Existence Is Resistance with Tiffany Joseph
Good Fire Podcast by Amy Cardinal Christianson and Matthew KristoffStories of Indigenous fire stewardship, cultural and social empowerment and environmental integrityExistence Is Resistance with Tiffany JosephEpisode highlightIn this episode, Tiffany Joseph talks about native Indigenous plants and their ability to heal the ecosystem.ResourcesTiffany JosephXAXE TENEW SACRED LAND SOCIETYCommunity Profile: W̱SÁNEĆ’s ŚW̱,XELOSELWET Tiffany JosephPollinator PartnershipThe Story of SEMSEMÍYE by Tiffany JosephThe Cowichan Sweater: Our Knitted LegacySponsorsCanada WildfireIndigenous Leadership InitiativeQuotes13.19 - 13.41: “Anytime we are on the land, you have to have good thoughts and feelings, so anytime you light a fire, you have to be in that prayerful mindset, and being in a prayerful mindset really means having that abundance of positivity within your heart and your mind.” 21.54 - 22.27: “Settlers, they are hungry for culture basically and really they need to find their own roots… they have to… trace their English or Celtic origins, whatever it is, and connect with that, so I found that eagerness to work with fire with us… came from… a hungry place of not having their own cultures.”TakeawaysCamera Lady (03.12)Tiffany is of Sḵx̱wu7mesh and W̱SÁNEĆ ancestry. Coast Salish Nations' protocol is to introduce their family when they introduce themselves to help others connect with them easily. She finds it important to introduce both her parents and grandparents, as well as her children, because while her parents and grandparents are the reason she came into the world, her children are the reason she stays. Her Indigenous nickname, ŚW̱, XELOSELWET, stands for ‘camera lady’, and she has a certificate in Indigenous independent filmmaking from Capilano University. A field of blue (05.41)Tiffany began learning about Indigenous plants and restoration work in 2014 when she participated in the ‘Growing Our Futures’ program in SȾÁUTW̱. All the Indigenous participants recognized those plants as their Indigenous medicines, and reflect fondly on being able to learn about them. She began doing land restoration in 2015 and is focused on that work, specifically camas, whose bright blue colour made a field look like a sea to a visiting botanist. Camas is a food staple whose meadows used to cover the entire landscape from Beecher Bay First Nation to Southern Vancouver Island. Indigenous territory (08.49)Tiffany laments that colonizers looked at the rich fertile lands, which was tended to make abundant meadows of camas, as theirs to steal. They operated under the ‘Terra nullius’ mindset wherein land was considered unoccupied unless occupied by a Christian even though there were thousands of Indigenous people living here. They considered the land wild even though the meadows were tended with controlled burns. The mighty oak used to be a companion plant to camas which grew stronger with controlled burns, and the falling branches and leaves fertilized the soil for the camas.“We are all connected” (11.24)Tiffany explains that the Indigenous ancestors learned that by burning the mighty oak leaves, their high acidity could be transformed into proper nutrients needed for the soil, which was clay. While the colonizers believed nothing could grow in the clay, the Indigenous peoples “grew enough camas to make it look like an ocean” and had the greatest biodiversity of any ecosystem in BC. She emphasizes the importance of having good thoughts and feelings, how having a prayerful mindset gives rise to abundant outcomes, and how everything is connected - the mind, heart, and all kinds of people. Fire is life (18.34)Tiffany finds that settlers don’t apply Indigenous knowledge in caring for the land, whereas Indigenous peoples have ancient wisdom that helps them anticipate the needs of the land better. However, she celebrates that Parks Canada has recognized traditional knowledge of fire as valid in land management. She discusses the considerations around holding burns near burial cairns, with some groups having always done it and some having reservations about doing so. She reflects that many people do not have a relationship with fire due to past experiences, but they can have a spiritual relationship with fire.The settler mindset is fear-based (27.05)Through restoration work, Tiffany has learned about an invasive plant called scotch broom, with yellow flowers and big seed pods. She found the old method of pulling out the plants ineffective and suggested a controlled burn to Parks Canada, followed by digging out seed banks using machinery. They were able to find many native plants in the soil. Indigenous people have always cared for all life, but the colonial mindset looks at humans as inherently selfish and only capable of harming the land. She finds that the colonial violence inflicted upon Indigenous lands and people has led to fear of humans.Land back (32.19)Tiffany does not want to live in fear of what people can do based on the dehumanizing and violent mistreatment of Indigenous lands and people by settlers. She wants to live in a healthy relationship with the land and her people, recognizing that both have lived through trauma. While the colonial mindset may give up after damage has caused trauma, the Indigenous mindset knows the tools to heal and reclaim oneself. She shares how her aunt prefers the term stewardship to signify ongoing progress, and that getting land back restores the freedom of Indigenous people to live and have a safe space.Indigenous land stewardship (36.36)Tiffany wants to remove grass on Indigenous lands so that native plants can be restored and berry picking can communally take place. Private landowners look at berry plants as weeds and cut them down, but they are a part of Indigenous culture. She discusses the different types of Indigenous berries and shares memories of going berry picking growing up. She wants places to exist where Indigenous people can tend the land, remove invasive species, pick berries, have ceremonies and invite people to gather to heal and learn Indigenous languages together. The band system was imposed by colonizers (41.48)Tiffany clarifies that colonizers divided Indigenous people into bands which came to be called First Nations, but that term is misleading because even though the groups have different dialects and family teachings, their cultures work together to create an interconnected inseparable people. It is an intention for her people to not be divided by reservations and to come together to heal. It is the policy of division that continued into physical separation at residential schools - separating children from parents, siblings from each other, and even any two Indigenous people because they didn’t want them to exist. “Our inherent value cannot be separated from the land” (43.00)Tiffany highlights that Indigenous people are a keystone species. The Tsawout First Nation used to be very green but since the farmland was stolen by colonizers, it has become yellow. 80% of the world’s biodiversity is protected by Indigenous people, which means protecting Indigenous peoples is key to protecting the ecosystem. Indigenous peoples have been confined to tiny reserves but they have maintained their culture, language, and medicinal knowledge. However, there is more opportunity for them to expand in their existence as the original people of the land. Sacred relationships (46.05)Tiffany was raised to believe all life is sacred, and is uncomfortable objectifying land as a property with a numerical monetary value. In the same way, she is uncomfortable objectifying people as a Two-spirit person herself. She feels an immense love for women as powerful and beautiful life-givers, but unfortunately, others have a transactional relationship with them, especially with wanting women to do emotional labour. She believes rage needs to be unleashed on such people to help them wake up and take personal accountability for the work.Personal accountability (49.48)Tiffany acknowledges that she grew up with a lot of safety; her parents never used shaming words or pressured her to go against her wishes. “There was in a way a lack of discipline, but when it came down to their choice of, do I push this small human to live up to some sort of expectations, or do I just let them exist? My parents chose to let me exist. I think there is a lot of medicine I received from my parents by them treating me that way”, she claims. She wants to share that love and acceptance with others who didn’t receive it and treat them with reverence and sacredness so they can be themselves.“It takes many hands to do great work” (52.07)Encouraging someone to be themselves helps them express their best self, Tiffany believes. When she came to her parents as bisexual in her late 20s, she was met with excitement and gratitude. So she believes in supporting someone in their self-expression of their best self, whether that be berry picking, or making blueberry pie with those berries. Her self-expression is to remove invasive species and plant native ones, but she does not make medicines. She wants to support women in easing the pressure of expectations on them and support them in sharing the work and finding a way to express themselves.Even colonizer bees don’t care about Indigenous bees (56.37)Tiffany shares that the Coastal Douglas-fir zone (CDF) has the most plant biodiversity because it was tended to by Indigenous people with controlled burns. She began learning about pollinators through Pollinator Partnership and became certified as a Pollinator Steward. She explains the difference between Indigenous solitary bees and social bees, and how many foods wouldn’t exist without the bees' pollination work. Bringing pollinator bees to different plants improves their health. Indigenous bees do not pollinate beyond 100 m, while colonizer bees can pollinate miles away from their hive.All we’ve ever needed is an opportunity to exist (1.05.02)Tiffany talks about the story she wrote titled SEMSEMÍYE, which talks about the origin of the bee, similar to other origin stories in her culture. She aims to share the behaviours and experiences of the bee that she learned in her Pollinator Stewardship Certification course. She believes the Indigenous pollinator bees will always care for the land. Just like the bees will always pollinate as long as there are flowers, Indigenous women will always care for the land as long as there is access to it. Her learning helped her understand her role within the ecosystem and community, and she wants to help other women do so.Finding galaxies in a flower petal (01.08.09)Tiffany observes that people are drawn to Coast Salish people because of how they share. Just like the camas plant is important to Indigenous people not just as a food staple, but also important to the pollinator bees because it is easy to access, she believes Coast Salish peoples deserve to exist in that openness in relationship to one another. There is immense beauty in Indigenous cultures, and they have a right to exist to protect themselves. “Just be a good relative, value me, see me as sacred, don’t try to hurt me, and also trust that’s how I see you”, she signs off.Send in your comments and feedback to the hosts of this podcast via email: [email protected] and [email protected]. If you liked this podcast, please check out YourForest podcast too. Rate and review Good Fire on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or other podcast platforms. Please share our podcast on Instagram, BlueSky, and Facebook and tag a friend!
