Robin Wall Kimmerer (1953-present)
Robin Wall Kimmerer (1953-present)
by Andrea Lent
Dr. Robin Wall Kimmerer is a citizen of the Potawatomi Nation and is the author of Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants. It is a collection of essays of the natural world, combining her knowledge as a botanist with the Indigenous wisdom she has learned as a member of the Potawatomi Nation. The book was a New York Times Bestseller, and it delivers a fresh perspective of the natural world to the public.
She says of Braiding Sweetgrass:
“My motivation for writing this book comes from the sense that because plants have taken care of our people for so long, I needed to speak up on their behalf, so that people would fall in love with plants again and honor all that they give us.”
Her first book, Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses, is a similar collection of essays celebrating the surprising teachings of moss and how their lives are intertwined with other living creatures.
No less significant of an accomplishment, Dr. Kimmerer is also the founding Director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment in Syracuse, New York. Its mission is “to create programs which draw on the wisdom of both indigenous and scientific knowledge for our shared goals of sustainability.” The Center also collaborates with Indigenous nations on environmental work and helps Indigenous students access higher education in environmental studies.
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