Boozhoo!

Please join us for an opportunity to learn about cultural practices of the Ojibwe whose approach to life mirror those of many KUUF members. Introducing non-indigenous members of society to an Ojibwe perspective has become a work we have been asked to do regularly.  In this day and age, there are few of us who are not affected by the spread of dominant society’s perspective of place.  The pull of the extraction economy has consumed our hearts and minds in ways none of us yet fully understand.  One way to move forward is to take the opportunity to look back once again and hear the teachings that have, for millennia, shown the people how to live in a sustainable existence of respect and reciprocity.  As humankind faces a time when our biggest battles come from within, it will be from within our stories and understandings that we will begin to see our way out.

Bios-
Maangwan odoodeman, miskwaabekong odoonjibaa, Ziigwanikwe izhinikaazo. Ziigwanikwe (Katy Bresette) is a member of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Ojibwe from the loon clan in Northern Wisconsin.  Ziigwanikwe has lived and worked in various communities as an Ojibwe educator. She now resides in Northern Michigan with her partner and their children, exploring Ojibwe cultural and environmental education.

Gidigaa bizhiw (Jerry Jondreau) hails from Wiikwedong, or the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community (KBIC), where he currently resides with his family.  Jerry began working with his Tribe’s natural resources department as a technician and has been involved ever since. Jerry received his Bachelor’s degree in Forestry from Michigan Tech and returned to the reservation to establish the first KBIC Tribal Forestry Department.  Jerry and his family continue to exercise their treaty rights and continuously work to strengthen their relationship with and reinforce their responsibilities to our natural world.

Miigwech!