Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants

This event is presented in partnership with the KU Common Book, Office of Academic Success, Center for Undergraduate Research, The Commons, KU Biodiversity Institute & Natural History Museum, KU Libraries, and Haskell Indian Nations University

“Even a wounded world is feeding us. Even a wounded world holds us, giving us moments of wonder and joy. I choose joy over despair. Not because I have my head in the sand, but because joy is what the earth gives me daily and I must return the gift,” writes Robin Wall Kimmerer in Braiding Sweetgrass. This fascinating and thought-provoking collection of essays weaves together botany, the teachings of Indigenous peoples, and Kimmerer’s own experiences as a mother, teacher, and member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. Her essays explore the intertwined relationship between humans and the countless plant species that co-inhabit our planet, considering ways we can learn from plants as we seek to build a more sustainable world. Braiding Sweetgrass takes on vital and timely themes such as sustainability and the value of reciprocity.

Robin Wall Kimmerer is a Distinguished Teaching Professor of Environmental Biology and Director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry.

To learn more about the many additional events surrounding Kimmerer's visit and the KU Common Book, please visit the Braiding Sweetgrass Events Page.

Robin Wall Kimmerer, "Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants"