IT'S UP TO US!
Dr. Flyswithhawks is a Professor of Psychology and past Department Chair of the Behavioral Sciences Department at Santa Rosa Junior College (SRJC) in Santa Rosa, California. She has served as Director of the Behavioral Health Department at the Sonoma County Indian Health Project, maintained a private clinical practice in Santa Rosa, and is the past Co-Director of the National SEED Project (Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity) at Wellesley College. She lives her life as an indigenous activist addressing structural systemic racism, protecting sacred sites, and advocating for the rights of all First Nations people. As a member of the Pepperwood Preserve Native American Council, she participated in overseeing Cory O’Gorman’s work on the Black Oak Restoration and Conservation Project. She is the author of the October 2020 Santa Rosa Junior College Land Acknowledgement Statement.
Dr. Flyswithhawks will address the importance of the intersection of indigenous traditional values and practices with western science in addressing climate restoration. Her interest is in “(re)Generation,” gestures toward renewal and the possibilities of how to restore the Earth and human communities while creating a positive future for the next generations. Her vision is to develop mechanisms to protect our sacred sites, land, water, air, natural resources, health of both our people and all living things, and to build economically sustainable communities. She identifies as Tsalági Eastern Cherokee, is of the Bird Clan by birth and is a traditional dancer, singer, drummer, and storyteller. She adheres to her traditional Tsalági teachings and believes that all Native people are in a coming home process…a coming home to the traditional way of life. Dr. Brenda Flyswithhawks, Ph.D. [email protected] |