Overview

As a botanist and professor of plant ecology, Robin Wall Kimmerer has spent a career learning how to ask questions of nature using the tools of science. As a Potawatomi woman, she learned from elders, family, and history that the Potawatomi, as well as a majority of other cultures indigenous to this land, consider plants and animals to be our oldest teachers. In Braiding Sweetgrass, Kimmerer brings these two lenses of knowing together to reveal what it means to see humans as the younger brothers of creation. As she explores these themes, she circles toward a central argument: The awakening of a wider ecological consciousness requires the acknowledgement and celebration of our reciprocal relationship with the world. Once we begin to listen for the languages of other beings, we can begin to understand the innumerable life-giving gifts the world provides us and learn to offer our thanks, our care, and our own gifts in return.

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9781799983156

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Reviews

Eloquently makes the case that by observing and celebrating our reciprocal relationship with the natural world, one can gain greater ecological consciousness. -- Sierra Magazine Kimmerer knows that the answer to all forms of ecological unbalance have long been hidden in plain sight, told in the language of plants and animals, minerals and elements. She draws on her own heritage...to advocate for a renewed connection between human beings and nature. -- Outside magazine Kimmerer merges her experiences within each of these identities and communities to explore nature through scientific, cultural, and philosophical lenses. She urges readers to examine their relationship with the natural world, and open themselves up to the idea that plants and animals have valuable lessons to teach us. -- BuzzFeed Remarkable, wise, and potentially paradigm-shifting...A coherent and compelling call for what [Kimmerer] describes as 'restorative reciprocity', an appreciation of gifts and the responsibilities that come with them, and how gratitude can be medicine for our sick, capitalistic world. -- The Guardian (London) She captures beauty that I love the most--the images of giant cedars and wild strawberries, a forest in the rain and a meadow of fragrant sweetgrass will stay with you long after you read the last page. -- Jane Goodall, anthropologist, activist, and New York Times bestselling author

Author Information

Robin Wall Kimmerer is Distinguished Teaching Professor at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry. She also serves as founding director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment. Her first book, Gathering Moss, was awarded the 2005 John Burroughs Medal for outstanding nature writing. Robin Wall Kimmerer is Distinguished Teaching Professor at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry. She also serves as founding director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment. Her first book, Gathering Moss, was awarded the 2005 John Burroughs Medal for outstanding nature writing.

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