American Indian Magazine (Winter 2022-2023) issue:

The Indigenous Origins of Maple Syrup

The gathering of syrup from maple trees in the woodlands of Canada and the northeastern United States is an ancient practice that had helped sustain Indigenous peoples for thousands of years. Yet during the colonial era, some lost their connection to the tree and its ceremonies. Only recently have many started to reclaim it.

In the Fading Tracks of Caribou: Numbers of an Animal Central to Inuit Culture are Declining Drastically in Parts of Canada

Robert Watt shot his first caribou when he was eight years old. A small group from his Inuit community of Kuujjuaq in northern Quebec had traveled upriver toward the confluence of the Larch and Caniapiscau Rivers to hunt the animals. The memory of that day almost four decades ago still lingers. “The air was crisp and cold,” recalled Watt. “You could see your breath.”

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American Indian Magazine – Summer 2022

Highlights:

Watching Over the Past: Virgil Ortiz’s Futuristic Creations Are Perpetuating Cochiti Pueblo Pottery-Making Traditions

Virgil Ortiz still remembers the outings he took as a 6-year-old boy with his mother to creeks throughout their Pueblo of Cochiti in New Mexico. There, they would gather clay to mold into pots and storytellers—seated comical human or animal figures. His father was a drum maker and his mother and grandmother were both potters. He remembers giving prayers of thanks to Mother Earth for providing clay, a medium through which they could express themselves. “I was surrounded by art every day,” says Ortiz.

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