The indigenous American community has collected the symbolic seeds of their culture and will deposit them at the end of the month in the Svalbard seed bank
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves himThe Cherokee Nation will collect i seeds symbol of their own culture and will deposit them in the seed bank of the Svalbard Islands, Norway to preserve them from extinction.
The Cherockee live in Oklahoma after 15 of them have been expelled by the US military, which has driven them from their homelands in Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee.
At the time, the Cherokees lost about a quarter of their people and their traditional plants and crops. Inspired by the Svalbard seed bank, tribal scientists spent several years tracking down lost crops in former territories and museums and then started two tribal gardens in Oklahoma, where they sowed. food and medicinal plants important for their cultivation.
Today they have chosen the seeds to deposit, including Cherokee White Eagle corn - White Eagle corn, the holiest corn of the tribe, used for cultural ceremonies - different varieties of beans and squash: these are crops that predate European settlement and form a fundamental part of Cherokee culture.
"The Cherokee nation is the only place on the planet where all of these crops are grown, and difficult weather patterns make the situation precarious today," Pat Gwin, the tribe's senior director of environmental resources, told Modern Se.
Oklahoma is in fact prone to tornadoes and has experienced two record droughts, as well as multiple floods in the past decade. Extreme weather events related to the climate crisis are on the rise and are likely to cause loss of these crops emblematic for the indigenous community.
It is the first time that an indigenous tribe in the United States has decided to safeguard plant seeds considered essential for their identity, but seed banks are certainly nothing new.
As losing a variety of crops is irreversible as much as the extinction of an animal or a bird, there are over 1.700 seed banks worldwide.
The Cherokee Nation is the first tribe in the United States to receive an invitation to deposit its traditional heirloom…
Posted by Cherokee Nation on Thursday, February 6, 2020
Many are vulnerable due to natural disasters, wars, budget problems and mismanagement, but Svalbard's is considered the highest safety for crop biodiversity and the safest in the world.
Built on a Norwegian archipelago about 800 miles from the North Pole in order to to safeguard the genetic material of the planet as much as possible, can contain up to 4,5 million varieties of crops.
The bank is located far above sea level, can only be reached via a 120 meter tunnel and, thanks to its location, allows for storage of seeds at -18 ° C, even in the absence of energy.
It is a structure capable of withstanding natural disasters and those caused by man: it recently underwent a multi-million dollar modernization to prevent flooding caused by extreme rainfall and melting permafrost, effects of the climate crisis.
Currently contains 992.039 seeds from all over the world preserved in sealed packages, including varieties also found in other seed banks and rare and unique varieties of corn, rice, wheat, eggplant, potatoes and lettuce.
From 25 February it will also host new semi Cherokee, which will be deposited in the bank, sheltered thanks to the rock and permafrost for future generations.
“As long as Cherokee plants exist, we exist. This is important. We regard our genetically Cherokee plants as we do, ”Gwin explained.
Sources of reference: Modern Farmer / NPR / Crop Trust
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