• And the Plants Will Set You Free

    Through knowing and using the plants that grow around us—the ones in our backyard, the weeds that resist all efforts to control them, the abundance and diversity of the species in the Cascadian forests—we are more whole, secure and free. What’s right under our feet are, by their very nature, agents of freedom. [Read full post]

  • Design Thinking for the Creative Herbalist

    As herbalists, we are naturally using design processes all the time. Working in the plant and human world for the purpose of healing we are constantly dealing in very complex worlds. I want to push you to go past what you know is comfortable and reimagine your practice so you are doing the wildest, most liberating brilliant work that you can. [Read full post]

  • Aesthetic & Beauty in Practice

    It’s touching the dirt, digging roots, preparing and sipping beautiful garden tea blends, smelling the flowers, having my apothecary full of jars containing gorgeous, whole-leaf herbs. Microwaving a wack bag of herb tea is a completely different game. Authentic botanical practice is a lifestyle that honors the sanctity of life and the ecological patterns around us. It’s how we connect to the larger planetary system. [Read full post]

Category Archives: Originals

Ecology, Learning & the Subconscious

By Renée A.D. | Published: November 20, 2012

The more I learn, grow, develop new skills, reach out to new groups, try to engage creative social change, I’m consistently reminded that most of our thinking and decision making is driven by unconscious processes. (One of the articulations of this is Buddha’s metaphor of the Elephant and the Rider—where the rational, conscious mind is [...]

Also posted in Opinion, Social & Ecological Innovation | Leave a comment

Interview with Poppyswap on Community Herbalism, Socioecological Health & Current Issues in American Herbalism

By Renée A.D. | Published: October 5, 2012

I had the pleasure of having a conversation with the amazing, inspiring folks at Poppyswap, where I shared some information and background on the Olympia Free Herbal Clinic and the Dandelion Seed Conference: Herbal Medicine for Community and Social healing. Check out the post here. Here are some excerpts to tantalize you. I think we’re [...]

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Conversation with Ann Armbrecht on Traditional Medicine

By Renée A.D. | Published: September 6, 2012

Ann Armbrecht, Ph.D. (author of Thin Places: A Pilgrimage Home and creator of the film Numen: The Nature of Plants) and I were able to talk last month about my recent work with a Salish ethnobotanical education program, as well as larger issues of traditional medicine and community healing. I had a great time doing this, [...]

Also posted in Social & Ecological Innovation, Systems Theory | Tagged | Leave a comment

Spearheading Culture Change with Plant Traditions

By Renée A.D. | Published: September 3, 2012

This article originally appeared in the Autumn 2012 issue of Plant Healer Magazine. If you haven’t subscribed to this eclectic, thoughtful, extremely original publication, I highly recommend it. Subscriptions are affordable and support the Anima Lifeways & Herbal School, one which I proudly attend. Enjoy.  I absolutely love writing outside in the Summer. In the [...]

Also posted in Social & Ecological Innovation | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Response

Thesis Published: Does the cultural use of local plants enable coping with diabetes and generational trauma in Salish tribal communities?

By Renée A.D. | Published: June 17, 2012

For everyone still subscribed & reading: I know it’s been quiet around here this past Winter & Spring. I’ve been focusing on health, TCOB & funneling all my creative energy and writing to the thesis that follows. This paper completes my graduate program and illuminates the connections between plants, culture, and healing; between social constructions [...]

Also posted in Publications, Research, Social & Ecological Innovation, Systems Theory | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 7 Responses

Skin, Dirt & Leaves: Herbcraft & the Senses

By Renée A.D. | Published: January 24, 2012

After the blizzard of last week, the snow is melting and us Northwesters are finally and frantically busting out of our houses. I was especially excited to see what branches had fallen, and was particularly hoping that Cottonwood would bestow some blessings onto me. So I drove out to the wildlife refuge and walked around [...]

Posted in Originals | 2 Responses

Framing Health in a Context of Interconnectedness

By Renée A.D. | Published: January 9, 2012

It’s a terribly chilly day here in Olympia. I’ve spent most of the day at my desk, drinking puerh tea, brow furrowed in intense contemplation over some aspects of my developing thesis. I’m exploring the question of the contribution of ethnobotanical knowledge & practices to public health and I face a number of challenges. And [...]

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Resilience & The Rise of Community Leadership

By Renée A.D. | Published: December 9, 2011

I woke up just a few minutes ago, lurked over to the kitchen to greet the day with my usual blend of yerba mate, nettles, oatraw, raspberry leaf & rose petals. I then checked my email and received a flurry of freak-out emails from some of the global health foundations and nonprofits that I follow, [...]

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Tradition is Innovation & Other Useful Paradoxes

By Renée A.D. | Published: November 25, 2011

Lately I’ve been really curious about what’s considered innovative in mainstream healthcare. I have my views and visions for what I think are good next steps for a sound health system–one based in communities and ecosystems, that takes into account ecological and animal health, based on positive health principles and prevention. But hey, that’s me, [...]

Also posted in Systems Theory | Tagged , , , | 1 Response

Design Thinking for the Creative Herbalist

By Renée A.D. | Published: November 15, 2011

As herbalists, we are naturally using design processes all the time. Working in the plant and human world for the purpose of healing we are constantly dealing in very complex worlds. Plants are extremely complex as beings, as are human (& other animals). To deal with this complexity, we like to learn a tradition and [...]

Also posted in Medicine Making | Tagged , , | 9 Responses

Emerging Patterns & Trends, Happening Now

By Renée A.D. | Published: October 14, 2011

In the digital chatter of Twitter, @HenryDeMaio said: Just FYI, everything is going to be amazing. There’s momentum building lately. And I like where this is all heading. The status quo is changing. We don’t care about commodities, standardization and corporatization anymore. We want authenticity, wildness, audacity, art and magic. We’re becoming more connected, more real [...]

Posted in Originals | 2 Responses

And the Plants Will Set You Free

By Renée A.D. | Published: October 7, 2011

Through knowing and using the plants that grow around us—the ones in our backyard, the weeds that resist all efforts to control them, the abundance and diversity of the species in the Cascadian forests—we are more whole, secure and free. Grocery stores could shut down tomorrow and I could ride my bike 10 minutes out [...]

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Joe’s Cyborg & Other Posthuman Curiosities

By Renée A.D. | Published: March 3, 2010

I wrote this piece exclusively for the March 2010 issue of Second Nature Journal of RMIT’s School of Media and Communication in Melbourne. The theme of the issue is Superhuman: Revolution of the Species. I will post a link when it’s released. Enjoy! Humans. I can go on forever wondering about them. In my mind [...]

Also posted in Systems Theory | Tagged , , , | 1 Response

Review: The Subsistence Perspective

By Renée A.D. | Published: December 31, 2009

This is a review I wrote last year about their book The Subsistence Perspective: Beyond the Globalized Economy for the Center for World Indigenous Studies’ quarterly journal The Fourth World Journal. It’s a little scholarly but don’t let that deter you. Reading about global economics can be intimidating. Attempting to understanding it and possible alternative [...]

Also posted in Books, Reviews, Systems Theory | Tagged | Leave a comment

Research Design and Philosophy

By Renée A.D. | Published: December 4, 2009

The current research paradigm in the West still glows with the logical empiricism of early 20th century thought, divided into qualitative and quantitative research. Very limited methods of measurement and analysis are accepted. Thus, Science is rather lopsided, as it’s only getting one part of the story.

Also posted in Systems Theory | Tagged | 2 Responses