Herbs and Hurricanes (Audio)

The following audio presentation was recorded live at the 14th International Herb Symposium, June 2019.

What do hurricanes have to do with slavery, plant traditions of indigenous and African practices, present-day climate crises and movement building? This class shares how the natural disasters have brought different farmers, healers, and plants back together, weaving interconnections between places of origin, stories, recipes, and agri-cultural practices into a shared space of healing from “natural disasters” as well as colonialism in present times.

This class will share research and practices from Puerto Rico, Africa, Indigenous and African American practitioners, through the shared plants, herbs, remedies, and survival stories that have been passed down throughout centuries. Beginning from the personal story of a queer food activist in Puerto Rico after the devastation caused by Hurricanes Irma and María in 2017, this class will be but an opening into a much larger web of interconnection between healers, elders, activists, and organizers that use plant medicine within frontline communities and colonized groups around the world. The second part of the class is a story sharing/weaving of those present, as a next step through this ongoing practice of connecting through plants what many times has been erased or separated within communities.

Please note that all courses and lessons from the 14th International Herb Symposium are audio only. Transcriptions are unavailable at this time. Featured image by NASA. Image source: NASA Earth Observatory.