Winona LaDuke: Indigenous Thinking about a Post Carbon, Post Empire Economy
Aug. 25, 2008 by ngarrett
Wednesday, September 3, 4:15 p.m., Memorial Chapel
Reception to Follow in Zelnick Pavilion
Winona LaDuke, an Environmental and Political Activist will welcome the Wesleyan community back to campus with an address on “Indigenous Thinking about a Post Carbon, Post Empire Economy.” LaDuke is an Anishinaabekwe (Ojibwe) enrolled member of the Mississippi Band Anishinaabeg who lives and works on the White Earth Reservations, and is the mother of three children. At the age of 18, she spoke in front of the United Nations regarding Indian issues and since has become known as a voice for American Indian economic and environmental concerns throughout the United States and internationally.As Program Director of the Honor the Earth Fund, she works on a national level to advocate, raise public support, and create funding for frontline native environmental groups. She also works as Founding Director for White Earth Land Recovery Project. A graduate of Harvard and Antioch Universities, LaDuke has written extensively on Native American and Environmental issues, including the novel Last Standing Woman (1997), the non-fiction book All our Relations: Native Struggles for Land and Life (1999), and Recovering the Sacred: the Power of Naming and Claiming (2005), a book about traditional beliefs and practices. LaDuke enlightens audiences about issues of racism and social injustice suffered as a result of contact with white people and the colonialism that followed. LaDuke’s storytelling reflects many aspects of traditional, Anishinabe culture, including a sustenance lifestyle and the importance of community, ceremony and respect for all things.
