet (Echinochloa frumentacea), little shy away from celebrating Indigenous festivals and millet, and maize are collected. The festival involves from consuming the traditional katul beer. The shift the performance of traditional rituals including in the Indigenous culture is due partly to the notion prayers, sacrifice of chicken, and offerings of millet, that such practices have become redundant after rice, yam, and katul beer to Dharani Penu. The the government started supplying high-yielding festival concludes amid music and feasting for the varieties of grains, and partly to the feeling that entire village. their Indigenous crops and cultural practices are inferior or against the precepts of the newly adopted “The festival… provides a crucial religion. The prevalence of an inferiority complex among the Kandha community in relation to their opportunity for socializing biocultural diversity is a consequence of the doctrine and for strengthening and imposed on them by the government’s Agriculture reinforcing social bonds and Department officials, according to which Indigenous social networks.” agro-biodiversity and agricultural practices produce inferior yields, and also promoted by pastors, who The last main Indigenous festival is Anaka Jatara preach that Indigenous biocultural practices are (anaka meaning “squash” or “bottle gourd” locally), contrary to the teachings of the Holy Bible. which is celebrated in January or February. The festival marks the “late harvest” of crops of different The contributions of Indigenous farmers to varieties of pulses and lentils. At this time, the conservation of agro-biodiversity are unparalleled, siali shrub (Bauhinia vahlii) also comes to fruiting. yet they are downplayed and ignored by so-called Considered a local delicacy, siali pods are roasted scholars and professionals. For instance, the and the seeds consumed. Like the other Indigenous International Rice Research Institute has produced festivals, Anaka Jatara is celebrated communally only two strains of rice after fifty years of continuous and centers around agriculture. Pods of different research. On the other hand, research has shown pulses and lentils are offered to Dharani Penu that Indigenous farmers of India have produced wrapped in siali leaves, and katul is served to the nearly 400,000 strains of rice, suitable to different entire village in a container made from dried anaka. local agro-climatic conditions, cultures, and cuisines. Music and a communal feast conclude the festival. Despite its immeasurable socio-cultural, economic, and ecological benefits, the biocultural diversity of the Kandha community is under serious threat from the invasion of industrial agriculture and religious conversions. Many villages have abandoned the Indigenous crops and festivals. People recount that Indigenous rice varieties such as jadumanisaru, nagelsuan, tinguna, sires (aromatic rice), kuiska (aromatic rice with large panicles), and so forth, which were cultivated some thirty years ago, have become extinct locally, replaced by the high- yielding varieties of nabin, sarathi, lalat, and jajati rice strains promoted by the government under the state-supported Large-size Adivasi Multi-Purpose Co-operative Societies. Many Kandha villages gave Above: Offerings to Dharani Penu (Mother Earth): little millet beer in up cultivation of the Indigenous coarse grains earthen jars, millet and rice on siali leaves. Photo: Aditya Singhdeo, 2014

40 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 Yet, despite their incomparable success and the different types of corn, black sesame, wild berries, crucial role they have played as conservationists, a lot more variety of wild meat and many more, but plant breeders, and sentinels of agro-biodiversity, today rice has become the staple food of tribes and Indigenous farmers are still considered as ignorant rural communities and meat of poultry chicken has and as passive recipients of aid by modern-day replaced wild meats.” agricultural extension officers and professionals. Much of this is the result of the top-down formal agricultural education and research system of “Heirloom seeds… are piled in a India, which considers farmers as recipients heap and mixed together. ... Every rather than as equal partners in conservation and household receives its [equal] improvement of the indigenous agro-biodiversity. share of… seeds, which the family The increased industrialization and top-down will use for cultivation.” approach of the agriculture sector in India has led to not only to the alienation of farmers and the curtailment of their rights, but also to a significant It is a complex situation with many actors and reduction in the indigenous agro-biodiversity and to factors actively at play, and we need to learn increased dependency on just a few plant varieties more about the value of Kandha agro-biocultural to meet food and fiber needs—a trend scholars term diversity and the impending threats it is facing. “genetic erosion.” But it may be safe to say that action is urgently needed to protect this rich and diverse biocultural This genetic erosion, caused by the erosion of system, which has served the Kandha community biocultural diversity as a result of aggressive so well for generations, from the homogenizing industrialization of the agriculture sector and forces of acculturation. promotion of pervasive monocultures, has far- reaching consequences. A study conducted by Acknowledgements: We warmly thank the Azim Premji University, India, suggests that a residents of Betabadi, Tidipadhar, Ghumuragaon, changing food culture could be the cause of an and Baliapani villages of Tumudibandha block, increase in malnutrition among the tribes and Kandhamal district, Odisha, India, for offering their rural communities of India. The study found that precious time and hospitality, sharing valuable half a decade ago the diet of rural communities in information, and providing insights into their India included “pearl millet, barley, twenty types of incredible culture and knowledge, without which it green leaves, bamboo shoots, tubers, beaten rice, would have been impossible for us to write this article.

Kanna K. Siripurapu, Sabnam Afrein, and Prasant Mohanty are affiliated with NIRMAN (http://www.nirmanodisha. org/), a nonprofit that works to promote the sustainable development of marginalized agrarian, tribal/Indigenous, and forest- dwelling communities in India, particularly their food and livelihood security. At NIRMAN, Kanna is Program Manager, Sabnam is a Program Associate, and Prasant is a founding member and the current Secretary cum Executive Director. Further Reading Anand, C. (2016). Changing food culture could be cause of malnutrition: Research. The Hindu. Retrieved from http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/Changing-food-culture-could-be-cause-of-malnutrition-Research/ article14505988.ece Kumar N. A., Nambi, V. A., Rani, M. G., King, E. D. I. O., Chaudhury, S. S., & Mishra, S. (2015). Community agro biodiversity conservation continuum: An integrated approach to achieve food and nutrition security. Current Science, 109(3), 474. Nautiyal, S., Bisht, V., Rao, K. S., & Maikhuri, R. K. (2008). The role of cultural values in agrobiodiversity conservation: A case study from Uttarakhand, Himalaya. Journal of Human Ecology, 23(1), 1–6. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Research and Training Institute. (2013). Kandha. Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India: Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes Research and Training Institute. Singh, A. (2017). Revisiting the status of cultivated plant species agrobiodiversity in India: An Overview. Proceedings of the Indian National Science Academy, 83(1), 151–174. doi:10.16943/ptinsa/2016/v82/48406

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 41 Text by Zubair Torwali Photos by Aftab Ahmad BahadarBahadar ’s ’s AlmanacAlmanac

and is more authentic. Like him, a majority of other Oral Tradition in Torwali farmers in the of northern Pakistan continue to consult Bahadar’s system for Northern Pakistan cultivation and harvesting. Makes People Resilient Besides, there are a number of oft-told legendary and Prepared for stories about the authenticity of Bahadar’s almanac. One such story goes as follows:

Natural Disasters “The father of Syed Jamal, a man named Sher, was once ploughing his field. It was a mid-summer hen I still used to lend a hand in the fields to day, and Sher was sowing his maize crop in Gurnal Wmy father, now 78, he would refer to a certain |ɡurna:l| village. In the afternoon, Bahadar went to guy, Bahadar |bahadər|, for his oral traditions about him and advised him not to sow more maize in the the right weather for sowing and harvesting. At that field because, according to Bahadar’s calculations, the time, I was in college and was familiar with the time for sowing had ended that very afternoon. Sher Gregorian calendar, which was commonly known did not accept his claim and kept up sowing the field. as Angrezi (English calendar) in our community. My Bahadar told him to divide the field into two portions father always ignored the Gregorian calendar and with some fencing, according to the time of sowing preferred Bahadar’s oral almanac to it. before and after noon on that day. He added that Sher would see that the maize crop sown in the afternoon Now I no longer help out with farming and work that day would not ripen, whereas the other portion at my office instead, where we always use the of the field would have a ripe crop. At the timeof Gregorian calendar. This system is now the official harvest in early fall, people really saw that the maize calendar of Pakistan and is popular in offices, as it crop sown before noon that day in summer was ripe marks working days and public holidays. while the other portion sown after noon was not.” But even today, my father does not follow the popular Pakistani almanac called Jantry in . He Above: The beautiful village of Gurnal nestled on the side of a hill says that Bahadar’s almanac is ahead of the Jantry in the Swat District of northern Pakistan. 2017

42 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 Bahadar died about a hundred years ago. He “Bahadar knew there was a day in the summer when lived all his life in Gurnal, a beautiful village on the stones would get softer. Once he was able to thrust a hills about eight kilometers to the east of Bahrain pickaxe into a boulder at that particular time, as the town in Swat, in the heartland of the Torwali boulder was soft enough to be penetrated by a pickaxe. people. Bahadar belonged to one of the four Later, the stone hardened again, and the pickaxe Torwali clans, Bahadar Khel. He had no education remained stuck in there. Bahadar told the people that he at all. He could not read or write, but people say would be able to extract the pickaxe at that particular it was as if he had some magical knowledge about time on that particular day the following summer. He the changes in weather and seasons. People saw waited until that day and pulled the pickaxe out of the him like a saint. boulder when it became softened again.” Bahadar had several followers from his family “[Bahadar] could not read or and clan. In addition to devising the almanac, he and his fellows designed a strategy for the write, but people say it was distribution of irrigation water to the village’s as if he had some magical fields. This system is still in use today and seems to knowledge about the changes work very well for the village. in weather and seasons. People For a long time, I was curious to learn about saw him like a saint.” Bahadar’s almanac. Finally, in September 2017, at “Bahadar could predict a ‘good year’—a year good the time of Sul |sʊl| (or Suel |sʊel|) according to for crops and cattle—or drought. He used to put ashes the almanac, I traveled to Gurnal to meet the elders outside in the open air at night at the beginning of and find out from them about Bahadar and his spring. By reading some signs in the ashes, he would amazing Indigenous knowledge. In Gurnal I met tell people that the coming year would either be a with a number of elders. Among them, I interviewed productive year or one of drought.” This would help Wakmadar, 75; Muhammad Siraj, 85; Muhammad people prepare for the drought. They would then look Rasool Khan, 70; and Muhammad Sharif, 64. All for means other than crops to ensure food security. four confirmed the stories I had heard. They also added more stories about Bahadar’s genius. All Bahadar could also forecast weather and seasons. these stories tell of his keen observations and deep As I will explain below, the periods of Sul, Gup |ɡʊp|, knowledge of the weather and seasons from an and others were days of heavy rain. Bahadar would Indigenous perspective. tell people that they should take care of their herds as heavy rain was expected. People would listen to him and thus were prepared for these kinds of disasters.

Below Left: Zubair interviewing Gurnal elders Muhammad Rasool Khan, “One bright sunny day, Bahadar was passing by Muhammad Sharif, and Muhammad Siraj. 2017 a group of people who were cutting grass from the Below Right: Zubair interviewing Gurnal Elder Wakmadar. 2017 grasslands adjoining their cultivated land. The

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 43 Above: A view of Gurnal village showing the forests behind it. 2017 in particular, and in the entire Torwali heartland in general, people still largely follow Bahadar’s system people were having a Hashar—a feast-like collective for cultivating and harvesting their fields. work party, when people help one another during According to my interviewees, Bahadar’s seasonal harvest and other similar occasions. Although it calendar has nine months, and each month is was a sunny day, Bahadar told the farmers to stop comprised of forty days. Beside these months, there cutting more grass and start collecting the cut grass are special periods like Gup and Sul. There are two instead, so as to save it from the likely heavy rain. Gup periods: one falls in summer, whereas the People followed his advice only reluctantly, because other is in winter. The one that falls in summer is they saw no sign of rain in the sky. But after some called Basha si Gup |bəʂa si ɡʊp| (Summer Gup) time there came heavy rain with thunder. So exact and the other is called Himaan si Gup |hima:n si was Bahadar in his forecast!” ɡʊp| (Winter Gup). When the Summer Gup passes, “One time Bahadar told the people in Gurnal that it the heat of summer begins to subside, and the was the first day of spring. The people mocked him, as season turns toward winter; and when the Winter Gurnal was still covered with snow. When the people Gup passes, the cold of winter begins to diminish, did not accept his claim, he told them to go to Manko, and the season turns toward summer. a village along the between the towns of In Bahadar’s almanac there are two similar periods Bahrain and Madyan, and see that a wild apricot in spring and fall. They are the periods of Sul or Suel. had bloomed there. A couple of men did go there and One is at the beginning of spring, whereas the other found that what Bahadar had told them was true.” is at the beginning of fall. In spring, Sul comes at the start of the month of Chaiter |cetɘr| (Chaitra); in Bahadar’s system helped people cultivate their fall, it comes at the end of the month of Pasheekal fields according to the exact weather. They would |pəʃi:ka:l| (Sawan). In both cases, before the Sul, the also be well prepared for natural disasters and weather becomes crazy for a few days. These rainy famines. Through Bahadar’s astronomy, people days are called Charmaqaq |cərməqəq|. could plan ahead and also keep their herds safe. People would also choose when to travel to the My interviewees also gave me another version of highlands following Bahadar’s forecast. In Gurnal Bahadar’s seasonal calendar. This twelve-months

44 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 Nine-Month Version of Twelve-Month Version of Bahadar’s Seasonal Calendar Bahadar’s Seasonal Calendar Season Name Duration Season Name Duration 1 Chaiter 40 days 1 Landai ahahat 2 months 2 Beesakh 40 days 2 1st Sala (Spin Sala) 2 months 3 Ahahat 40 days 3 2nd Sala (Tor Sala) 2 months 4 Jat 40 days 4 Chaiter & Beesakh 2 months 5 Pasheekal 40 days 5 Ghan ahahat 2 months 6 Bhado 40 days 6 Pasheekal 2 months 7 Aso 40 days 8 1st Sala 40 days 9 2nd Sala 40 days Background Image: Another view of Gurnal village. 2017

version is equally divided into six winter and six In spring, at the beginning of the irrigation season, summer months. The two versions of the calendar the four clans do a toss to establish who gets the first, are shown in the box above. second, third, and fourth turn. Once this is done, turns rotate, so whoever was first becomes last, the Bahadar’s system for the distribution of irrigation second becomes first, and so on. The rotating turn is water in Gurnal, which is still practiced in the village, followed regularly, giving each clan the opportunity is based on the royalty from the forest, a payment to irrigate at different times of day. the government makes to the owners of the forest. The village of Gurnal and its forest are divided into twenty-four “rupees”—a rupee being a unit “Thanks to [Bahadar’s] system representing one share. Each of the village’s four of water distribution there clans owns six shares, and each is entitled to a one- are no feuds or fighting over day (twenty-four-hour) share of water from the main turns for watering the fields. … irrigation channel. This share is in turn subdivided Everybody’s field gets the needed into three shares among the families of each clan. Each day (twenty-four hours) is divided into the irrigation water and they have following periods of time, during each of which three a good yield every year.” families can water their fields simultaneously: When I was conducting the interviews, I saw Zaad |ʑa:d|: from the dawn Azaan—Muslim call elders who were gathered to distribute the for prayers—to seven in the morning irrigation water in the village. They were actually Kharen Pheet |kʰeɾen pʰiʈ|: from seven in the monitoring whether anybody deviated from the morning to nine in the morning rule. They told me that thanks to this ancient system of water distribution there were no feuds or fighting Maidan |mɛda:n|: from nine in the morning to over turns for watering the fields. They told me that the midday Azaan this way everybody’s field gets the needed irrigation water and that they have a good yield every year. Sari |sɘri:|: From the midday Azaan to Asar Azaan—the afternoon call for prayers It seems that Bahadar made keen observations of the sun and stars for years, and based on his Zek pheet |ʑik pʰiʈ|: from Asar Azaan to Esha observations, he orally developed this system. The Azaan—the late evening call for prayers skyline toward the west in Gurnal is very clear. Bahadar fixed various points along this skyline Zaat |ʑa:t|: from Esha Azaan to the dawn Azaan along the hill for the position of the sun. Based

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 45 Above: The western skyline as seen from Gurnal village. The sun sets to villagers water their crops in a timely fashion while the left in winter and to the right in summer. This is the skyline Bahadar would have observed for many years to design his oral almanac. 2017 preventing any water disputes. By now, Bahadar’s almanac has been in use as on these points and on the rising of stars, he built a guide to cultivation and harvesting for over 150 this invaluable Indigenous knowledge system that years. Younger generations of farmers follow this for generations has supported the local people’s system, too, as it is always passed on to them by their resilience against natural disasters and has helped elders. So, this extraordinary example of Indigenous them meet their daily food needs, which are mainly knowledge is likely to continue to support people’s dependent on livestock and agriculture. His system resilience for generations to come. of irrigation water distribution has helped the

Zubair Torwali hails from Bahrain, Swat District, the Switzerland of Pakistan. He is a researcher, author, protector of minority languages; social, cultural, civil society and activist; writer, columnist, blogger, journalist, and voice for the rights of all the marginalized linguistic communities of northern Pakistan. Aftab Ahmad is a young Torwali researcher who lives in Bahrain Swat and has an interest in the landscapes of northern Pakistan. Further Reading Shah, D. (2013). Torwali is a language. Himāl South Asian. Retrieved from http://himalmag.com/torwali-is-a-language/ Torwali, Z. (2016). Reversing language loss through an identity based educational planning: The case of . Eurasian Journal of , 1(2), 23–39. Torwali, Z. (2015). The ignored Dardic culture of Swat. Journal of Languages and Culture, 6(5), 30–38. doi:10.5897/ JLC2015.0308 Torwali, Z. (2017). The Torwali language and its new Android keyboard. Google in Asia. Retrieved from https://www.blog.google/topics/google-asia/torwali-language-and-its-new-android-keyboard/ Torwali, Z. (2015). Muffled Voices: Longing for a Pluralist and Peaceful Pakistan. Lahore, Pakistan: Multi Line.

46 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 Text by Viveca Mellegård Photos by Pernilla Malmer

How Karen Farming Saved a Forest in Thailand and its Poetry Changed International Policy With words & lived experience of members of the HtaHtaKaren Community of Hin Lad Nai and input from Pernilla Malmer “Live with the water, care for the river, live with Cu t’ hpiv hkauf t’ maz, htif pgaz taj kwaj blav. trees, care for the forest. Live with the fish, care for the spawning grounds, live with the frog, care for the cliff.” “Hand won’t pick up, the foot doesn’t work: when seeing others’ things, just watching.” (By contrast, ―Karen proverb monkeys will pinch and pilfer belongings, given hen Prasert Trakansuphakon talks about half the chance.) Wrotational farming, he uses the language The language of hta and the knowledge system of hta: the poetry, stories, and songs told by the expressed in it have also helped the Karen people to Indigenous Karen people of northern Thailand. protect not only their ways of living and livelihoods Wrapped into the rhymes and tales of the hta is but also the forest they rely upon at international, a collective knowledge system that incorporates national, and local levels. memories and observations based on everyday life experiences. In particular, hta reflect the Trakansuphakon goes to international conferences rich knowledge that Karen people have of their to tell hta of a Karen tribe called the Pgakenyaw to surrounding environment, especially of the variety scientists and policy makers. His stories focus of wild and domesticated plants and animals. on one small Pgakenyaw community of twenty-five households, called Hin A hta about gibbons characterizes them as Lad Nai, nestled in the lush forest gentle animals, in the local tongue of the Hin Lad of Chiang Rai Province. Nai community:

Below: A large sign at the entrance to the village sets out the regulations by which Hin Lad Nai community lives. 2014.

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 47 This community follows the rituals embedded in the hta at each stage of the village’s rotational farming system. The practices of rotational farming and indeed all of everyday life are imbued with Karen cultural and spiritual values, knowledge, and wisdom, all of which find expression in their songs, poems, and stories. But what the Karen are doing is illegal in Thailand. For many decades, they were accused of using what was seen as a primitive, destructive, “slash-and- burn” form of agriculture. National policies divided the Thai landscape into either forest or permanent agriculture and classified rotational farmers as “ethnic minorities,” whose traditional practices were prohibited. At the same time, in the 1960s and 1970s, other pressures were building, pushing the farmers to leave their lands: logging concessions, commercial plantations, conservation projects, dam- and road-building, and waves of resettlement—both of farmers forced out and of others moving in. But the Hin Lad Nai villagers and many other Karen communities displayed unshakable faith in their culture, which is intimately linked to their rotational farming system. Determined to prove that their system was sustainable and resilient knowledge,” says Pernilla Malmer, senior advisor on for both people and ecosystems, they and other agriculture and biodiversity for SwedBio, a program communities reliant on the forest for home, food, working as a knowledge interface between science, and spiritual practices spent decades protesting policy, and practice for resilience and development logging concessions issued by the Thai government. at the Stockholm Resilience Centre. In spite of their protests, the Hin Lad Nai community saw their forest cut down in the 1980s. Finally, Malmer met Trakansuphakon for the first time however, in 1989 the Thai government decided to in 2012, during a unique dialogue in Guna Yala, stop granting logging concessions in their area. Panama that brought together scientists and Indigenous communities to share their different “Underpinning the hta is kinds of knowledge. This dialogue took place directly an understanding that land before the meeting in Panama City that established and people are entwined the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), an international body and interdependent that, as a part of its mandate, acknowledges and throughout time.” respects Indigenous and local knowledge.

Immediately, the villagers of Hin Lad Nai decided Htof loo auf seifsaf, pgazk’nyau loo auf buwa. to start regenerating their destroyed forest in the only way they knew how: by practicing the Karen “Birds find fruits, humans find white rice.” rotational farming system. Within that system, As practiced in Hin Lad Nai, rotational farming they would protect their land against wildfires and involves starting a new field of rice mixed with illegal hunting and let the trees grow and the wild vegetable crops that is cultivated for a short period animals return and thrive again.

“The Hin Lad Nai community was so genuinely Above: A young woman from Hin Lad Nai in search of supper strong and committed in mobilizing their traditional greens in the now lush forest. 2014.

48 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 of one year. The field is then allowed to fallow for a but also biodiversity conservation. Social–ecological long period, with nothing sown or added to the land knowledge, practices, and advice are carried by songs for between seven and ten years. that the elders pass down through the generations. During the first- and second-year fallows, grasses “Land and forest never end if we know how to take and tree saplings take hold, among which animals care of and use them,” says Chai Prasert Phokha, like wild boar and barking deer can hide. Also Hin Lad Nai’s current community leader, quoting hidden among the grasses and young trees are taro, what his grandfather told him. It is not enough to yam, chili, eggplant, rattan shoots, sweet potato, preserve and protect the forest, he explains. You cassava, lemongrass, ginger, galangal—plenty for also need to know how to use it to get food and both animals and humans to eat. By the seventh- income from it, while conserving it for your own year fallow, when the trees have grown tall and children and grandchildren. the grasses no longer provide enough shelter, wild boar and barking deer are replaced by monkeys Today, the lush forest around Hin Lad Nai makes and macaques, which take residence in the trees. it nearly impossible to imagine how completely it An abundance of plants that the Karen harvest for was destroyed by loggers in the 1970s and 1980s. medicinal uses—such as ya kaiv muj to treat diabetes At that time, what was left of the forest was sparse and hpau pgaj laj to help women with post-partum and silent. Frequent wildfires raged through the few recovery—also grow during the seventh fallow. remaining patches of vegetation. The inhabitants of All the while, farmers and other community Hin Lad Nai came together to decide on next steps. members walk through the fallows and harvest They agreed to create a firebreak all around their what they need. Year in and year out, they live with community area and took turns keeping watch. the shifting cycles of growth. They also started protecting their territories against illegal loggers and hunters and formulated their N’mei yuj yaz laiz soo quv, cau av k’laz htof lwij bu. community rules for forest management. “Whenever you miss me, go to the swidden field Slowly, the forest recovered. In 1992, however, and you will see the wood pigeon who is my spirit.” the Thai government decided to make the entire area into a park (now named Khun Jae National When the farmers select the fallow area they Park and standing at 270 square kilometres). want to cultivate next, they perform rituals based The government ordered the communities in the on customary laws or taboos. They believe that, planned park area to leave. after letting the field regenerate as fallow, the land belongs to the spirits of the goddess of the doo lax, land that has been fallow for a full cycle of seven to ten years and is ready for cultivation. They must ask the goddess for permission. Bad omens may be the sighting or sound of inauspicious birds or the barking sound of deer. Or one of the farmers may have a nightmare about fire or flooding the night before selecting the plot, which means the goddess refuses permission to cultivate the land. If there is no sign from the goddess that she refuses, that means that the spirits of that fallow give the farmer the right to cultivate the plot that year.

Underpinning the hta is an understanding that land and people are entwined and interdependent throughout time. The hta contain lessons that foster not only food security and sustainable livelihoods,

Right: An offering place in the woods along the path to the fields. 2014.

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 49 Instead, the Karen people drew strength from Crucially, whereas Thai law banned rotational their philosophy and banded together with other farming, the report highlighted the benefits of the affected ethnic groups in the country to fight for Karen knowledge system and worldview, centrally their rights to live in the forest. They staged protests including rotational farming and the spiritual and under the banner of the Northern Farmers Network cultural beliefs that are deeply embedded in it. In so and as part of the national-level Assembly of the doing, the report confirmed that Karen practices are Poor network. The Hin Lad Nai community won the beneficial to biodiversity, prevent wildfires and soil right to stay on their land. Their area would become erosion, and contribute to developing new sources a border area to the park. of income and to sparking innovation. Malmer points out that Hin Lad Nai is a prime example of how Indigenous organizations wage on- the-ground battles by harnessing global developments. By following international processes, such as the UNFCCC, IPBES, or the Convention on Biological Diversity, communities can bring the outcomes back home and demand that their local, regional, and national governments implement them.

In 2010, Hin Lad Nai achieved another victory when it became one of four Thai villages identified as a Special Cultural Zone. In effect, this classification overturned the national government’s criminalization of rotational farming by recognizing that the system works in beneficial ways. The practice is now protected Above: View from the balcony: the library next to the school in the neatly under Thailand’s Ministry of Culture’s maintained village of Hin Lad Nai. 2014. list of .

N’mei yuj yaz kwaj seif klauz; seif klauz cau cu lauj Meanwhile, in 1994 Thailand ratified the United of htau. Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). In signing on, the government committed “Whenever you miss me, look at the pruned trees; to protecting its forests, but it also had to begin to they are the mark of the work of my hand.” recognize what Indigenous Peoples do to protect their forests and how they adapt to and contribute Only three decades after logging decimated the to countering climate change. forest, eighty percent of the forested area (some 3,000 hectares) has regenerated. The villagers Encouraged by the government’s new obligations cultivate several hundred hectares within the forest towards its Indigenous Peoples under the UNFCCC, and can choose from more than two hundred edible Hin Lad Nai villagers joined other civil society plant species that are abundant. In addition to being organizations to initiate a study to measure their close to complete self-sufficiency, the community carbon footprint. The research reported that also has cash income from harvesting honey and tea their consumption levels and emissions of carbon from the now flourishing forest. dioxide were far below the carrying capacity of And yet, ironically, their very success in restoring their natural resources. the forest and reinvigorating their community

50 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 through interventions that have enhanced the whole social–ecological system might come back to haunt them. A new threat has arisen from an effort to extend stronger levels of national park protection to Hin Lad Nai, including the regenerated forest area. The community faces strict regulation of rotational farming, still considered illegal by some of Thailand’s government agencies—for example, the Ministry of Environment— and possible eviction from their land. This time, there are strong foundations for Indigenous Peoples to support one another in pushing back and negotiating with governmental authorities. Both IPBES and the Convention on Biological Above: Taking a break in a resting hut in the fields during an exchange visit to Hin Lad Nai. Once out of use, the hut’s biodegradable materials will Diversity embody the value of the collapse and return to the soil. 2014. knowledge, practices, and beliefs of these groups. The UN Rapporteur on Human Rights and Environment published a report in March Crossing borders and scales, voices that might not 2017 on human rights and biodiversity, affirming that be heard when speaking close to home come through they are mutually supportive. Global platforms and sounding loud and clear on the international stage instruments, such as the UN resolution, that validate and echo back—this time at a higher volume and the way Hin Lad Nai, and communities like it, manage with greater force—into the ears of government. ecosystems will serve as powerful allies in the new Will the government listen? battle to stay on their land.

Viveca Mellegård started her career at the BBC, training to become a documentary director. At the Stockholm Resilience Centre, she uses film and photography to investigate the tacit knowledge and skills embedded in craftsmanship. She realizes creative projects that help capture and make visible the complexities of a resilience approach to development. Pernilla Malmer is Senior Advisor with SwedBio at the Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm University, Sweden. She holds an MSc in Agricultural Economics.. Further Reading/Viewing AIPP, IWGIA, NDF, & NORAD. (2012). Climate Change, Trees and Livelihood: A Case Study on the Carbon Footprint of a Karen Community in Northern Thailand. Retrieved from http://unfccc.int/resource/docs/2012/smsn/ngo/240.pdf Community of Hin Lad Nai, Thailand, & SwedBoi. (2016). Mobilizing Traditional Knowledge, Innovations and Practices in Rotational Farming for Sustainable Development. Stockholm Resilience Centre Report. Retrieved from http://swed.bio/reports/report/mobilizing-traditional-knowledge-innovations-and-practices-in-rotational-farming-for- sustainable-development/ SwedBio. (2017). Indigenous Community Research Contributes to Policy Development and Enhanced Ecosystem Governance. Retrieved from http://swed.bio/news/indigenous-community-research-contributes-to-policy-development- and-enhanced-ecosystem-governance/ Tengö, M., Hill, R., Malmer, P., Raymond, C. M., Spierenburg, M., Danielsen, F., ... & Folke, C. (2017). Weaving knowledge systems in IPBES, CBD and beyond: Lessons learned for sustainability. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 26–27, 17–25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2016.12.005 Virus Film [Screen name]. (2016, October 1). The making of rotational farming workshop: Host by Hin Lad Nai Village [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BRqR1m8jL0&feature=youtu.be

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 51 Jennifer McRuer StoryStory MapMap Youth Reconnect to Place and Biocultural Heritage in Colombia

e are all stories…of connec- Wtion, separation, dependence, interdependence, shaped by places, people, memories, perceptions, and dreams. How we connect with the places we call “home” is the essence of this photo essay—particularly, how biological and cultural relationships contribute to our well-being, and how our relationships inform common visions for a sustainable future.

Our relationships with place have never been more in need of explicit attention and expression. Climate change. Deforestation. Overfishing. bleaching. Pollution. Growing inequities. Despite their origin, such issues touch all corners of the earth, all depths of the oceans, all strata of the sky, and all dimensions of the human and non-human experience and spirit. We are living in a time of dire human-driven Above: A protected area surrounding Isla Grande aims to conserve marine habitats, natural change, causing pervasive threats resources, and cultural values. However, a disharmony between nature and culture persists to biological and cultural diversity. through rapid tourism development, water pollution, dwindling fish stocks, mangrove deforestation, coral erosion, changing traditional practices, industrial resource use, and But there is hope. By reconnecting economic disparity. The Isla Grande community is committed to conserving ancestral with place, we can forge new territories and strengthening biocultural connections. Map: Luisa Ramirez, 2016. directions toward regeneration. Modified and reproduced with map author’s permission.

This photo essay describes the efforts of Colombian youth to share their youth telling this narrative, is Isla Grande—a small island in the stories of biocultural heritage, well- Caribbean Sea of Colombia. Over generations, the Isla Grande being, and sustainability, expressing community has continuously shaped, and been shaped by, relations what it means to call a place “home.” with the surrounding coral reef, mangrove lagoons, and dry forest Home, for the six Afro-Colombian landscapes. The community’s knowledge, innovations, and practices

52 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 are thus entangled with territory, biological diversity, cultural and spiritual values—that is, people’s “collective biocultural heritage.” Existing alongside one of the country’s largest marine national parks and protected areas, the Isla Grande community seeks to balance the rights of nature with those of their local culture. The balance has long been askew on account of government marginalization, national environmental policies that discourage co-governance with local communities, and diverse interests that value

Top Left: Using cameras, we stroll, bike, swim, and dive to capture connections with ancestral places of land and sea. Photo: Heides Molina, 2015 Middle Left: We walk and bike to map the places most significant to everyday lives in terms of ecosystems, biodiversity, culture, sustainable development, and innovation. Photo: Manuel Maldonado, 2015 Bottom Left: An online story map shares perspectives of home. It elaborates on the content described in this photo essay and is intended for community members, policy-makers, and a broader audience interested in shared learning for resilience and resistance. Photo: Jennifer McRuer, 2016 Bottom: Ocean connections, Isla Grande. “To me, [biocultural heritage] has to do with everything in the community and how we depend on the environment. Our heritage is the fishermen and all the people that live because of tourism, and traditions like the champeta [a local dance], and Paito [an elder who plays traditional African music] ... All of this is part of a concept that many people live but maybe don’t understand the word” (Dani). Photo: Katya Torres, 2015

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 53 particular worldviews over others. This has led to a lasting neglect of the territorial rights of the region’s original Indigenous inhabitants, as well as those of other communities that subsequently established themselves in the area, such as mestizo (mixed race) peasant communities and Afro-Colombian descendents. In defense of their relationships with ancestral territory places, the Isla Grande community has recently

Top: The Laguna Encantada (Enchanted Lagoon) in Isla Grande is a special place for biodiversity, and one that leaves lasting impressions among Islanders and tourists alike. For youth co-researchers, it represents buen vivir (well-being), or the rights, interests, decisions, and actions that shape healthy place relationships: “Of course [there are rights] for the ecosystems and the lack of these rights happens when we don’t respect the ecosystems’ buen vivir” (Ezequiel). Photo: Heides Molina, 2015 Top Left: “Ecocamping Bosque Encantado” (Enchanted Forest Ecocamping). A tourism initiative in Isla Grande blends tradition and innovation to conserve biocultural integrity, extend the Island’s hospitality, and promote collaboration toward a sustainable future. “For us, sustainability means production—through our customs; capacity—to maintain our environment and community in good shape; culture—the methods of our ancestors that we continue today like artisan fishing and handcrafts; and coordination—to [use resources] always at the same level, or better” (Sebastian). Photo: Ezequiel Torres, 2015 Middle Left: Dry forest and agricultural landscapes line the Island’s walking paths. Youth discuss the importance of natural resources and livelihood practices and share their knowledge of common plants and animals in ancestral territory places. Place-based knowledge is attributed to elders’ teachings and their own personal life experience. Photo: Dani Silgado, 2015 Bottom Left: An artisan shop on the Island sells both traditional and innovative merchandise, promoting biocultural conservation and sustainability: “Some of the materials that people use in handcrafts are [made from] our natural resources and some of them are also made using recycled items like plastic bags. This practice helps both the economic side and the environmental side because there is no need to buy, and there will no longer be garbage on the ground” (Jeison). Photo: Heides Molina, 2015

54 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 mobilized sustainable development efforts to redirect its future. Youth perceptions and experiences are valued contributions to this process. Seeking to re-imagine and re-articulate their collective biocultural heritage so as to uphold their relationships with place and one another, island youth share their stories through youth-led photography and mapping, combined with cyclical processes of reflection and action. A co-researcher team of six Island youth, a Spanish research translator, and a Canadian doctoral researcher began a project in 2015 to contribute youth perspectives on biocultural heritage, well-being, and sustainability. The group calls itself “Nuevas Voces” (New Voices).

Top Right: Young people carry fresh water—a valued resource on the Island as it lacks natural sources. Youth discuss changing environments that require innovation based on local knowledge. For example, they describe increasing solar panel use instead of generators, as well as traditional water sequestration techniques enhanced with cisterns and boat transport from the mainland. Photo: Ezequiel Torres, 2015 Bottom Right: A youth co-researcher considers the need for livelihood diversification and mangrove nurseries:“I think something that reflects well- being very much is the ocean. We know here on the Island we don’t have a place, like an enterprise for the community, apart from the ocean. But not all of us are fishermen so we need micro-enterprises”(Jeison). Youth envision ecotourism, fish farming, and mangrove plant nurseries. Photo: Juan Vega, 2015 Bottom: A child gazes at the ocean. Youth participation in shaping future directions is valued in Isla Grande, as leadership is performed by the whole community: “The most important thing to know about our politics on the Island is that although we are governed by the mayor of Cartagena, we have a Communitarian Council and we are titled as an ethnic community. We have a leader who is the president of the Communitarian Council but being a Council means all the community participates and takes decisions about our future” (Jeison). Photo: Manuel Maldonado, 2015

“We are living in a time of dire human-driven change, causing pervasive threats to biological and cultural diversity. But there is hope. By reconnecting with place, we can forge new directions toward regeneration.”

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 55 The resultant images, maps, and voices speak to their place-interdependence. Their collaborative story has been woven into a “story map” using an online, open-source platform designed by the Environmental Sciences Research Institute (ESRI). The story map interweaves multimedia and textual elements to tell the youth’s story of place. Top: Tourists flock to the Island’s beaches in increasing numbers every It importantly highlights the ways in which the year, but the industry is a double-edged sword. Youth express the need community’s language, , knowledge for responsible community governance to promote economic security, and innovations, subsistence, social and economic buen vivir, and sustainability: “If only we could face [economic] challenges relations, beliefs, and values are intimately as a united community while preserving the Island. It is just a case of connected with the biodiversity of its territory. At having different alternatives … This is the whole controversy: we need money, but we also need a way to conserve our territories … the economic a time when we need to recognize and strengthen [aspect] is not above the [buen vivir of] the community” (Jeison). place relationships to innovate, adapt, and build Photo: Manuel Maldonado, 2015 resilience in the face of global change, this platform Inset: “Races don’t exist. The only race is human.” Biocultural heritage on mobilizes youth’s perspectives and allows them the Island is celebrated through annual cultural events so as to to describe their concerns and, more importantly, “not forget where we come from” (Dani). Photo: Dani Silgado, 2015 their hopes for the future.

Jennifer McRuer holds an MSc in Conservation and Rural Development from the Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, University of Kent, UK, and a PhD in Educational Foundations from the University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon. Motivated by community-based conservation, she is interested in the intersections among biocultural diversity, new materialism, environmental humanities, and sustainability education. Further Reading Convention on Biological Diversity. (2014). Linking Biological and Cultural Diversity: UNESCO-SCBD Programme. Retrieved from https://www.cbd.int/lbcd/step1 Davidson-Hunt, I. J., Turner, K. L., Mead, A., Cabrera-Lopez, J., Bolton, R., Idrobo, J., ... Robson, P. (2012). Biocultural design: A new conceptual framework for sustainable development in rural indigenous and local communities. Surveys and Perspectives Integrating Environment and Society, 5(2), 33–45. Escobar, A. (1998). Whose knowledge, whose nature? Biodiversity, conservation, and the political ecology of social movements. Journal of Political Ecology, 5, 53–82. Ingold, T. (2008). Bindings against boundaries: Entanglements of life in an open world. Environment and Planning A, 40, 1796–1810. McRuer, J. (2017). A Story of the Places We Call Home: Buen Vivir, Sustainability, and Biocultural Heritage in Isla Grande, Colombia. Retrieved from http://arcg.is/2bITUzX

56 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 VisionsVisions Text and photos by Thor Morales fromfrom WithinWithin Another Shot for Biocultural Conservation in the Cradle of Humankind

magine you’re in the cradle of humankind. ICultures similar to yours have thrived in a seemingly barren, rock-strewn desert for thousands of years. But now, once frequently practiced rites, ceremonies, and traditions are losing vigor, and your mother tongue is falling by the wayside as you adopt a new one from a neighboring tribe. Your environment is still there, your people too, but the culture is rapidly fading away. And every other ethnic or cultural group in the region faces the same predicament. Borders appeared and cross-border In 2016, I met wonderful people, deeply committed migrations were banned for political security to their communities and culture, in the northern reasons. The world has changed so much, that it is desert of Kenya: the Gabbra, Borana, Konso, and wreaking havoc with your way of life and driving El Molo peoples. During two visits, I spent almost the younger generations away from their roots. a month working closely with them on the use of cameras and editing software and learning How can you help keep your biocultural practices with them about how these tools can help in their alive while there’s still time? There are many possible struggle for biocultural continuity. ways, but suddenly, one you never thought of is at hand. A videocamera? A computer? That is only for Top: The beautiful village of Layeni, one of the three El-Molo villages around Lake Turkana. 2016 educated people! It’s too difficult for me; I’ve never even touched one; I don’t speak English. These and other Inset: After an assignment period, participants came back together and shared their adventures doing participatory video through The thoughts might come to your mind. That’s before you River of Life activity, which is a visual narrative method to share stories experience the magic of participatory video. of the past, but can also be used for the present and future. 2016

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 57 “Something magical happens when videos made by and with members are screened for the featured ‘actors’: from laughs to critiques, from amusement to active participation.”

Yet none of our expectations were fulfilled. Let me explain: participants were expecting a regular musungo (white person) who would teach a boring class about extremely complicated equipment. They were sure it would be a drag. The professor (that’s me) won’t even stand the heat or the food, thought my colleagues from the local NGO that helped coordinate the training. For my part, I was expecting that language would be an almost insurmountable barrier to the success of my facilitation task. After ten minutes together, though, we all realized things would go far better than anyone had expected. We spent every day laughing, learning, teaching, and creating. Language,

Above: Participants during a filming practice. They learn not only how to use and handle the camera but also how to frame images. 2016 Inset Top: Mama Elema Molu, from Marsabit, came to the training fearing she would be left aside for being illiterate. As it turned out, she rapidly learned to use the camera and directed several shots during practice days. 2016 Inset Bottom: Dub Kanche checks whether everything is OK with the audio. Another teammate monitors sound before and during recordings. 2016

58 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 cultural, and ethnic barriers melted away and, as one and a sand storm just to be part of the movie nights. of the ladies said, “We became one family.” Through Something magical happens when videos made by peer-to-peer learning and practical exercises, the ten and with members are screened for the featured participants rapidly acquired filming, sound recording, “actors”: from laughs to critiques, from amusement and visual storytelling skills. They went from never to active participation. New ideas are born; the need having touched a camera to being confident and to document and record cultural activities is suddenly creative participatory video filmmakers. apparent. The fact that your neighbors are able to operate a camera and edit a video changes the way “A new form of resilience is being communities feel about being filmed (and screened). crafted through the use of video, It makes more sense; it’s an option for real cultural using modern gear to revive the resistance and not a mere way of pleasing foreigners past and keep it going in a new in exchange for some money. but authentic way.” Below Left: A key game in participatory video is Show and Tell. During this activity, participants present an object in front of the When participants set out to define the topics for camera. This helps them leave fear and nervousness behind their videos, the binomial of nature and culture came when a camera is pointing at them. 2016 up top as the preferred choice. They all realized that their cultural practices are vanishing as younger Bottom Left: Qabale Diba holds the camera while the three men generations lose interest in their traditions and in her team perform a sociodrama about how eliciting traditional knowledge raises questions and reveals the need for free, prior, rituals. Every participant’s first thought was to engage and informed consent. 2016 in a sort of salvage filming to record all current rites, festivities, traditions, and cultural activities. Below Right: Participatory video brings different people together in a When the time came for community screenings, I dialectic learning process in which each person teaches someone else. Here, Hellen Losapicho (El Molo) shows Guyo Gabbaba (Borana) and witnessed people stay on in spite of approaching rain Dub Kanche (Gabbra) how to insert the battery in a microphone. 2016

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 59 From traditional naming ceremonies to weddings, from Above Left: Setting hands on a tripod for the first time in her life seems like a joyful moment for Elema Molu. Titinga annual rituals to sacred sites, from cultural festivals to Lengotuk follows her with sound gear. Collectivity is at the core political events, the ten participants in this magical process of participatory video. 2016 have been filming their communities’ lives since 2016. In the process, they have raised awareness and interest in culture Above Right: Hussein Abdi, the youngest participant in this adventure, shares footage with Soba, the young girl and nature, encouraged general participation, and given babysitting Qabale’s son so she could take part back to their communities. A new form of resilience is being in the training. 2016 crafted through the use of video, using modern gear to revive the past and keep it going in a new but authentic way. Below: Magella Lenatiyama marvels at the work of Bone Dub Kanche. Despite being neighboring tribes, El-Molo and Gabbra Participatory video allows for a true vision from within. hardly have any interaction. Through participatory video, we There’s no outside guidance on what to film: it’s the seek to connect these and other tribes in Northern Kenya. 2016 community that decides, along with the participatory video

“This new generation of participatory video filmmakers is blazing a new trail for biocultural conservation.”

60 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 team, what to focus the camera on. Even aesthetics are specific to the cultural group using the camera. In our northern Kenya experience, I can say the camera has traveled all the way to the past and back. In their villages, participants have convinced elders and shrine owners of the importance of using video as a tool for biocultural revival, and have filmed the last stewards of their culture. Through their eyes, hearts, and camera lenses, participants have found a new way to look at themselves, at their own people. At the same time, they have shown parts of their homelands only known to a few. Equipped with only basic gear, this new generation of participatory video filmmakers is blazing a new trail for biocultural conservation. Their wish is to become participatory video facilitators, just like me. They want to share Above: Participants view a Gabbra village from a neighboring mount. the magic of participatory video with more The use of participatory video offers another angle on daily life and familiar spaces. 2016

Inset Left: In participatory video, on one hand many voices are being heard through the use of video; on the other, power relationships are blurred. This is what collective editing means: Qabale Diba takes control of the computer, and everyone else has to go through her to make changes. 2016

Below: A sunset behind a traditional Gabbra house in the village of Arrankesa, near Kalacha Town. 2016

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 61 Above: A community screening in the middle of the Chalbi desert. At Arrankesa, the whole village gathered together under the starry sky to watch and then talk about the participatory video films in which many of them had been featured. 2016 Inset: Dwellers of Layeni withstand a dust storm to watch the new films being screened by The Gura Pau (El-Molo) participatory video team. People are getting used to these movie nights in which they watch what the team has filmed and can discuss what else should be documented or talked about through video. 2016 communities, build peaceful bonds between tribes, visualize. The participants with whom I collaborated and tackle common challenges faced by most ethnic have really grasped this approach and used it to groups in northern Kenya. For them, it’s not really share the visions from within their communities. about getting nice footage and acquiring fame. It’s In a world full of superficial imagery, it’s worth about sparking community participation to address giving locals the chance to point the cameras at what matters the most—whether that is children, themselves, without any more leadership than that the environment, native language, education, of their own community. My ten friends in northern traditions, or health issues—to local dwellers. Kenya are pioneers seeking change through the use Participatory video is about community, about of cameras, projectors, and community involvement. team work and communal reciprocity, about using I can only say: Good luck in giving biocultural films to reflect on a reality we live in but seldom conservation another shot!

Thor Morales is a biologist passionate about audiovisual media, Indigenous communities, nature, and cultures. During the past six years, he has been making a living by using cameras either for documentary work or participatory video training. He sees video as a powerful tool that can be used to create a better world. Further Reading Lunch, N. (2008). People’s video: Preserving biocultural diversity through participatory video. Resurgence and Ecologist. Retrieved from http://www.resurgence.org/magazine/article2634-peoples-video.html Lunch, N., & Lunch, C. (2006). Insights into Participatory Video: A Handbook for the Field. Retrieved from http://insightshare.org/resources/insights-into-participatory-video-a-handbook-for-the-field/ Muniz, S. (2012). Participatory Development Communication (PDC): Rhetoric or Reality? The Analysis of Community- Based Level Interventions in Latin America and Africa with Dialogue and Empowerment as Intended Outcomes (MSc Dissertation). University of Reading: London, UK.

62 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 Special: Reconnection and Reconciliation in the Salish Sea, Pacific Northwest

Above: The Salish Sea Bioregion is defined by watershed boundaries and encompasses inland seas and lands of many First Nations in British Columbia, Canada, and Native American Nations in Washington State, USA. Source: mycoastnow.com, 2017

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 63 Sustain, Benefit, Embedding Nature Celebrate in Our Culture

Text and photos by Rob Butler

n 2015, I flew to Ecuador, boarded a in 2015 by biologist Paul Sandifer and others, concluded Imotorized canoe with a group of friends, that in most cases exposure to nature elicited positive and three hours later disembarked at a responses in people and could be convincingly associated riverbank dock from which a boardwalk with improved health benefits. Sandifer and his colleagues led us to a lagoon. There, guides and were sufficiently convinced that nature provided tangible canoes awaited to take us to a rustic lodge benefits that they called for action to combine health and immersed in Amazon biodiversity. Over the conservation efforts. Their review lent support to an earlier following few days, I felt my life adjusting to call by Rapport and Maffi who, in 2011, proposed linking nature’s clock. Routines became scheduled cultures and health to the environment under the banner of around the circularity of natural cycles of “eco-cultural health,” defined as “a dynamic interaction of daytime heat and evening thunderstorms. nature and culture that allows for the co-evolution of both I had experienced similar feelings in wild without compromising either critical ecosystem processes places elsewhere in the world and was or the vitality of cultures.” Rapport and Maffi pointed out enjoying the restorative time amid nature. the need for changes in policy toward fostering combined conservation and health. Experience with nature lives beyond words, and many people with experiences similar to mine have struggled verbalize their feelings. My friends in the Amazon were calmer and smiled more often. Some were brought to tears. Many said the week in the Amazon was life-changing. Some called the experience their “Road to Damascus moment.”

These experiences might at first glance appear fanciful, but research into the connection between humans and nature has begun to validate the depths of these kinds of relationships. A review of independent studies that purported to find a physiological and psychological Above: Few places on Earth can immerse you in the diversity of life better than response of humans to nature, conducted the Ecuadorian rainforest canopy. 2015

64 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 beavers whose dams gave space for aquatic insects, which in turn attracted birds to eat the insects. In this case, the restoration of wolves appears to have restored resiliency to an entire ecosystem. The cultural imperative of a Nature Culture to sustain key ecological processes that support the diversity of life gives direction to ecological research. In particular, a Nature Culture requires an understanding of key ecological processes and calls for providing guidance on how to maintain these processes while bettering the lives of humans. These needs become the premise for problem solving within an ecological context and a reason for celebrating nature in our lives. As individuals, we can take action by conducting an audit of how we live, our choice of purchases and waste disposal, and so forth. Some changes are easy to introduce, such as replacing harmful products with less injurious ones, buying goods and food from sustainable practices, and recycling. There are Policy changes would go a long way toward many organizations and programs already in place improving our relationship with nature, but a to help make the transition. cultural imperative would ensure it. I am calling for a renewal of our ancient relationship with nature. I Collectively, communities can create cultural propose that we explore embedding nature into our celebrations, traditions, and lifestyles. The culture and develop what I call a Nature Culture. community is where a Nature Culture celebrates successes in sustaining nature, formulates new Securing nature over the long term, which is of ideas for sustainable innovations and technologies, course essential for sustaining life on the planet, is and pinpoints practices that are unsustainable and a central feature of a Nature Culture. Places where need to be transformed. There is no singular way nature abounds are sacred sources of inspiration to celebrate nature. How one chooses to celebrate and providers of invaluable services and benefits. should remain open to everyone’s imagination. Identifying and protecting such locations for the benefit of all people (and of all of life) isof Above Left: An Amazonian shaman in Ecuador. Indigenous cultures paramount importance. are often close allies with nature. 2009 Below: Nature’s raw simplicity can be felt in the silence of an A resilient natural world is a hallmark of a Nature alpine lake in the Muskwa-Kechika wilderness area of Culture. In eco-speak, resiliency refers to the ability British Columbia, Canada. 2012 of an ecosystem to recover from a shock and continue to function. For example, the removal of large predators releases their prey to use habitats that they would have otherwise avoided from fear of being killed, which thereby sets in motion a cascading chain of destabilizing ecological interactions. A celebrated example of reversal of this detrimental effect was apparent shortly after wolves were restored to Yellowstone National Park in the USA after a hiatus of several decades. Fear of the newly returned wolves altered where elk chose to forage in the park, thus releasing aspens and willows to flourish, which attracted to the park

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 65 the recognition of culture’s dependency on securing both the land where food was grown and the livelihoods of the harvesters. Cultures involve food as a key focus, and I pondered whether we could have a distinctive celebration of sustainable food from the Salish Sea region where I live, the water and surrounding watershed of the Strait of Georgia, Juan de Fuca Strait, and Puget Sound, in southwestern Canada and northwestern USA. Out of those musings, the idea of the First Day Feast arose. Our family held the initial First Day Feast on January 1, 2012. We assembled around the table to enjoy and explore locally produced food. We sought local food from sustainable sources. Labels were scoured for ingredients and sources. As an Above: Time in wild places benefits us in ways we are only just entrée for the meat eaters, we chose beef from the beginning to understand. Muskwa-Kechika wilderness area, Fraser River Valley, within the Salish Sea watershed. British Columbia, Canada. 2012 For the vegetarians, we picked a vegetarian pizza. Below: Galiano Island in the Salish Sea: Seasonality of rain Wheat grown and ground in the Fraser Valley was and sun defines the region. 2013 used for the pizza crust as well as for the piecrust of an apple dessert. Wine came from nearby vineyards, The government level is where policies that vegetables and herbs from greenhouses in the promote sustainable lifestyles can direct how society Fraser River Delta, near Vancouver. Sea salt came relates to nature: for example, by incorporating from a saltry on Vancouver Island, on the western the benefits of nature for childhood development shore of the Salish Sea. For the pie, we sourced into the educational system or the health benefits apples from just east of the Salish Sea region (okay, of nature into health care policy. Research into the we fudged the rules a bit there). Butter and hazelnut mechanisms of how nature benefits our health and oil came from the Fraser River Valley. Sweetening wellbeing needs to be further promoted. with honey from local hives served us well. We chose a strong-flavored honey in place of cinnamon Many of these actions are already in place. The local to enhance the apple pie flavor. All of the ingredients food movement, green living, recycling, wind and were available in local stores and farm stalls. Many solar power, and parks and protected areas are a few foods from the ocean could have been included, examples of how people are taking nature to heart. and plenty of wild foods could The difference is that Nature Culture embodies all have been added to the these initiatives within a single vision of establishing feast, too. a sustainable lifestyle as a cultural imperative. By now you might be asking how to bring the Nature Culture concept into our everyday way of living. A few years ago, UNESCO awarded World Heritage designation to the Mediterranean Diet. The designation recognized the Mediterranean Diet as central to the feasting culture of the Mediterranean region. What resonated with me was

“A resilient natural world is a hallmark of a Nature Culture.”

66 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 In 2014, I upped the challenge when the Nature Trust of British Columbia asked me to hold a similarly themed dinner for seventy-five people at the Deep Bay Marine Station near Courtney on Vancouver Island. The food prepared by Vancouver Island University Culinary School students and staff followed the First Day Feast theme, and afterward I spoke about a Nature Culture. The following year, the Arts and Nature Festival on Mayne Island, one of the Gulf Islands in the Salish Sea, asked me to give a keynote address following a First Day Feast theme. On both occasions, people spoke to me about how the concept resonated with their need to make music, develop foods, and create art connected to nature. Many people said it gave meaning to their passions. and in wilderness areas in Canada are not for Establishing a Nature Culture requires a set of everyone. Challenging that fear is the first step guiding principles for our actions. Unlike the well- toward gaining confidence and reaping the benefits known 100-Mile diet, the geographic scale of a Nature of being immersed in natural areas. Education and Culture matches that of a bioregion. In my case, the recreation programs can help here. A Nature Culture Salish Sea bioregion includes beaches and ocean, could be adopted into school curricula, clubs, and forests, rivers, deltas, and mountains. The region is family outings. In a Nature Culture, parks become the traditional home of Salish-speaking people who sacred places in which to introduce our children to have inhabited the surrounding land and water for nature and become comfortable with living in the ten millennia and continue to live there along with wilds for extended periods of time. over seven million people from around the world. The Salish Sea is a source of natural foods such as Nature Cultures are nothing new to Indigenous salmon, clams, and shrimp harvested from these Peoples. Many of the elements are already embedded waters. Farms in the neighboring river deltas and in Indigenous ways. Their examples amply illustrate valleys grow a variety of root and vegetable crops how rich cultures can develop with nature as the sustainably, so as not to undermine the resiliency source. Indigenous Peoples have long spoken about of the Salish Sea ecosystem and sustain livelihoods. respect for nature. What a Nature Culture does is That makes these farms an important component of provide recognition to that voice and a philosophical the region’s Nature Culture. framework for everyone to participate and benefit from all that nature has to offer. Exposure to nature is a feature of a Nature Culture that some people find foreign and maybe Above: Mild weather, calm seas, and abundant wild places have fostered even frightening. My experiences in the Amazon a close relationship with nature: San Juan Islands, Salish Sea. 2013

Rob Butler, PhD, is an ornithologist, author, filmmaker, and artist. For over 40 years, he watched, listened to, and lived among birds in the Salish Sea and in distant tropical lands. He met people from many cultures. From his observations and reflections emerged his vision of a Nature Culture as a way to renew our ancient relationship with nature. Further Reading Louv, R. (2005). Last Child in the Woods. New York, NY: Workman.

Rapport, D. J., & Maffi, L. (2011). Eco-cultural health, global health, and sustainability.Ecological Research, 26, 1039–1049.

Ripple, W. J., Larsen, E. J., Renkin, R. A., & Smith, D. W. (2001). Trophic cascades among wolves, elk and aspen on Yellowstone National park’s northern range. Biological Conservation, 102(3), 227–234.

Sandifer, P. A., Sutton-Grier, A. E., & Ward, B. P. (2015). Exploring connections among nature, biodiversity, ecosystem services, and human health and well-being: Opportunities to enhance health and biodiversity conservation. Ecosystem Services, 12, 1–15.

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 67 Text by Joe Akerman (T’awaxwultun) Photos by Xwaaqw’um Project Heal the Land, Heal the People

Strengthening Relationships at Hwaaqw’um in the Salish Sea

Maakw’stem ‘uw huliitun tst. the descendants of Quw’utsun Hereditary Chief Maaqkw’stem ‘uw slhilhukw’tul Tousilum (Lhumlhumuluts’) and his wife, Taltunaat, “Everything is what sustains us. and of their daughter, T’awahwiye (c. 1854–1951). Everything is interconnected.” T’awahwiye was born and raised at Hwaaqw’um (Burgoyne Bay, Salt Spring Island, one of the Gulf his is a story about coming home to a Islands on the west coast of Canada, in what is now TQuw’utsun (Hul’q’umi’num, Coast Salish) known as the Salish Sea). There, a permanently village site to heal. To heal the land, relationships occupied Quw’utsun village of five longhouses once with one another, and the people and communities stood below the towering “bent-over rock” that is around us as we find ways to reconnect to the Hwamat’etsum (Mount Maxwell), one of the highest natural systems that give our lives deeper meaning. peaks on the island. Quw’utsun people belong to Growing up in very dissimilar circumstances, the Hul’q’umi’num language group of Coast Salish my uncle Tousilum (Ron George) and I have both First Nations. Our territory centers in the Cowichan found our hearts drawn to the same land on Valley on Vancouver Island, the main island off the which our ancestor T’awahwiye was born and southern coast of British Columbia, and extends raised. Although we experienced very different into the Gulf Islands and beyond. upbringings and experiences of abuse, each of us Hwaaqw’um (also spelled Xwaaqw’um) was and suffered psychological conditioning brought on by unrelenting oppression from members of the is an important spiritual place, where merganser Catholic Church and the many forms of colonization. ducks were harvested and dried in large numbers. Shining a light into the dark corners of our lives is Hwaaqw’um encompasses three sensitive ecosystems: not an easy thing to do. coast Douglas fir and Garry oak on land and the marine eelgrass habitat, where traditional use and Tousilum is the eldest son of the late Qwiyahwul-t-hw harvesting continue to this day. Historic and current (Bennett George) and Thutsimiye’ (Violet George) and nephew to my late grandfather, Bob. We are Above: Quw’utsun Big Canoe landing at Hwaaqw’um. 2016

68 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 cultivation and gathering of camas, berries, nettle, good to eat and what plants to avoid. In the spring, cedar, and other plant species for food, medicine, and when the first leaves come out, new plant shoots clothing, along with seaweed and shellfish harvesting, are sweet and tender—and really good to eat. When fishing for octopus, salmon, and herring, and deer the new salmon berry shoots—grannie called them hunting show just how intimate the relationships are thaskies—were about a foot high, we broke them off, between all relations at Hwaaqw’um. When you spend peeled the skin and ate them raw. We did the same time on the land, with the songs and stories spoken in with mukmuk, the new shoots off the button-berry the language of that place, the beauty and strength of bush. Grannie said that Oregon grape shoots were our culture is revealed. healthy, kind of like a spring tonic to tone up the blood, so we ate those too.” From a young age, Tousilum’s father regularly traveled over to Hwaaqw’um by x’pey (cedar) dugout canoe with his grandfather Walter George “Shining a light into the dark corners and other Quw’utsun relations to visit T’awahwiye. of our lives is not an easy thing to do.” Some days the ocean winds cutting through the Sansum Narrows between Vancouver Island and My vision for Hwaaqw’um is to continue, and Salt Spring Island were favorable enough to catch strengthen, Hul’q’umi’num relationships to the a helpful breeze in the belly of a bedsheet sail, land, to one another as human beings, and to all our mounted on a mast in the middle of the canoe. relations. To have grannies and grandpas speaking Luschiim (Arvid Charlie) also used to come over to the language and sharing stories on the land with Hwaaqw’um under sail and canoe and likes to share younger generations. stories of when he used to harvest octopus and sea urchin there as a young boy. As a vehicle for reconcili-action, the Xwaaqw’um Project was started in January 2015. Reconcili- In early fall, T’awahwiye collected berries there in action can take many forms, but must be led by her cedar woven basket, “ground them into a thick localIndigenous people. Building relationships takes jam in the carved basin of a generations-old grinding time and effort. It starts by coming together and boulder, and patted the mixture into little cookies helping one another—ts’ets’uwulhtun. Guided by that she dried in the sun. When they were dry, she Quw’utsun Elders and Knowledge Keepers, over the brought them into the house, where they kept all last three years the annual Indigenous winter long,” Grandpa Bob recounts in his book The and Leadership Camp has provided an opportunity Akerman Family: Growing Up on Salt Spring, in which for Youth from the Victoria and Duncan Aboriginal he shares early memories of local plant knowledge at Friendship Centers to participate. Grade-school and Hwaaqw’um. “Grannie showed me what plants were post-secondary students have taken part in land- based education at Hwaaqw’um, with community gatherings and workshops open to everyone. A more visible Indigenous presence at Hwaaqw’um connects Quw’utsun, Salt Spring islanders, and visitors to Hul’q’umi’num culture, language, and stewardship. “The people are just so grateful,” Tousilum says, reflecting on what the many gatherings mean to him. “Sharing the food, having a cup of tea together. And just walking this land. It opens the soul of this land. You know, the good feeling that we can bring out in one another. And it shows. The laughter here on this land all weekend, it has been gentle, it has been loud, lots of coming together, lots of sharing. Just been powerful within itself.” Our work is guided by Quw’utsun Elders and Above: Tousilum (Ron George) drumming at Knowledge Keepers with support from Cowichan a Hwaaqw’um Community Feast. 2015 Tribes (the Quw’utsun band government), along

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 69 Above Left: Intertidal Species Net Pull Workshop at Hwaaqw’um. Salt Spring Islander David Denning (L) and a youth from the Victoria Native Friendship Centre raise the net under the watchful eye of Mount Maxwell. 2015 Above Right: Smoking salmon heads the traditional way on a pi’kwun stick. 2015

with reference to the 2015 Xwaaqw’um Indigenous traditions, and ecological teachings at Hwaaqw’um. Use Feasibility Study. Future goals of the Xwaaqw’um The welcoming and celebratory nature of our Project include setting up signage, carving a big community gatherings creates a caring space canoe, and carrying out an ecological and traditional for dialogue on reconcili-action. “The land is food restoration plan under the guidance of Elders, being danced and the old ones are waking up,” rooted in Hul’q’umi’num knowledge and language Tousilum explains in a video about the carving while also incorporating scientific understanding of and installation of the first pair of Coast Salish ecological restoration and climate change resilience. welcome poles raised since contact. “The land [at Future gathering spaces and full access to land Hwaaqw’um] is coming to life.” and water at Hwaaqw’um are crucial to support the continuing cultural work, and may include an Many friends, family, school groups, and Elder-caretaker in residence, a cultural interpretive organizations have paddled over by big canoe center, a dock, and a carving shed. taking the 90-minute journey across from Maple Bay on Vancouver Island to Hwaaqw’um on Salt “Truth, Respect, Healing. Spring. Luschiim (Arvid Charlie), Hwiemtun (Fred Roland), Qwiyahwul-t-hw (Robert George), and These are fundamental other Quw’utsun Elders and Knowledge Keepers human rights.” have contributed to many satisfying days on the land, including plant medicine walks, sound Hwaaqw’um has a more recent history of Western healing, and various food harvesting opportunities. agricultural and industrial use including livestock and hay, forestry, log handling, an active shellfish “I am envisioning how it used to be when our lease, and heavy public use of walking pathways great-grandmother was here,” says T’awahwiye and shoreline access points. These activities have (Philomena Williams). “The environment was the impacted terrestrial and marine ecosystem by classroom. We need to get our survivors to places removing habitat, reducing biodiversity, introducing like this. Their spirits are fragmented and lost and invasive species, changing hydrology, and degrading they need medicine to build their spirits up again to soils. A landscape and seascape restoration plan is yet become healthy people.” to be realized. Restoring the cultural and ecological integrity of Hwaaqw’um will enhance the quality of The familiar Tzinquaw songs and dances about life for all who live on or visit Salt Spring Island. thunderbird and killer whale, shared by Tousilum and younger singers and dancers at Hwaaqw’um All people are invited to engage in respectful and at many events throughout Quw’utsun Territory, cultural exchange with Hul’q’umi’num language, are powerful medicine. Tousilum consistently

70 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 Above Left: Welcome Pole raising ceremony at Hwaaqw’um. 2016 Above Right: Tousilum (Ron George) and Qwiyahwul-t-hw, Jr. (Benny George), members of the Tzinquaw Dancers, at the Hwaaqw’um Welcome Pole raising ceremony. 2016 comes prepared with his whole self to crack a joke Tousilum wants his story to be heard as he before leading the Paddle Welcome, Prayer Song, My continues to shed light into the dark corners of his Son, Where Are You, and other songs passed down past and moves toward healing for himself and to him from a long line of ancestors. Tousilum is a toward clearing away some of the weight felt by all of family man, a community man, a ceremonial man. his descendants. “You can share, it’s out there now. I He speaks from that well-rooted place of gentle want people to know.” Truth, Respect, Healing. These strength, grounded in the growing acceptance of are fundamental human rights. “We were put in our what was and what is, while staying open to the place and were silenced—for so many generations hopes and dreams he holds for what is yet to be we were silenced. And for a long time after that we shared on his homelands. were silent. Many more generations after that. All that kept me going was that the old people never Yet Tousilum, like most in his family of twelve gave up on me. They saw that pain in this young children and like many others from the Cowichan man. They saw this anger in this young person. They Nation, is a residential school survivor. His heart, saw the chaos in me. They saw the running away that mind, and physical body were preyed upon, I did. They recognized all of that. Just very simple between the ages of five and sixteen, at Kuper Island Residential School, on what is now known as Penelakut Island to the north of Salt Spring, and at St. Mary’s Residential School in Mission, on the mainland of British Columbia. The physical, sexual, and psychological assaults from those government- sanctioned institutions almost broke him.

“For a good part of my life,” confides Tousilum, “the spirituality of my being meant nil. It meant nothing. I didn’t care. Oh, God [sigh], I didn’t care for my physical being, I didn’t look after myself. The only part of me that I really lived in was here—the mind. The mental being. But it was also a scary place to be at.” Of those many decades during which he didn’t listen to his elders, his parents, his grandparents, he says, “I only carried on one vicious way of life. From the age of thirteen, I could drown it with all Above: Tousilum (Ron George) and Qwiyahwul-t-hw, Jr. (Benny George) the alcohol that I wanted to. And I did that.” standing by the Hwaaqw’um Welcome Pole. 2016

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 71 words, saying, ‘Hey, we need you,’ and they took me and other intertidal plant species for the first time in; and I started dancing, I started singing, I started ever in his life—one of a very long list of rights and drumming. I danced and I danced and I danced, and responsibilities that had been taken away from him. I loved it. That kept me going, and I’m still going yet. Yet, the day-long grin the 70-year-old was wearing So the dances that we do, called the Tzinquaw, it’s suddenly vanished as he looked north, lifting his been about 60 years for me now, and they are still in gaze from the rock in front of him. The looming my heart and my soul yet, today.” memory of the Kuper (Penelakut) Island Residential School, on the island just across the water from Southey Point, again brought tears to his eyes.

I am well into my 30s. In school, our Canadian history textbooks taught me nothing about residential schools; experimentation on and sterilizations of Indigenous men and women; the “Sixties Scoop” when Indigenous children in Canada were taken from their families and placed in foster homes or given away for adoption; the potlatch ban; and all other land and economic policies put in place through the Indian Act to ensure the economic and social failure of countless Indigenous people. Tousilum: “I am a second-class Above: Songs around the fire. L to R: Joe Akerman, Benji George, Hwiemtun (Fred Roland), Tousilum (Ron George), and Qwiyahwul-t-hw (Robert George). 2015 citizen in this country. I don’t like Canada. I don’t stand up for the anthem or celebrate Canada Day.” Finding the strength to stare into the eyes of his Language and culture loss, violence, substance abuse, own lived trauma and to make daily efforts to heal got and suicide epidemics are the hallmarks of the very a boost on two sunny spring days in 2015. On the first deep intergenerational effects of colonial trauma. day, Tousilum bravely took part in the first-ever public sharing of his painful past, with largely unknown If Tousilum and my Quw’utsun family can find workshop participants made up of leadership from ways to heal, I can heal, the land can heal, and local government, schools, and other community settlers can heal. The hard work we do now forms organizations in the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver deep ancestral memories with future generations Island. He joined a group of five Hul’q’umi’num who will continue to heal in ways as yet unseen. Elders—like him survivors of residential school— We have all been colonized, and we can begin to set to lead a Cultural Connections Workshop. Bringing ourselves free by getting back to the land to sit and settlers and survivors together in a direct and heart- learn from the old people. centered way, this experiential workshop moved participants through an abbreviated version of the Hwaaqw’um is more than a place for me. It is process of colonization from first European contact. an ancestor—a relative. My relationship with One by one, the Elders began to share their very Hwaaqw’um teaches me the intimate responsibilities personal and raw stories of their own residential woven within the continuation of intergenerational school experience. land and sea relationships. The trauma inflicted upon Indigenous Peoples by colonial structures over The second day, on a span of intertidal rock at the last 150 years and more has also been inflicted P’q’unup (Southey Point at the northern end of on our land and sea relations via the often careless, Salt Spring), Tousilum happily harvested seaweed relentless extraction of ecological resources.

72 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 At a 2016 panel on reconciliation held at the University of Victoria, one of the Indigenous panel members reflected: “Before reconciliation we need healing, before healing we need trust, before trust we need truth. With truth in place, we can finally talk of justice, but before justice is possible we need to talk about the land. It’s always been about the land. Extraction of resources at unsustainable levels: money, greed, arrogance.” Confronting this harm and creating a future that revitalizes a sustainable and respectful place for our children and grandchildren means honoring our ancestors and the ancestors of the places we visit and occupy. Importantly, it also means resisting the deeply embedded, often invisible, genocidal Above: Joe Akerman and Luschiim (Arvid Charlie) at Hwaaqw’um before processes of colonization and unchecked resource the departure of the Big Canoe. 2015 extraction. In this light, ignoring the pressing biocultural issues of our time is not an option. A of ancestors, and through stories shared by sustainable future must protect the people and the countless generations to come, will continue here land—it must create space for all of our relations. on the rich lands we all live on and enjoy. “If Tousilum and my Quw’utsun For true reconciliation to be implemented and sustained, Canadians must return considerable family can find ways to heal, tracts of land and water, power, and resources back I can heal, the land can heal, to the keepers of the lands they occupy. The vast and settlers can heal.” privilege enjoyed by settlers on Indigenous lands must be acknowledged and concerted efforts made to support the continuation and resurgence of local Resilient, graceful, and inspirational Elders, Indigenous laws and ways of being. All Canadians Knowledge Keepers, and Youth carefully maintain can participate in healing relationships with the and generously share the knowledge, culturally land, with one another and with local Indigenous practiced legal frameworks, and inspiration for people, taking meaningful steps on the lifelong healing the land and ourselves. Deep healing journey of being welcomed by Quw’utsun or other through the language, teachings, songs, and local First Nation families and communities. ceremonies passed down by countless generations

Joe Akerman is of mixed Quw’utsun and European heritage. T’awaxwultun is his ancestral Hul’q’umi’num name. Living on Salt Spring Island, British Columbia, Joe helped spark a movement to save Grace Islet, a First Nation sacred site, from development and leads the Xwaaqw’um Project, which aims to create space for Elders and Knowledge Keepers to continue and enhance culture, language, and land-based knowledge and opportunities.

To learn more about, follow, and support the Xwaaqw’um Project, you can visit www.xwaaqwum.com, where you can also watch short videos of the project’s activities and events. Further Reading Akerman, B., & Sherwood, L. (2005). The Akerman Family: Growing up on Salt Spring. Salt Spring Island, BC: Author.

Marshall, D. P. (1999). Those Who Fell from the Sky: A History of the Cowichan People. Duncan, BC, Canada: Cultural and Educational Centre, Cowichan Tribes.

McEwen, C., & Ling, C. (2008). Community Action on Salt Spring. Retrieved from https://crcresearch.org/community- research-connections/crc-case-studies/community-action-salt-spring-island

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 73 Shle’muxunDaniel Kirkpatrick Reconnecting with the Salish Sea Bioregion

lorence James smiled and said the word Fagain, a little more slowly: “Shle’muxun.” The fifty or so people in the audience quietly rolled the sound across their tongues, trying it out. A helper took a marker and wrote out the word on butcher paper, checked the spelling with Florence, and posted the sheet on the wall. Shle’muxun. This term, from the Hu’l’qumi’num language that Florence has spoken from childhood and now teaches, means “guardian of the land,” or “stewardship.”

Sharing this word was a highlight of “Reconnecting,” a four-hour event held in June 2017 of watching, listening, and learning from one’s on Galiano Island in the Salish Sea Bioregion—a surroundings. Being carefully attentive to place can region that spans the Canada–U.S. boundary and allow one to live in a way that does not take more includes many islands and coastlines on the edge from Nature than what regenerates. of the Pacific Ocean. Florence is an elder of the Penelakut Nation on nearby Penelakut Island, The Salish Sea is a verdant region, reaching from where her people seek to live by the premise of mountaintops to the sea and encompassing many shle’muxen. “Reconnecting” participants, diverse protected islands along the western flank of North in age and politics, had traveled from several America. Within the Salish Sea, dozens of First Nations other islands and mainland British Columbia and Native American Nations reside. Yet the dysfunction and Washington State to explore the concept of of contemporary Western society and its vast impacts stewardship and what it means to them.

The perspective that Florence brought Top: The Salish Sea Bioregion offers an ideal location for sustainability initiatives that honor First Nations rights. Photo: Daniel Kirkpatrick, 2017 helped enrich participants’ discussions about Inset: Florence James, an elder of the Penelakut Nation who teaches caring for nature, ensuring that honoring the and the Hul’q’umi’num language, was a keynote speaker at original stewards of the land was part of the “Reconnecting,” held in June 2017 on Galiano Island in the Salish Sea. Here puzzle. She highlighted the critical importance she is seen talking with Daniel Kirkpatrick. Photo: Lisa K. Beck, 2017

74 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 lie heavily, like a synthetic blanket, upon the ecosystems and Native cultures of this region. Like so many other parts of our planet, the ecosystem has suffered dramatic increases in population density, industrialization, unsustainable resource extraction, and habitat loss.

Yet the blanket of dominance is wearing thin, yielding openings where light passes through the prevailing economic and social systems to reveal examples of ecological harmony and Indigenous autonomy. In these places we find inspiration for the pursuit of pathways toward a resonant and healthy eco-cultural future.

The Salish Sea is in some ways an ideal place to build a model society of resilience, harmony, and wisdom. The government of British Columbia, which overlays part of this region, has one of the broadest and most comprehensive carbon tax systems on earth, which—to the extent it is effectively implemented—is a major achievement. The head of Canada’s Green Party is an elected member of parliament from this district. The region also contains the locality with the highest concentration of electric cars per capita in Canada. Further, there the land and the water for millennia. Their work has is a small but growing number of meaningful not been easy; their lands have been appropriated agreements between settler groups and First Nations and their autonomy repeatedly challenged. Yet about the protection of sacred sites and recognition each Nation has in its own way survived, and many of Indigenous land rights in the province. have become leading advocates for the shift to good stewardship practices, including habitat preservation, “The blanket of dominance is wearing renewable energy, and protection of cultural heritage. thin, yielding openings where light passes Given this chromatically and politically green region, through the prevailing economic and social one might assume that its denizens have achieved systems to reveal examples of ecological a minimal ecological footprint and assured its harmony and Indigenous autonomy.” sustainability. This is hardly the case. Industrialization and capitalism are very strong forces here, with In the portion of the Salish Sea flying the U.S. flag, immense momentum and entrenched power. Washington State also has a strong environmental Moreover, there is a wide chasm between belief and legacy. This legacy includes mandatory kindergarten practice on the part of green citizens. to Grade 12 environmental education, a robust set of policies guiding the protection of water quality, and a It takes more than a Greenpeace bumper sticker to growing collection of leading-edge green industries. transform one’s relationship with the ecosystem, and The historic Boldt decision regarding fishing rights attending occasional public meetings does not ensure in Washington State waters was a court decree that, the restoration of Indigenous rights. Part of the problem after years of struggle, marked a substantial shift for the dominant, settler population is epistemological, toward honoring Native fishing rights. rooted in the way meaning is determined.

First Nations and Native American Nations hold Above: Ornithologist and filmmaker Rob Butler was a keynote on to their own autonomy on both sides of the speaker at “Reconnecting” and is an advocate for a Nature Culture. international boundary. These groups have cared for Photo: Daniel Kirkpatrick, 2017

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 75 Time is always of the essence to European cultures. the land speak about different things, with different Contracts have deadlines, obligations are backed up meanings, even when discussing the same project by penalties if work is not done on time, and the idiom at the same location. Such communication and “time is money” reflects the bond between capitalist decisional processes are asymmetrical and come economies and the passage of time. This is an operant with built-in misunderstandings. worldview in which things are manipulated to achieve results, typically for financial gain. Such an orientation Such an asymmetry is not immutable, and the does not place value on taking time to listen to and door to a place-based consciousness is not closed learn from the ecosystem. Instead, things must be to settlers. Yet such awareness cannot be bought done. Forests cleared, crops planted, structures built, nor obtained quickly. Sit quietly. Do so regularly. products produced. One may lose ownership of one’s Observe. Spend time watching the seasons and the land by failing to pay tax bills on time. cycles of plant growth and the migration of animals to slowly build the experiential foundation needed Indigenous Peoples, in contrast, value place above to truly understand your place. The patterns of the all else. The land is alive. And for those living on the living world gradually emerge into discernible form land, the close relationship between humans, nature, for the denizen who applies consistent attention. and survival underscores the value of attending to Then, those patterns can be grounded in a cultural the nuances of the ecosystem. This attention cannot context through a similar discipline of learning be rushed. It is a worldview of attentive presence, the human history, the original names for natural following natural cycles rather than imposing features, and the stories that define the place. arbitrary schedules upon the work of living. When a place is threatened by development, as places so It is fortunate that decision making around land often are, the issue for Aboriginal people is not use and development is increasingly influenced by simply one of real estate. It is an issue of identity. an Aboriginal perspective. In Washington State, the construction of a vast new coal-shipping terminal was Thus, in land use decisions, the would-be abandoned in 2017 when the Lummi Nation asserted developer of the land and the one who lives close to tribal fishing rights in the adjacent waters. That fishery

Above: About fifty people gathered in June 2017 to share a feast and explore the meaning of stewardship, or shle’muxun, together. Photo: Lisa K. Beck, 2017

76 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 would have been irreversibly damaged if the coal port had been built. Such decisions demonstrate that while traditional peoples may be in a familiar position— Each performance is different, yet they all trace the advocating for the natural world—they may be doing complicated relationship between settlers and First so with a new level of political empowerment. Nations people, and they bring to life the path toward Another hopeful example of Native influence is reconciliation for those in attendance. Through a joint study of clam garden aquaculture around participatory arts, the Theatre for Living is playing the islands of the Salish Sea. This project brings an important role in facilitating the relational work together scientists from Parks Canada with coastal needed for a new era of understanding. First Nations elders to investigate the historical Back at the “Reconnecting” event, the lead practice of building clam gardens. At these sites, presenter sharing the stage with Florence James rocky berms were placed in intertidal waters to was Robert Butler, an ornithologist and filmmaker enhance habitat for key food species such as clams who advocates moving toward a Nature Culture.* and mussels. The recognition of this traditional As an ornithologist, Rob has spent significant time practice is “new” to modern science. Most vividly, observing the cycles of nature, giving him a rich the linkage between practitioners of traditional sense of place in the region. The Nature Culture ecological knowledge (TEK) and modern scientists initiative offers a path to link contemporary reflects a new opportunity to better understand living with a reverence for Nature and to bring this unique practice. sustainability within reach. Such acts as taking A theatrical production called Sxw?amet, or “Home,” walks in the woods for exercise, rather than marks a further bright spot in the development driving to the gym, foster both individual health of an eco-cultural consciousness in the Salish Sea. and an affirmation of nature. Eating more local Developed by a collection of Indigenous and settler and seasonal foods can strengthen local playwrights and performers, this production by and economies while stemming the flow of semi- the Theatre for Living incorporates audience trucks carrying food from distant factory farms. participation to explore barriers to reconciliation Cultivating community gardens can bring us closer and enrich participants’ cross-cultural awareness. to both our neighbors and to the earth. Sxw?amet was performed recently in Vancouver and Small group discussions followed the keynote is slated to be on tour throughout the region in 2018. speakers. Several dialogues had to do with land use: how can landowners care for their homes, farms, Above: Establishing a network of attentive stewards in the Salish Sea Bioregion may provide a model for other bioregions around the world. Photo: Daniel Kirkpatrick, 2017 * Editor’s Note: See Rob Butler’s article earlier in this section.

Volume 6 Issue 2 | 77 and woodlots in a way that ensures sustainability, into a region-wide species distribution and human while honoring Aboriginal traditions? The event heritage database. Together, such strategies form a was hosted by the Salish Sea Stewardship Alliance pragmatic land-based stewardship model. (SSSA), a nascent group aiming to help heal discordant and dysfunctional elements of the One does not have to tear up one’s land title to relationship between people and place. This group honor an eco-cultural perspective. A significant works from the recognition that, while time defines step in the right direction would be the adoption— life for those of European heritage, place defines life or restoration—of Indigenous place names. Since for Native peoples. Making the shift to sustainability those names, instead of featuring conquerors may require a shift from the primacy of time to the and exploiters, bring forth the living fabric of a primacy of place. place, embracing them is a vital way to restore a consciousness of place. Bringing terms from Progressive and environmentally oriented people are drawn to live in harmony with the nature “First Nations and Native American around them. Gardening, enhancing habitat, removing invasive species, and focusing on native Nations… have cared for the land vegetation are examples of healthy approaches and the water for millennia.” to caring for one’s land. But what would a deeper connection with the land entail? SSSA is developing Indigenous languages into regular use also offers tools for landowners to better understand and a chance to better understand a Native worldview honor First Nations rights, become more educated and perhaps reduce the asymmetry of cultures. about fostering ecological health, and obtain Ultimately, each denizen of the region must take stewardship certification for their land. steps to re-inhabit her or his place by investing attention in that place, growing in relation to that A variety of accreditation programs already exist place, and gradually making place paramount. for land and buildings. The most widely known example is LEED, or Leadership in Energy and The Salish Sea Bioregion has a high percentage of Environmental Design, but many others exist, ecologically minded people who—despite continued including the more comprehensive certification excessive consumption, reliance on fossil fuels, provided by The Living Building Challenge. What and general ignorance of Indigenous cultures—are SSSA seeks, beyond a green seal of approval, is beginning to wake up. Meaningful engagement and a demonstrated commitment to respecting eco- a deeper awareness of place can be the ground for cultural in addition to ecological factors. a community of landowners and allies committed to tracking biodiversity, fostering cultural reconciliation, A landowner might agree to use native species and supporting new, sustainable economies. in a habitat restoration project. She might mitigate rainwater runoff by ensuring that hard surfaces be Shle’muxun is an attainable and necessary goal. porous. And she might go further by ceding certain As a network of attentive stewards takes shape, the rights, like that of harvesting medicinal plants, to local door opens to a powerful new era in this bioregion, Aboriginal groups. Eventually that landowner might which ultimately may become a model for other take part in an eco-cultural inventory that would feed bioregions around the globe.

Daniel Kirkpatrick resides part time in Bellingham, USA, near his gardens and part time in the Canadian Gulf Islands, near an expanse of wild nature. Daniel has spent 40 years fostering learning focused on nature studies, human relations, martial arts, and global issues. He also loves writing, drawing, playing music, and carving wood. Further Reading Arnett, C. (1999). The Terror of the Coast. Vancouver, BC: Talonnbooks Press. Butler, R. (2017). Nature Culture Blog. Retrieved from http://www.pacificwildlife.wordpress.com Sellars, B. (2016). Price Paid: The Fight for First Nations Survival. Vancouver, BC: Talonbooks Press. Thornton, T. F. (2008). Being and Place Among the Tlingit. Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press.

78 | Langscape Magazine Winter 2017 . nature . language . culture .

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Terralingua n 1: the languages of the Earth, the many voices of the world’s diverse peoples. 2: the language of the Earth, the voice of Mother Nature. 3: an international non-governmental organization (NGO) that works to sustain the biocultural diversity of life – a precious heritage to be cherished, protected, and nurtured for generations to come. ¶ From Italian terra ‘earth’ and lingua ‘language’

www.terralingua.org “The more cultures there are, with a diverse set of approaches, worldviews, and strategies arising from them—and therefore the more varied the responses we give to a multitude of stress factors we are faced with—the more resilient we become as a global society. … We have to constantly remind ourselves that diversity—both in the species around us and within ourselves as yet another species—is one of the critical factors that will enable us to ensure our future on this intrinsically diverse planet.” ―Olga Mironenko