KURT RUSSO on the People Under the Sea/91

It feels only right that we begin our “more-than-human” themed month of October in honor of the mother Orca, Tahlequah, who carried her dead calf on a “tour of grief” for more than a 1,000 miles over a 17-day period. It is a profound reminder that we share our place and experience with other beings that bear memory, whose capacity for love and loss mirror our own. It also highlights the uncertainty of the Southern Resident Orca's livelihood, and quite frankly the livelihood of our planetary community, if we continue to act with reckless abandon. There has not been a successful Orca birth in the Salish Sea since 2015. This week we interview Kurt Russo who has worked on environmental issues, land preservation, and treaty rights with The Lummi Nation of the Salish Sea for 40 years. He is also the Executive Director of The Foundation for Indigenous Medicine and the former Director of The Native American Land Conservancy. He holds a BS and MS in Forestry and a Ph.D. in History. Music by Monplainsir & Amoeba