Tending the Forest With Fire
We’re returning to host the long-awaited burn day at Indian Canyon. Here we gather in community to learn proper burn pile management, Fire Mimicry, and Biochar-making.
In response to the declining forest health and catastrophic wildfires, we collectively take agency to manage fuel loads and heal oak forests. Sudden Oak Life, Indian Canyon, and EcoCamp Coyote join together for a burn day!
At our November ‘22 camp-out, we cleared understory brush from the oak forests of Indian Canyon. When we said our goodbyes, we promised a day of gathering around how to properly burn those brush piles we created.
Lee Klinger and his team from ‘Sudden Oak Life’ share an overview of ‘Fire Mimicry,’ a process where we mimic some of the ecosystem functions (such as clearing understory brush) that fire serves in the ecology of oak forests.
Kanyon Sayers-Roods of ‘Indian Canyon’ reminds us of the cultural context that fire has (and does!) serve in our coevolution as stewards of oak forests.
Lee Klinger (Sudden Oak Life)
Lee Klinger MA Ph.D. is an Independent Scientist living in Big Sur, California. Since 2005 he has served as director of Sudden Oak Life, a movement aimed at using indigenous-based land practices to address the problem of forest decline in California and elsewhere. He has over 30 years of research experience in the earth system sciences and Gaia theory and has held scholarly appointments at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, the University of Colorado, the University of Oxford, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Geological Society of London.
Kanyon Sayers-Roods (‘Indian Canyon)
Kanyon “Coyote Woman” (Hahashkani) Sayers-Roods is a Mutsun-Ohlone and Chumash Two Spirit Indigenous relative. She is proud of her heritage and her native name and is an active leader in the Native Community
Born and raised in Indian Canyon (the only federally recognized ‘Indian Country” along Central Coastal California) by her mother Ann Marie Sayers, Kanyon continues to be an Ancestor in training by honoring the past to shape the future.
What to expect:
This is an action-oriented workshop. Bring work gear (e.g., a hat, gloves, eye protection, and sturdy shoes).
Lunch is potluck style! (Make sure to label foods i.e. vegan, gluten-free, contains nuts, etc.)
There will be a table set up to share food.
Bring your own utensils and plates/bowls!
Bring your own water!
There is no electricity on site.
Toilets are a composting outhouse.
Kids and good dogs are welcome!
Register now, suggested donation on the day $0-$100+
9 – 3pm PDT
25 Kalana Ave, Morgan Hill, CA 95037