Casey Camp-Horinek: Walking the Red Road—It’s Elemental
Bioneers | Published: April 6, 2024 Indigeneity Video
In this talk, one of the most respected, beloved and impactful longtime activists on behalf of Indigenous rights and women’s leadership as well as a major figure in the “Rights of Nature” movement, delves deeply into how many Indigenous peoples view the human relationship to the natural world and what their ancestral wisdom teaches about how to harmoniously interact with nature’s fundamental components, aka the “elements”—Earth, Air, Water, and Fire. Casey explores how these incredibly sophisticated traditional Indigenous land, water and fire stewardship strategies, many of which are now being “rediscovered” by contemporary managers, have much to teach us as we grapple with the climate crisis.
This talk was delivered at the 2024 Bioneers Conference.
Casey Camp-Horinek, a member of the Ponca Nation of Oklahoma, is a longtime activist, environmentalist, actress, and author. Her work has led to the Ponca Nation being the first tribe in Oklahoma to adopt a Rights of Nature statute and to pass a moratorium on fracking on its territory. Casey, who was instrumental in the drafting of the first International Indigenous Women’s Treaty protecting the Rights of Nature, works with Indigenous and other leaders and organizations globally and sits on the boards of WECAN, Movement Rights, and the Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature.
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Indigeneity Conversations – Indigenize the Law: Tribal Rights of Nature Movements with Casey Camp-Horinek
In this two-part program with Matriarch Casey Camp-Horinek, we talk about how a burgeoning indigenous-led Rights of Nature movement has the potential to protect ecosystems from destruction by granting legal rights to nature itself, and how many tribes are uniquely positioned for leadership to institute and uphold the Rights of Nature because of their sovereign legal status.
Rights of Nature in Indian Country
Honoring the Rights of Nature has always been essential to the worldview and cultures of First Peoples. The Rights of Nature movement simply puts into law what has always been a part of traditional laws: that the natural world must thrive if our Peoples and cultures are to survive.
As a coalition of Native and Native-descended authors, the Bioneers Indigeneity Program team wrote a guide by and for American Indian/Alaska Native community members who are interested in learning about how the Rights of Nature can bring Tribal values into contemporary law.