Hundreds of Visitors Attend Talk by Renowned Author Robin Wall Kimmerer at SUNY Potsdam

During her visit to campus, Kimmerer took part in a series of impactful discussions and workshops with different campus groups, culminating with her public talk. First, she met with student tutors from the Writing Block, and then joined anthropology faculty and students to make pasta and flatbreads by hand for a shared meal in the HEARTH. Next, the author met with students from eight classes across the disciplines who have been studying her writings this semester.

During a special workshop in the WISER Greenhouse, participants learned about transplanting seedlings along with Kimmerer and SUNY Potsdam students and faculty. Inspired by Kimmerer’s latest book, “The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World,” each participant was given a serviceberry shrub to take home in a pot and plant in a “forever home.” An additional set of seedlings were prepped to be planted around campus this spring. The serviceberries (also known as juneberries, saskatoon or shadbush) were provided by St. Lawrence Nurseries, and included multiple native varieties to choose from. Participants were also gifted copies of the book itself. This event was made possible thanks to the Joseph C. Sarnoff Endowment, which honors the memory of Joe Sarnoff (Hon. ’10). 

Kimmerer was trailed by a film crew during her visit and talk. HitPlay Productions is currently producing a documentary titled “Seeing Green,” which follows Kimmerer and two other “scientific renegades,” who each listen to and learn from plants and the natural world.

The author’s final session was a gathering with SUNY Potsdam faculty and staff, who took part in a conversation about ways to build a culture of belonging for Indigenous students and peoples, both on campus and across the community. 

This LoKo Arts project was made possible by the generosity and artistic vision of Kathryn (Kofoed) Lougheed ’54 and Donald Lougheed (Hon. ’54). The event was planned in partnership with the Potsdam Native American Initiative. 

About the author: 

Robin Wall Kimmerer is a mother, scientist, decorated professor, and enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. She is the author of  “Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants,” which has earned Kimmerer wide acclaim. Her first book, “Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses,” was awarded the John Burroughs Medal for outstanding nature writing, and her other work has appeared in Orion, Whole Terrain, and numerous scientific journals. In 2022, “Braiding Sweetgrass”  was adapted for young adults by Monique Gray Smith. This new edition reinforces how wider ecological understanding stems from listening to the earth’s oldest teachers: the plants around us. Kimmerer’s newest book,  “The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World”  (released in November 2024), is a bold and inspiring vision for how to orient our lives around gratitude, reciprocity and community, based on the lessons of the natural world. 

Kimmerer tours widely and has been featured on NPR’s “On Being with Krista Tippett” and in 2015 addressed the general assembly of the United Nations on the topic of “Healing our Relationship with Nature.” Kimmerer is a SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor of Environmental Biology, and the founder and director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment, whose mission is to create programs which draw on the wisdom of both indigenous and scientific knowledge for our shared goals of sustainability. In 2022, she was named a MacArthur Fellow. 

As a writer and a scientist, her interests in restoration include not only restoration of ecological communities, but restoration of our relationships to land. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in botany from the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, a Master of Science degree and Ph.D. in botany from the University of Wisconsin, and is the author of numerous scientific papers on plant ecology, bryophyte ecology, traditional knowledge and restoration ecology. She lives on an old farm in upstate New York, tending gardens both cultivated and wild. 

About SUNY Potsdam:  
Founded in 1816, The State University of New York at Potsdam is one of America’s first 50 colleges—and the oldest institution within SUNY. Now in its third century, SUNY Potsdam is distinguished by a legacy of pioneering programs and educational excellence. The College currently enrolls approximately 2,500 undergraduate and graduate students. Home to the world-renowned Crane School of Music, SUNY Potsdam is known for its challenging liberal arts and sciences core, distinction in teacher training and culture of creativity. To learn more, visit www.potsdam.edu.