Kimmerer calls herself “a traveler between scientific and traditional ways of knowing” (“An Offering,” p. 37). How did Kimmerer ultimately find her path within academia? How did it change the types of questions she asked and how she engages with her work? Broaden this discussion by doing some research on current efforts to indigenize the curriculum either in higher ed or K-12, considering how it reflects Kimmerer's approach. In your opinion, are there benefits to approaching education in this way? Why or why not?
Elizabeth Wainright, in her review of No Country for Eight-Spot Butterflies, says: “Aguon recognizes but doesn’t dwell on destruction: ‘Indignation is not nearly enough to build a bridge.’ He says that we need to get ‘a hell of a lot more serious about articulating alternatives if we hope to withstand the forces of predatory global capitalism and ultimately replace its ethos of extraction with one of our own. In the case of my own people, an ethos of reciprocity.’”
Research some current efforts to address climate change. Do they, as Aguon suggests, represent an “ethos of extraction”? Giving ample attention to our readings, what does a climate change approach grounded in “an ethos of reciprocity” look like? In your discussion, you might consider mitigation efforts vs. adaptation efforts. (See: the two linked articles below)
Do some research into gift economies vs. market economies, giving ample attention to Kimmerer’s discussion in “The Gift of Strawberries.” Provide concrete examples of each type of economy. According to your research (and to your readings), how does each type of economy inform various types of relationships (with people, with the earth)? Which type of economy most aligns with your personal ethic?
Coll Rowe writes for the book publisher Penguin Random House "Part memoir, part manifesto, Chamorro climate activist Julian Aguon’s No Country for Eight-Spot Butterflies is a collection of essays on resistance, resilience, and collective power in the age of climate disaster; and a call for justice—for everyone, but in particular, for Indigenous peoples.”
Both Kimmerer and Aguon ground their advocacy in personal experience. How does this challenge the notion that the only valuable knowledge is objective knowledge? How can personal experience and memoir serve as a powerful tool in advocacy work?
Find Scholarly Articles, Books, and Book Chapters to search for sources from different disciplinary lenses, including literary criticism, education, and science.
(Books, ebooks, articles, videos, and more)
Here is a list of starting concepts and keywords you might use for analyzing Braiding Sweetgrass and/or No Country for Eight-Spot Butterflies
Survivance
Memoir
Storytelling
Cultural Identity
Identity in Literature
Two-Eyed Seeing
Environmental Justice
Indigenous Knowledge
Western Knowledge
Western Science
Objective
Subjective
Sustainability
Regenerative
Mitigation
Adaptation
Climate Resistance
Gift-giving Economy
Sharing Economy
Reciprocity
Capitalism
Market Economy
Advocacy & Activism
Indigeneity
Education
- this list is just a starting place!