DeepSummary
This episode features a conversation between Jane Goodall and Robin Wall Kimmerer, an author, botanist, and member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. They discuss their shared appreciation for nature and their journeys in connecting traditional indigenous knowledge with western science. Kimmerer shares how her upbringing and Potawatomi heritage shaped her perspective on plants and the natural world, and how she initially struggled to reconcile this with the scientific worldview she encountered in academia.
They explore the similarities and differences between scientific inquiry and indigenous ways of knowing, emphasizing the value and importance of both. Goodall reflects on her own experiences in studying chimpanzees and the need for empathy and imagination alongside scientific rigor. They also discuss the concept of distributed intelligence in nature, such as in plants and octopuses, and the ethical considerations surrounding a plant-based diet.
Throughout the conversation, Goodall and Kimmerer stress the interconnectedness of all life and the urgency of reconnecting with the natural world. They highlight the role of storytelling in fostering this connection and sharing knowledge, and encourage individuals to take action on issues they are passionate about, whether locally or globally.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- Recognize the interconnectedness of all life and our integral relationship with the earth.
- Cultivate empathy, imagination, and a sense of wonder towards nature.
- Appreciate the value of storytelling in sharing knowledge and fostering a connection with the natural world.
- Take action on issues you are passionate about, whether locally or globally, to make a difference.
- Encourage a reconnection with nature and allow it to heal while also playing a responsible role in that process.
- Expand our understanding of intelligence and recognize different forms, such as distributed intelligence in plants and animals.
- Reflect on the ethical considerations surrounding our relationship with the natural world, such as a plant-based diet.
- Embrace both indigenous wisdom and scientific knowledge to gain a more holistic understanding of the natural world.
Top Episodes Quotes
- βThere's a whole protocol for how we treat the living world as relative. You know, when we met at Onondaga lake, that day opened, as does any gathering in Haudenosaunee territory, with what they call the words that come before all else, which are exactly what you're saying. It is an inventory of thanks to the waters and the fish and the trees and the birds and the plants.β by Speaker B
- βYou know, in that film, I was thinking, of course, in that very section you're referencing about that. That's how plant intelligence is. It's a distributed intelligence of meristems and buds and root tips, all gathering and processing information. And we were blind to it because it's not how we think. We concluded that they must not be thinking at all, as opposed to opening our imagination to what creative problem solver you would be with distributed intelligence. Octopus or a pine tree.β by Speaker B
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Episode Information
The Jane Goodall Hopecast
Dr. Jane Goodall
2/27/22
This special bonus episode of the Jane Goodall Hopecast premiered at On Air Fest 2022. Join Dr. Goodall as she speaks with author, botanist, decorated professor, and enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, Robin Wall Kimmerer. Dr. Kimmerer is the author of Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants and the founder of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment, at The State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse, New York. In this thoughtful conversation, Jane and Robin consider how much more there is to not only learn about plants, but to learn from them as well. They each share the ways their mothers encouraged their love of nature and their journeys through academia. They express their appreciation for science and the value of viewing the world through an analytical lens, but emphasize the totality of the βways of knowing,β including millenia of wisdom shared from indigenous cultures. Robin reflects on how she merges her Indigenous knowledge and scientific curiosity to create a more holistic viewpoint. Jane recalls how her own imagination was sparked through stories and a desire to observe, which enabled her to push traditional scientific boundaries. The pair also focus on the urgent need to encourage a reconnection with the natural world through stories, in order to prevent the ills facing our world. As Robin succinctly puts it, βin my own evolution I have gone from scientist to storyteller because it feels like thatβs what we need right now.β