With civilization's political and commercial development, however, the role of elder authority seems gradually to have diminished. The how and why of changes that have silenced the elder voice--the voice of compassionate wisdom--is a topic that has held my attention for some time. I believe that the rapidly growing population of older persons worldwide (the global "age wave"), and the increasing threat to Earth's ability to sustain future generations, set the stage for the return of a meaningful Elder Presence.
2000 Spring
Growing a Circle of Elders
2000 Spring | Robin Delmore Saip
Throughout the millennia of human existence, the term "Circle of Elders" has undoubtedly been applied many times in many languages. And, from our own instinctive experience of human gatherings, especially around a campfire, we can easily imagine that the circle was the most common form of coming together. As caretakers of traditional values, earthkeepers, storytellers, historians, decision-makers, and lawgivers, elders were traditionally regarded as the highest cultural authority.
An Interview With Katsi Cook
2000 Spring | Jeff Wessman | Neil Harvey This interview with Mohawk widwife and environmental justice activist Katsi Cook took place at the 1999 Bioneers Conference, held October 29-31 at the Marin Center near San Francisco, CA. It was recorded by the New Dimensions Broadcasting Network as part of a Bioneers radio series to be distributed nationally in the Fall of 2000. The Bioneers are social and scientific innovators working in areas such as biodiversity, cultural diversity, environmental restoration, and restorative farming. To learn more about Bioneers, the next Bioneers conference (October 20-22 , 2000, at the Marin Center), and how to become a member, visit www.bioneers.org, call 1-877-BIONEER, or write the Collective Heritage Institute/Bioneers, 901 W. San Mateo Rd., Suite L, Santa Fe, NM 87505. For more information about New Dimensions Radio, visit www.newdimensions.org.
An Environmental Family Tree
2000 Spring | Nancy Roth Grandma Percy, my maternal grandmother, lived in a small town in rural Pennsylvania. Clustered around a village square complete with white bandstand were a small grocery store, two churches, and a general store which sold a variety of penny candy, magazines, newspapers, and sundries. Until Grandma Percy was deemed by my mother and her sisters to be too frail to live alone, my childhood summers always included a visit to this place so different from our home in a New York suburb.
At Grandma's house, you learned not to take things for granted.
There was no indoor plumbing. We used an outhouse, overgrown with honeysuckle, during the day, and chamberpots from the cupboard under the washstand at night.
Kids' Wisdom
2000 Spring | Jenya Lemeshow I believe that there is an innate wisdom present in the perceptions and words of children, if we take the time to listen. Children offer a fresh look at the world which can be as insightful as the wisdom that comes after living a long time. Their experience of the world is less jaded by social constructions, less shaded by inhibitions. When I started to ask some children I know questions--What does it mean to be a kid? When is somebody not a child anymore? When is somebody old?--the children reminded me of the importance of learning, playing, jumping around, and dreaming, among other things. In the following interviews, I honor the wisdom in the responses of six children living at Lost Valley Educational Center in Dexter, OR. From simple questions, simple truths unfold.
A Note from the Editor: Listening
2000 Spring | Chris Roth As the deadline for this issue approached and then passed (a month after our last, delayed issue reached most readers), just a handful of articles about our main theme trickled in. It seemed that many potential contributors were more interested in writing about the WTO, or Y2K, or Climate Change, than about "Listening to Elders and Children." Their articles were fascinating, but not quite what we had in mind for this issue.
It's no coincidence that elders and children are often marginalized in our society, frequently ignored, and perhaps, as a result, not entirely sure that we want to hear them. But while those at either end of life may not have the most strident voices, they often have more wisdom to share than anyone in their middle years. I discovered that a little patience and a little prodding were all that were necessary to allow the fruition of a very full issue, focused on our theme and remarkably balanced in the range of voices represented.
