Saging the World | Film Screening and Panel Discussion

Organized by The Linnean Society of London.

There will be an online screening of the documentary 'Saging the World' directed by Rose Ramirez, Deborah Small and David Bryant, which will be followed by a discussion on the role of indigenous communities in white sage conservation.

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About the documentary

Saging the World spotlights the ecological and cultural issues intertwined with white sage, centering  the voices of Native advocates who have long protected and cherished the White sage. 

"Saging" has become common in movies, TV shows, social media, and cleansing rituals - people burning sage bundles in the hope of purifying space and clearing bad energy. Instead of healing, the appropriated use of saging in popular culture is having a harmful effect. 

Indigenous communities have tended a relationship with white sage for thousands of generations. White sage (Salvia apiana) only occurs in southern California and northern Baja California, Mexico. Today, poachers are stealing metric tons of this plant from the wild to supply international demand. 

About the discussion

The panel discussion will be between Heidi Harper Lucero, member of the Acjachemen and Mutsun Ohlone tribes of California, and chairwoman of the Juaneño tribal council, Melissa Sherman, Public Archaeologist with ASM Affiliates, a US-based heritage management firm, and a representative of the California Native Plant Society.

Photo by Marina Yalanska on Unsplash: Salvia plants used for saging.