Perspectives Book Group - Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants

Presenter: Damian Costello

As part of New Hampshire Humanities' Perspectives Book Groups, we're reading Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer. 

As a botanist, Robin Wall Kimmerer has been trained to ask questions of nature with the tools of science. As a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, she embraces the notion that plants and animals are our oldest teachers. In Braiding Sweetgrass, Kimmerer brings these two lenses of knowledge together to take us on “a journey that is every bit as mythic as it is scientific, as sacred as it is historical, as clever as it is wise” (Elizabeth Gilbert).

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. 

Pre-registration is required to receive the book prior to discussion. Please contact the host to reserve your spot.

Join us as we celebrate 50 years of bringing the humanities to your community!

Event Details

When:

Tuesday, September 13, 2022 7:00pm

Where:

Museum of the White Mountains, Plymouth State University
17 High Street
Plymouth NH 03264

Hosted By:

Museum of the White Mountains

Contact Info:

Museum of the White Moutains, museum.wm@plymouth.edu