The Ethnobotanical: A World Tour of Indigenous Plant Knowledge

Plants are a keystone in allowing people to survive — not simply because we need to eat them as sustenance (yes, even to a degree, carnivores), but because they provide the oxygen we need to breathe, materials to create food, essential material for shelter, and clothing to protect ourselves from the cruel elements of this spinning planet. This book explores our cultural relationship with plants, starting off with the notion of “discovery” that was prominent during the colonial period. The indigenous people that were dispossessed during their active repression in the Americas had some different views on plants — many groups being cognizant of a certain sentience, an inherent energy or spirit within them with the potential to help humans. While ironically published in partnership with the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, this shares some of those perspectives on plants and the roles they held with the indigenous people of the planet.