This fall, BC4C will read Robin Wall Kimmerer's "Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants". Kimmerer's book braids together indigenous stories, scientific explanations, and her own experiences to weave a gift "meant to heal our relationship with the world."
We will explore our relationships and responsibilities to our work, one another, and the Earth. Many people have deepened and expanded their relationships to the natural world in the wake of COVID 19, and we will explore how we can continue to grow in harmony with our natural environments.
Please use this form to register for one of the BC4C groups. Given the sensitive nature of the discussions in these groups, each is protected with a unique password, and you must fill out the form in order to get the credential.
We will have our first meeting on September 28, and then meet every other week starting from October 5. There are two opportunities to participate: Tuesdays @ 4pm PT/7pm ET or Wednesdays @ 11am PT/2pm ET. Click the events below to see the week's discussion questions.
Drawing on her life as an indigenous scientist, and as a woman, Kimmerer shows how other living beings--asters and goldenrod, strawberries and squash, salamanders, algae, and sweetgrass--offer us gifts and lessons, even if we've forgotten how to hear their voices. In reflections that range from the creation of Turtle Island to the forces that threaten its flourishing today, she circles toward a central argument: that the awakening of ecological consciousness requires the acknowledgment and celebration of our reciprocal relationship with the rest of the living world. For only when we can hear the languages of other beings will we be capable of understanding the generosity of the earth, and learn to give our own gifts in return — From Bookshop.org
There are many ways to secure a copy of Braiding Sweetgrass that we've listed below. This is a GORGEOUS audiobook and listening to it is as much a pleasure and experience as reading it. Feel free to secure your copy however you enjoy stories the most!
Robin Wall Kimmerer is a mother, scientist, decorated professor, and enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. She is the author of Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants, which has earned Kimmerer wide acclaim.