Skill Level
Intermediate, Advanced
Learner Outcomes
- Explore different definitions of land and various perspectives of what it is to be in relationship with land.
- Understand various perspectives of diverse people.
- Begin to consider how we connect with land.
- Share ideas with others.
Life Skills
Learning to learn, decision making, critical thinking, service learning, communications, social skills, sharing, managing feelings
Time
20 minutes
Materials
- Different color sticky notes or dot stickers
- Example Reaction Color Key (optional)
- Land definitions and quotes on 8.5×11 sheets handout (optional) OR writing utensils and large sheets of paper or boards on which to write land definitions and quotes and display around the room
Introduction
The purpose of this activity is to consider the many ways in which we view land, start to think about the implications of these perspectives, and begin to understand how we can build a more reciprocal relationship with the land. We are always on and with land. Whether we realize it or not, we are of land, eat land, make home on land. We cannot shut the door on land when we are inside buildings and homes. Land is always with us under our feet. Without land, there is no food system, there are no gardens, there is no “us.” Although we may see land as “out there,” we are a part of it, it is not separate from us.
Land is important to us for many different reasons. It is a provider of space for all beings, offering the foundation for shelter constructed from its minerals, rocks and plants, and supplying its natural barriers as protection. Land offers a place for celebrations and meetings, and aesthetically pleasing sites to keep minds at ease. Various human cultures find sites on land of religious importance. Land is an important provider of food. It is constantly cycling nutrients, holding water, soil, and air, and providing stability for organisms to grow.
Every day, people can choose to be stewards of the land and care for it, which begins with recognition. We cannot care about that to which we do not pay attention. Simple practices such as asking permission for use, conserving resources, cleaning up litter, embracing diversity, showing gratitude, and making art in celebration of the land make a difference – and these actions often inspire others, too. As gardeners, we can become stewards through feeding our soil, cover cropping, composting, crop rotation, embracing polyculture, and harvesting sustainably. We can set aside land for resting, such as fallow fields, or for permanent resting, from local land trusts to the rainforests.
This activity uses definitions of land proposed by various people and sources. These definitions and perspectives are not an all-inclusive list. They are intended to generate conversation and encourage the youth to think more expansively about land. Additionally, this activity introduces the group to the concepts of stewardship and reciprocity. These are themes we hope to continue throughout this curriculum.
Vocabulary
Stewardship: caring for something and being responsible for its well-being
Reciprocal: being in a shared “give and take” relationship with someone or something
Before the Activity
- Print out land definitions and quotes (see land definitions and quotes on 8.5 x11 paper handout optional resource) or write each definition on a separate poster board around your meeting space.
- Make four different colored sticky notes or dot stickers available to each youth.
| Land Definitions and Quotes | Source |
| “Land is the surface of the earth and all its natural resources.” | Dictionary – Merriam-Webster |
| “Land is a rural area characterized by farming or ranching.” | Dictionary – Merriam-Webster |
| “Land is the basis of all independence. Land is the basis of freedom, justice, and equality.” | Malcolm X: African American leader in the civil rights movement and Black Power movement. |
| “Land is the residence of our more-than-human relatives, the dust of our ancestors, the holder of seeds, the makers of rain; our teacher.” | Robin Wall Kimmerer: “Mother, scientist, decorated professor, and enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation.” |
Activity
Opening Questions
- What is land?
- In what ways is land important?
- Share a word to describe land.
Experience
- Share with the group that today we will think about the concept of land and our connection to it. Pass out colored sticky notes or dot stickers. Explain that each color stands for a different reaction and their task is to mark each land definition with the color that corresponds to the reaction they had to each definition. It can be helpful to make a color key for youth the remember which color goes with which reaction (see Example Reaction Color Key). For example:
•Purple: This definition caught my attention first.
•Green: This definition has room to grow.
•Blue: This definition is missing something.
•Pink: This definition has given me new perspective. - Share with them the provided definitions and their respective sources through a gallery walk — have youth move around the room and read each definition. After reading the definitions, youth place the color sticky note that corresponds to their reaction.
- Once sticky notes or dots have been placed, have youth view the annotated definitions and gather back together.
Reflection Questions (choose a few that work best for your group)
- How did it feel to do that activity? Do you have any thoughts or feelings you did not expect?
- What is your relationship to land? How do you feel when you are on land? When you are outside?
- What do you think each person was thinking about when they created these definitions? For example, some definitions define land by its features and relative place. Other definitions define land by its function, primarily as it relates to people and ownership. Still others define land by its origins and various relationships to the living and nonliving.
- What definitions would you change? How would you change them?
- Does knowing the source of the definition change on how you relate to it?
Variations
- First show youth the definitions without their sources. You can have the youth try and guess the source or each quote, or show them the sources and see if they can match each source to its proper quote.
- In a virtual setting, Padlet and Google Jamboard have been used successfully by creators of this curriculum as a platform to share and react to land definitions and quotes.
Learn More
- A Gardener’s Gratitude List (2019) Penn State Extension
- Greed Does Not Have to Define Our Relationship to Land: On Choosing to Belong to a Place (2020) by Robin Wall Kimmerer, Trinity University Press
- Health and well-being benefits of plants Texas A&M AgriLife Extension
- Mindful thoughts for Gardeners: Sowing Seeds of Awareness (2018) by Clea Danaan, Leaping Hare Press
- Pat McCabe is a Voice for Peace and Discusses Being of Place (2021) Daily Good
- The Serviceberry: An Economy of Abundance (2020) by Robin Wall Kimmerer, Emergence Magazine
- You Belong to the Land: A Conversation with Karen Washington and Leah Penniman (2019) by Katherine Kassouf Cummings, Minding Nature Journal
Videos
- How we can eat our landscapes Pam Warhurst TEDSalon (2012)
- TEDxMaui – Edwin ‘Ekolu’ Lindsey – Cultivating Cultural Seeds (2012)
- The Honorable Harvest – Robin Kimmerer (2019) Bioneers
- Why lakes and rivers should have the same rights as humans- Kelsey Leonard TEDWomen (2019)
top
