Holding the Fire: Indigenous Voices on the Great Unraveling Post Carbon Institute: Indigenous Voices on the Great Unraveling

Dahr Jamail discusses how he came to seek out Indigenous leaders for ideas on how to navigate the climate emergency and related environmental and social crises of our times. He highlights the importance of listening to Indigenous voices and introduces the people who will be sharing their wisdom in future episodes.

Dahr Jamail is an award-winning journalist and author of several books, the most recent he co-edited with Stan Rushworth, We Are The Middle of Forever: Indigenous Voices from Turtle Island on the Changing Earth.

Dahr Jamail speaks with Anne Poelina about the root cause of the cascading environmental and social crises of the 21st century: the Western industrialized, extractivist mindset. Anne also presents ideas for changing our perspectives and perceptions to be in community with nature, and the importance of listening to Indigenous voices.

Anne Poelina is a professor and chair of Indigenous Knowledge at the University of Notre Dame Australia, as well as the chair of the Martuwarra Fitzroy River Council.

Dahr Jamail speaks with Aslak Holmberg about how the Great Unraveling has always been the inevitable result of an ideology built on unsustainability. Aslak also provides his stark assessment of the dominant global paradigm of constant growth, as well as an inspirational message of standing firm in our work for the planet, no matter what.

Aslak Holmberg is an Indigenous Saami who lives on the Deatnu River, on the border of Norway and Finland. He is serving as the President of the Saami Council and works on various processes dealing with Indigenous knowledge, rights, and biodiversity conservation. He is also a salmon fisher, teacher, and holds a masters degree in Indigenous studies. Aslak is also a former member of the Saami Parliament of Finland.

Dahr Jamail speaks with Galina Angarova about grieving what is happening on Earth, and what it was like being raised within an intact Indigenous culture. She also discusses the critically important role of ancestors and intergenerational trauma, and reminds us that the traditional knowledge of Indigenous people that came directly from the land itself is our only hope for a future.

Galina Angarova is a Buryat woman from the Lake Baikal region of Siberia. In addition to being the Executive Director of Cultural Survival, an Indigenous-led NGO that advocates for the rights of Indigenous peoples around the world, Galina is a climate and land rights activist.

Dahr Jamail speaks with Celine Lim about the gap that exists between living in her Indigenous world of connectivity, and the so-called modern world of city life where she works. She discusses her grief that stems from that gap, what is lost when she experiences disconnection from her Indigenous roots, kinship, and activism.

Celine Lim is an Indigenous Kayan leader from Sarawak, a Malaysian state on the island of Borneo. Celine is the manager of Save Rivers, a grassroots organization that highlights the impacts of destructive logging in Borneo’s forests and Indigenous territories.

Dahr Jamail speaks with Sam Olando about the challenges his people have faced, over generations, as governments and/or corporate projects displace increasing numbers of people from their ancestral lands. Sam also discusses Indigenous values, the importance of community, and the functional nature of reciprocity.

Sam Olando, a Luo man from Kenya, is a human rights defender and community organizer who is the executive director of Pamoja Trust, an NGO dedicated to promoting access to land, shelter, and basic services for the vulnerable.