Start Date
15-11-2024 3:35 PM
End Date
15-11-2024 3:45 PM
Description
Erin Thomas, a senior English major at Wright State University, reflects on the intersection of wilderness, identity, and cultural erasure. Drawing from her Indigenous heritage and experiences in the course Woods and Wilderness, she critiques the romanticized, Eurocentric view of nature as untouched and separate from humanity. Instead, Thomas highlights how wilderness has been shaped by settler colonialism and exclusionary narratives that often ignore Indigenous presence and histories. Her presentation calls for a more inclusive and honest understanding of wilderness—one that honors marginalized voices and acknowledges the land’s complex cultural past.
Repository Citation
Thomas, Erin, "Culture, Nature, and Reflection: The Settler’s Impact on Life Today" (2024). Runkle Woods Symposia. 16.
https://corescholar.libraries.wright.edu/woods_symposium/2024/novermber16/16
Included in
Biology Commons, English Language and Literature Commons, Forest Biology Commons, Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology Commons
Culture, Nature, and Reflection: The Settler’s Impact on Life Today
Erin Thomas, a senior English major at Wright State University, reflects on the intersection of wilderness, identity, and cultural erasure. Drawing from her Indigenous heritage and experiences in the course Woods and Wilderness, she critiques the romanticized, Eurocentric view of nature as untouched and separate from humanity. Instead, Thomas highlights how wilderness has been shaped by settler colonialism and exclusionary narratives that often ignore Indigenous presence and histories. Her presentation calls for a more inclusive and honest understanding of wilderness—one that honors marginalized voices and acknowledges the land’s complex cultural past.
