Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer Pdf Download

Details of Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer Book

Book Name: Braiding Sweetgrass
Authors: Robin Wall Kimmerer
Pages: 409
Genre: Biography, Nature writing, Autobiography
Publish Date: 2013
Language: English

Book Review:

Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer written by alyssa brunette in quick read narrated by alex smith introduction save more bees plant more trees clean our seas we see a number of motivational slogans like these on eco-friendly

t-shirts and indeed these pithy messages are great reminders that climate change is one of the most pressing issues of our

era unfortunately however many people stop at wearing t-shirts that raise awareness having broadcasted their values on their clothing many assume that they've done their part for saving the planet and sadly many of the people

who proudly wear these t-shirts are the same people who don't adjust their lifestyle to include sustainable practices this is certainly bad but

it pales in comparison to those who ignore climate change altogether so what can we do how can we get everyone on board to create a truly sustainable future how can we give our planet what it needs to answer these questions

we will turn to the wisdom of native american people who have existed in harmony with nature for centuries and over the course of this summary we'll explore the toxic impact of colonization on culture and climate to learn

why we should have listened to indigenous people a long time ago chapter one torn between two cultures you might assume that the author's research on the sustainability practices of indigenous tribes is the result of interviews

an anthropological study but the author is actually native american herself her family is from the patawatomi tribe the padawatomi are an algonquian native american people in

the great plains upper mississippi river and western great lakes region the potawatomi people speak their own language also called padawatami and in their language

the name of their tribe means people of the place of fire like other native american tribes the padawatami have a rich cultural history that has been all but destroyed through decades of colonization and abuse by white oppressors

in the early 1800s they were slowly starved off their ancestral lands by american settlers until they had no choice but to give up their land and allow white colonists to settle there once they had given up control

they were quickly marched out of this state and onto reservations in a manner very similar to the notorious forced relocation known as the trail of tears given this painful history of colonization and depression it's unsurprising that

the pottawatomie people would cling to their ancestral heritage and be suspicious of white american culture as a result the author often felt that she was torn between two worlds she soaked up the native traditions

oral history of her grandmother and felt compelled to honor and embrace her heritage but as an american kid growing up in new york she also felt tremendous pressure to be normal and fit in while

this is a difficult balance for every child to strike the pressure is certainly more intense for children who are being raised in two different cultures the author felt that this strain was especially difficult because her two cultures were polar opposites the dichotomy was especially obvious

when it came to cultural attitude towards food and farming for example her pottawatomie family taught her about the importance of gratitude sustainability and reciprocity they believe that people and nature are interconnected in a mutually beneficial relationship

so when you were kind to the environment you are also being kind to yourself and vice versa they also believe that human beings have a moral obligation to show gratitude for nature's bounty for example if you enjoy wild berries or grains that you have grown or harvested yourself

you should be kind to nature and express gratitude for what you have enjoyed in practice this might mean that you plant a seed as a gesture of thanks or do something else that encourages nature to flourish modern america by contrast is primarily interested in what it can take although

we are seeing an increase in efforts to give back to nature and respect the planet we have an overabundance of food waste fast fashion and deforestation rather than thanking the planet for what it gives us we are violently taking what

we want and giving little in return having noticed this catastrophic disparity between the values of her two worlds the author began to think critically about the values of her native people

when you compare the two cultures attitudes and values it's certainly easy to see which is preferable and that's why kimmerer thinks it's time that we normalize native american sustainability practices chapter 2 sustainability through reciprocity

now that we've examined some of the core values of the pottawatomie it's time to take a closer look at how these values would affect our lives and practice the author believes that a shift in our attitude towards nature and our relationship with it would be the biggest step in the right direction because as

you can see from the previous chapter our entire outlook would be different if we viewed ourselves as being in a mutually beneficial relationship with nature in this respect our relationship with the planet would be much like our relationship with a romantic partner or a friend in either scenario

it's widely accepted that being selfish is a bad thing no one wants to invest in a relationship where one person takes without giving anything in return so if we thought of ourselves as doing that to the planet

how would it impact our world view what will we stop doing what practices would we implement instead for example many people think of recycling as being an extremely environmental friendly practice and indeed

it is but often we do the bare minimum when it comes to recycling and behave as though we expect to receive a trophy for our sacrifices and sustainability this example shows exactly how skewed a world

view can be because it's highly unlikely that we would condone the attitude in our relationship with another person for example if you gave your boyfriend a kiss or remembered his birthday would you think wow

i'm the world's best girlfriend probably not right rather you'd understand that you were doing the bare minimum and that you should really up your game instead of doing the bare minimum you would probably

think that you should do more to show that you love and appreciate him and that's exactly how we should approach our relationship with the earth the potawatomi understands this and they put this into practice through many facets of their everyday lives one example can be seen through a tradition known as the honorable harvest a honorable harvest is

founded on the principle that the earth does not exist solely for human consumption other animals and plants depend on nature for survival as well the pottawatomie believe that you must respect this balance if you want to live in harmony with nature so when they grew crops

the people only harvested half of what they grew the half was used to feed their families the other half was used to feed the wild animals and plants who lived in the area and depended on the availability of crops and fertile soil to growin doing

so the potawatomi believe that they are giving back to nature and thanking the land and other animals by acknowledging their mutually beneficial relationship this practice is not mandated by the government or enforced in any way

rather is something that people do willingly out of the goodness of their own hearts because it's a value they cherish and having considered the example the author posits that modern american society should introduce similar practices although

we currently have no such laws on the books kimmerer argues that we shouldn't have to make this practice a legal statute instead what if we simply showed other people the importance of being kind to the planet as we are kind to one another what if this was something people wanted to do

if we could orchestrate a shift in our cultural mentality and view sustainability practices as an act of kindness then we wouldn't try to pat ourselves on the back for simple acts like recycling and we wouldn't waste our time trying to legislate practices that many people wouldn't follow anyways instead

we would willingly engage in sustainability through a sense of reciprocity and rather than snatching resources from the earth we could revolutionize our attitudes about what

we need and what we have a right to take from nature that's why the author posits that the concept of reciprocity is key to conceptualizing our relationship with nature by definition reciprocity means the practice of exchanging

things with others for mutual benefit especially privileges granted by one country or organization to another and whether we think about it in those terms or not we already rely heavily on the concept of reciprocity in other facets of our lives for example as previously mentioned most of our human relationships are centered around

an equal balance of give and take we share our resources our support and our knowledge with others we give freely of our time energy love and friendship when we learn something new most of us understand that

we should take the opportunity to enrich someone else's life by teaching them that skill and in return others do the same for us in fact our earliest lessons about life are shaped by the concept of reciprocity as early as preschool

we learned that sharing is caring we are taught to do unto others as you would have them do unto you and from these lessons we glean a clear message about the world if we are kind others will be kind to us if we do the right things other people will do the right things too we think of this

when we offer someone our seat when we hold the door when we say please or thank you we think of this whenever we do something that we would want others to do for us so why can't we think about this when it comes to our relationship with nature chapter 3 practicing sustainability the Potawatomi

way in the previous chapter we established that a shift in our attitude is the first big step for implementing sustainability practices but now it's time to take a look at the other things we should do the author's actionable strategies on this topic stem from a combination of her Pottawatomie heritage

her experience as a professor of environmental biology throughout her career kimmer has found that blending her culture and her education has proved invaluable because her heritage has enabled her to teach sustainability practices in a uniquely compelling

way drawing on her grandmother's teachings about reciprocity and the honorable harvest the author typically invites her students to truly go out and engage with nature rather than learning about it from the textbook

she encourages them to get their hands dirty in her very own garden and witness the interconnected life cycle of plants animals and humans for themselves she also blends traditional teaching methods with stories about indigenous agricultural practices these stories help her to illustrate the point that

we should concentrate on the interconnectedness of all life we should plant seeds that are compatible with one another and that will grow well together we should learn about the relationships between plants and identify

those that would naturally co-exist in a harmonious mutually beneficial relationship and by allowing plants to flourish and protect each other we could eliminate toxic and unsustainable practices like covering our crops in harmful pesticides and above all we can pass our wisdom to

the next generation this is perhaps the most vital lesson of all because our future depends on our children no one is born with an unkind view of the earth just as no one is born racist we learn hatred prejudice and selfishness from the ignorance of those who teach us but what

if we taught our children to be thankful above all else what if we taught them to view the earth as their friend what if we encouraged them to look after the planet and each other if we want the next generation to have a future then we need to teach them to give back to the planet final summary

when people hear about climate change they often scornfully dismiss it as a hoax or a divisive political issue but the author believes that our relationship with the planet should be neither divisive nor political rather

we should take care of the earth because we want to because we understand that humans and nature are inexorably intertwined that's what the author learned from her pottawatomie family they taught her to take only

what she needs from the planet to be thankful for the earth and to give back with a grateful heart these life lessons have not only shaped her worldview but they have influenced her career as a professional of environmental biology

as a native american woman in an academic camera firmly believes that indigenous teachings should be included in the conversation on sustainability if we implemented native american sustainability practices and passed these values onto the next generation.

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