Land to people, people to land - rethinking, rekindling, reconnecting
Kat High has spent most of her life encouraging people to do it…to connect to their natural environment no matter where they are, no matter how small and seemingly insignificant that environment may be…and if it is absent, to create some organic space; a container garden on an apartment roof, a ladder of herbs in the corner of a kitchen.
The Station fire of 2009 became the catalyst for Kat, of Hupa Indian descent and a lifelong activist and educator, to learn more about fire - and land management - from a different perspective. She sought knowledge about how people related to the American landscape prior to European contact.
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Over the last two decades, it has become increasingly accepted that this continent was not simply a big, untamed wilderness that included human inhabitants. Aside from civilizations which practiced farming, nomadic and semi-nomadic tribal people also affected their landscapes with purpose.
They used fire to maintain open space, promote good grazing and in turn, good hunting, and to keep forested areas accessible. They planted desirable plants along their travel routes. They pruned plants to affect the way they grew. They were always, in every moment, interacting with their environment. Being “one with nature” was no cliche…it was the way of it. There was no alternate reality.
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In the absence of that seamless connection, when fences, reservations, livestock and civilization replaced the organic relationship, the landscape began to change. After thousands of years of human habitation at sustainable levels, plants and indeed whole environs had become adapted to the management practices of native people. In the absence of that relationship, undesirable side effects developed.
Popular debate during the first century of colonization centered around whether or not Indians should be considered human, and if they had souls; considering the value of their land management practices was well beyond the scope of what European settlers were prepared to discuss. And so new land management policies were adopted. Fire was bad and fought at all costs. Whole wilderness areas were set aside for enjoyment, and using the resources within them was prohibited. Other environs were completely destroyed to make room for large scale agriculture, cities, water allocation, grazing and mining.
Fast forward to today. Our forests are not as healthy as they were 100, 200, 500 years ago. Catastrophic fires are becoming the norm. Insect infestations are frequent occurrences.
Something’s broken.
On Saturday, June 14, Kat will share what she’s learned from Native American elders, and from the science community, about how native people managed the land, what effects it had on the environment, what’s changed in the absence of that relationship, and what we can do to turn the tide and start getting things back in balance.
“Co-Creating an Abundant Continent - Native American Land Management” will be presented at Chilao School, located in Chilao Campground in the Angeles National Forest, at 11 AM on Saturday June 14. The talk is free and everyone is welcome. There will be open, informal discussion after the presentation. There will be a potluck style lunch and a optional hike in Chilao campground, where it is presently high spring and the forest is in bloom.
From the 210 freeway in La Canada, take Angeles Crest Highway (Highway 2) north 24.5 miles to Chilao campground, at mile marker 49.69. Turn left into the campground and follow the red and white Redbird signs to Chilao School, approximately 1.5 miles form the main highway.
Massage therapist Jamie Sullo will also be attending, offering chair massage throughout the event. Contributions to the potluck style lunch, as well as donations for Kat’s presentation, Jamie’s services or the Chilao School roof repair fund are welcome and appreciated.
The event is hosted by Redbird, a Native American and environmental 501(c)(3) non profit. You can find more information about Redbird and Chilao School on their website, and on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/ChilaoSchool
http://www.facebook.com/RedbirdsVision
Corina Roberts on facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/corina.roberts.1
Redbird website