Though the trope of the “Ecological Indian” is indelible in popular culture, history tells a much more complicated story. Featuring cutting edge perspectives rarely seen outside academia and in-depth interviews with indigenous historians, climate scientists, and other experts, this video dispelS the paternalistic myths and reveal Native American ecology in all its ingenious, imperfect glory. Click here for the two-hour video presentation posted on October 25, 2024.

Filmmaker Andrew Rakich, who created the video, was joined by Drew Shuptar-Gayvis, Cultural Ambassador for the Pocomoke Indian Nation and Loren Spears, Executive Director for the Tomaquag Museum in the Narragansett Natiion.

The video covers four chapters: 1) the Makah Whale Hunt; 2) the Biological Cathedral; 3) the Commodity of Nature; and 5) Plains, Trains, and Buffalo Meals.

Part 4 covers Western tribes and the slaughter of millions of buffalo in the 18th and 19th century. Also included in the video are Environmental Scientist Jack Ivie and Sequoyah Hunter-Cuyjet, Shinnecock Nation professor and interior designer.