All Western Conservation Events

“Resisting the Global Land Grab,” a virtual event exploring how histories of colonialism, apartheid and uneven development have set the terms for today’s “solutions” to ecological crisis, engaging not only the common conditions of oppression faced by Indigenous communities across the world, but also the solidarities they are forging in their shared struggle against neocolonial conservation—and for Land Back.

SPEAKERS
* Krystal Two Bulls (Oglala Lakota/Cheyenne), Executive Director of Honor the Earth
* Nnimmo Bassey, Nigerian architect, environmental activist, author, poet, and Director of the environmental think tank Health of Mother Earth Foundation
* Ashley Dawson, Distinguished Professor of Postcolonial Studies at the Graduate Center, City University of New York and the College of Staten Island and Red Natural History Fellow

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Held on July 18, 2024, this webinar was curated by Ashley Dawson as part of “Natural History for a World in Crisis,” a virtual programming series organized by Red Natural History Fellows with The Natural History Museum.

Made possible with support from the Henry Luce Foundation, Hewlett Foundation and 4Culture.

Natural History for a World in Crisis

“Indigenizing Coastal Conservation,” a virtual event asking what it means to place Indigenous knowledge and tribal sovereignty at the heart of conservation. Focusing on ongoing work to fight coastal erosion on the Pacific coast, this event engages a frank conversation with Native and non-Native ocean conservation practitioners grappling with the complexities of decolonizing the conservation movement and incorporating Indigenous worldviews effectively and appropriately with mainstream approaches.

SPEAKERS
* Dina Gilio-Whitaker (Colville Confederated Tribes), Lecturer of American Indian Studies at California State University San Marcos, independent educator in American Indian environmental policy, and Red Natural History Fellow
* Leah Mata-Fragua (yak titʸu titʸu yak tiłhini Chumash)
Artist, Educator and Council Member, YTT Northern Chumash Tribe
* Calla Allison, Founder and Executive Director of the Marine Protected Area Collaborative Network
* Gus Gates, West Coast Regional Director of the Surfrider Foundation

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Held on June 28, 2024, this webinar was curated by Dina Gilio-Whitaker as part of “Natural History for a World in Crisis,” a virtual programming series organized by Red Natural History Fellows with The Natural History Museum.

Made possible with support from the Henry Luce Foundation, Hewlett Foundation and 4Culture

This panel brought together frontline communities, including Indigenous elders from the Pacific Northwest and environmental justice advocates from rural Appalachia and the Gulf South. Drawing on intergenerational knowledge and the lived experience of struggle, speakers shined a spotlight on the costs, public health impacts, and environmental damage caused by extractive and fossil fuel-based energy initiatives. They also addressed the power of people around the world to come together around truly clean energy solutions — solutions that contribute to the regeneration of the air, land, and water, and to the flourishing of communities that have been sacrifice zones for decades and longer.

Moderator * Beka Economopoulos, The Natural History Museum, Pacific Northwest

Speakers

* Rueben George, Sacred Trust Initiative, Tsleil-Waututh Nation

* Yvette Arellano, Fenceline Watch, Texas/Gulf Coast

* Germaine Patterson, Women for a Healthy Environment, Pittsburgh/Mon Valley, PA

* Heaven Sensky, Center for Coalfield Justice, Washington County, PA

* Gillian Graber, Protect PT, Westmoreland/Allegheny County, PA

Roundtable co-organized by @BreatheProject and @The Natural History Museum at @Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens Pittsburgh, PA Thursday, September 22, 2022

“We have a warrior right here from Lummi, Jewell James, who has been fighting for decades and decades and decades. He fought with my mother on the same side, and with my oldest sister. Jewell and I work together, so it’s this generational effort of protecting our sacred sites.”

This video interview was recorded during the first Alliance of Earth, Sky and Water Protectors Summit at the Lummi Nation Stommish Grounds, May 27-29, 2022.

Squil-le-he-le Raynell Morris is a mother, grandmother, and an enrolled Lummi tribal member. As Associate Director of Intergovernmental Affairs under President Clinton, Raynell was the first Native American staffer appointed to the White House, and has served as Chief of Staff for the Chairman of Lummi Nation. At Lummi Nation’s Sovereignty and Treaty Protection Office, she was a key strategist in the successful campaign to block a proposal to build North America’s largest coal port on Lhaq’temish (Lummi) sacred ground.

“The last thing that is wanted for us right now is for us to unify. And that’s what we’re doing here. We are unifying and we are joining force. They do everything they can to stop that. They’ve taken children from women. They’ve abused us. They’ve killed us. They’ve murdered us. They’ve taken everything they possibly could from us, and yet we’re still here.”

This video interview was recorded during the first Alliance of Earth, Sky and Water Protectors Summit at the Lummi Nation Stommish Grounds, May 27-29, 2022.

Liv Bigtree (Oneida) grew up on the Onondaga Nation where she learned about her culture and traditions. Based in the Onondaga Nation and Mohawk Nation territories, she is an artist, whose work is about her connection to her culture and identity. Taking inspiration from her favorite Indigenous artist and mentor Wendy Red Star, her work often brings awareness to issues that face Indigenous peoples. By using mediums such as performance art and sculpture, she hopes to educate others in a way that westernized education does not. Outside of her art, Olivia continues to advocate for her people by attending protest marches and learning from her elders.