A Conversation with Earth Advocate Chuck Sams

Native American creation stories speak of a time before humans, the creation of humanity, and the responsibilities that come with being part of the natural world. These teachings emphasize a profound ethic of stewardship and reciprocity with flora, fauna, air, water, and land.

Chuck Sams was raised on the Umatilla Indian Reservation in Northeast Oregon. He is a member of the Cayuse and Walla Walla Tribes and a citizen of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. He also has ancestral blood ties to the Yankton and Cocopah peoples. From an early age, Sams was taught by family members and elders about a Natural World ethic that has shaped his understanding of, and relationship with, the environment.

The conversation will consider how these enduring teachings inform contemporary understandings of stewardship, responsibility, and the rights of nature and what they can teach us about our relationship with the living world today.

This event is part of the Montgomery Fellows Program's Climate Solutions: Wishful Thinking or Hopeful Planning? series.