Bookmarked: Jacob Moore
Jacob Moore is the VP & special advisor to the president on American Indian affairs at Arizona State University
Recommends: “Braiding Sweetgrass” by Dr. Robin Wall Kimmerer
His Take:
“In the book, the author states when land is, ‘just real estate, then restoration looks very different than if land is the source of a subsistence economy and a spiritual home. Restoring land for production of natural resources is not the same as renewal of land as cultural identity.’ While Robin Kimmerer is a botanist concerned with ecological restoration, her poetic prose and intellectual curiosity are steeped in Indigenous knowledge and how these teachings can inform current and future conditions of this home we call Mother Earth.
The book is beautifully written and offers lessons on the reciprocal relationship between plants and people that seamlessly blend Western science and traditional lessons passed down through generations of Indigenous peoples. Kimmerer gently pulls you into the plant world and traditional teachings of reciprocity. The lessons of gratitude and reciprocity are woven throughout the book, reminding us that the gifts we receive from nature also come with the responsibility of returning those gifts with gratitude and care. ‘Braiding Sweetgrass’ is a reaffirmation that Indigenous knowledge has much to offer mainstream thinking if we only take the time to listen and truly appreciate lessons that the natural world offers.”
Learn about the Office of American Indian Initiatives (OAII) at ASU at americanindianaffairs.asu.edu.
