I used to be lately reminded of this historical African proverb.
I used to be talking with a village healer in an virtually abandoned mountain village within the Peloponnese Area of Greece.
She’s the final individual in her group who is aware of the normal makes use of of their native crops.
When she passes, centuries of plant knowledge will vanish along with her.
That is greater than only a distant drawback in far-off lands. It’s occurring proper now.
In each British village.
In each European city.
Throughout each American state.
Treasured plant information is slipping away like water by our fingers.
Every single day one other piece of our botanical heritage fades into silence.
Give it some thought – simply two generations in the past, most individuals may determine widespread medicinal crops.
They knew which wild meals have been fit for human consumption.
This information had been handed down by households for hundreds of years.
Right this moment, most of us stroll previous these identical crops with out recognising them. The chain of information has been damaged.
Why does this matter?
As a result of that is about extra than simply shedding fascinating historic information. That is residing information that:
- Might assist us adapt to local weather change
- Gives sustainable, native meals sources
- Presents options for group well being
- Connects us deeply to our panorama and heritage
Every bit of plant knowledge we lose is like tearing a web page from humanity’s survival information.
However there’s hope.
In my 20+ years documenting these vanishing traditions, I’ve found one thing exceptional: when individuals reconnect with this information, one thing profound occurs.
They start to see the world in another way, really feel a deeper connection to their setting, and turn into a part of the answer.
