Cornell Indigenous Leader to Speak At MCLA

Print Story | Email Story
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Wahieñhawi "Hawi" Hall, Assistant Director of Counseling and Psychological Services and Community Liaison for Indigenous Students at Cornell Health, will present "Nature, Well-Being, and Indigenous Perspectives on the Interconnectedness of People and Creation" as part of Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts' Green Living Seminar Series on Wednesday, March 4, at 5:30 p.m.
 
An Indigenous Mohawk and Cherokee woman raised within the Onondaga Nation in New York, Hall will share Haudenosaunee perspectives on nurturing relationships with the natural world through reciprocity, interdependence, and stewardship, stated a press release.
 
Her presentation will explore what the Haudenosaunee have identified as their "original instructions" regarding the role of Indigenous peoples as part of Creation, and offer insights into adopting a practice of thanksgiving.
 
Hall, a licensed clinical social worker, combines her cultural connections and lived experiences within Indigenous community with her professional expertise as a mental health provider. She is committed to promoting decolonization in systems, equity, and inclusion for historically marginalized groups, stated a press release. Central to her work is the foundational belief that our relationship to the natural world is one of reciprocity, interdependence, and stewardship.
The presentation will be delivered remotely with in-person viewing at MCLA.
 
All presentations take place Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m. in MCLA's Feigenbaum Center for Science and Innovation, Room 121 and will be recorded as podcasts available at mcla.edu/greenliving.
 
The event is free and open to the public.
 
MCLA's Green Living Seminar Series brings environmental experts to campus throughout the academic year to engage students and community members in conversations about sustainability, climate change, and ecological responsibility.
For more information, contact Dr. Elena Traister at elena.traister@mcla.edu or (413) 662-5303.

Tags: MCLA,   

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Affordable Housing Solutions Easy — and Complex

By John TownesSpecial to iBerkshires
This four-part series looks at the challenges in building affordable housing, and in May, Deep Dive will look at some solutions in Berkshire County. Read Part 1 here and Part 2 here.
 
The overall effort to solve the national and local housing crisis is paradoxically as straightforward as a game of checkers, but as complex and baffling as a Rubik's Cube puzzle.
 
On a basic level, the issue is clear. It boils down to two fundamental problems: There is a shortage of housing in all categories and the costs of buying or renting a home have escalated beyond the incomes of many people.
 
But because there is no single cause or "silver bullet" solution, the array of initiatives to make housing more plentiful and affordable can seem like a baffling maze of agencies, priorities, policies, regulations, and complex mathematical formulas.
 
The issue can also cause controversies and misunderstandings.
 
And for those who are seeking to buy or rent a home, the shortage of affordable housing can be personally frustrating, confusing, and even frightening. For some, it can lead to homelessness.
 
Nevertheless, while individual affordable-housing policies and programs differ in specifics, most rely on a core of basic strategies to deal with the underlying causes.
 
View Full Story

More North Adams Stories