My Dear Friends!

It was so good to see most of you on Friday when we had a very rich talk by Dr. Phil Laverty about the historic and contemporary context of Indigenous Monterey Bay. As Phil reminded us, our understanding of history is ever evolving, and each historian - Phil included - offers a piece of a more complex reality.

A few things stood out to me in his talk:

• The multi-layered and overlapping identities of pre-colonial peoples is striking. People identified with Ohlone and Esselen language, specific villages, moieties, clan systems, religious societies, and trade territories. The complexity and non-exclusive identities of Peoples makes me realize how I'm conditioned to want to think of people as one identity or another, and how this limits my engagement with the present.

• The tremendous injustice and loss that happened with the discrete decision to "lose" the 18 treaties, and the victory of a few well-connected interests over law and due process is sobering.

• The resilience and rootedness of our local Tribal Groups who are now re-establishing their visibility and leadership in conservation is inspiring!

For those who want to revisit the talk or missed it, the recording is here:
https://us06web.zoom.us/rec/share/m1Pt04gW4I4LWGSBfypRBEBG5HEEXaQowUi_N5YmVCCY8aFNAI8BwQ4PK7WlWkW_.lEJQ4tXnmbzFtAq-?startTime=1737752991000
Passcode: #?%6ZVbM

As reminders:

1. We are gathering next February 7th for our final session before our in-person Joint Council at Paicines Ranch February 13-14. This virtual gathering will focus on preparing for our time together in the context of the knowledge and insights from the readings and webinars. You have been sent a calendar invite for this. If you don't have it, please reach out to Maya Hoffman.

2. Links to the core resources:

   1. The California Native American Genocide in the Fullerton Observer

   2. Bad Indians by Deborah Miranda, enrolled member Ohlone/Costanoan Esselen Nation

   3. Two Ways of Knowing, an Interview with Robin Wall Kimmerer in Sun Magazine

   4. Amah Mutsun Tribal Chairman Val Lopez speaking about the history of California that is never told

   5. Amah Mutsun Tribal Chairman Val Lopez speaking about their work in land stewardship

Please, reach out if you have any questions!
Erin + the Collaborative for Right Relations Team