I am on Indigenous Land

The cover of I Am On Indigenous Land has a dock on a lake.

Explore the beauty and resources of the thirteen ancestral Indigenous lands and how we all interact with them.

Themes: Indigenous culture, nature, honor, tradition 

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Photo Source: Macalester College

About the Author and Honored Guest

Author and educator Dr. Katrina Phillips is a citizen of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Ojibwe. She earned her BA and PhD in History from the University of Minnesota, and she teaches Native American history and the history of the American West at Macalester College. She has written several books, including numerous books out including Indigenous Environmentalism.

-Bio provided by author.

Photo Source: Minnesota Native News

About the Illustrator and Honored Guest

Artist and educator Sam Zimmerman / Zhaawanoogiizhik is a direct descendant of the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa (Ojibwe). Drawing on ancestral connections, Zimmerman continues the Anishinaabe tradition of storytelling, embedding the themes of environmental stewardship and conservation of the North Shore in his studio and public art commissions. He lives in Duluth, Minnesota, and regularly explores the natural beauty of Minnesota’s North Shore. He has helped create several books including Following My Spirit Home and How the Birds Got Their Songs.

– Bio provided by the illustrator

Discussion Questions

  1. What are ways you can honor the land you are on?
  2. The book only looks at a few places, but covers such a wide breadth of the country. Why do you think they chose to do it that way?
  3. Going back through the book, are there any details you didn’t pick up the first time that provide a deeper understanding?
Photo Source: I am on Indigenous Land

Learning Activities

Photo Source: I am on Indigenous Land
  1. With an adult, research what land you are on. 
  2. After researching what land you are on, what would be a sentence similar to the book that you could write for your own place?

Explore More

  1. Use this tool to explore the different boundaries of Indigenous land around the world.
  2. Learn more about government treaties with Indigenous peoples in this video from CBC Kids News.