Betty Osceola (Miccosukee, Panther Clan) grounds us in the spectacular land and life of the Everglades in this visit with host Kahstoserakwathe. She explains how the region’s natural filtration system protects fresh water for millions, carries cultural memory for the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, and sustains plant, animal, and water relatives.

Betty is well known for her prayer walks that became especially urgent when the cruelty of the “Alligator Alcatraz” outdoor immigrant detention camp surfaced last summer on traditional homelands in South Florida, and her research is instrumental in ongoing lawsuits around the facility. She says our struggle for equitable treatment cannot be separated from the health and well-being of the natural world.

Betty spent decades living what environmental justice looks like from an Indigenous perspective: caring for water as kin, community mobilization as a responsibility, and finding joy in walking, guiding, laughing, and listening. She asks us to consider how we reconnect to our own sources of care and to show up when the land says it needs us. This conversation is a clear invitation to walk our lands and raise our voices to protect the natural world and the humanity of our hearts. Stay to the end for her cute stories about mama ‘gators and their babies.

 Key Takeaways from Our Conversation with Betty Osceola

1. The Everglades is a living relative, not a resource.

Betty reminds us that the River of Grass is alive, speaking, and essential for the fresh water that sustains millions of people. Protecting it is not just an environmental act; it is a kinship responsibility. The "river" is a slow-moving sheet of water, full of swamp grasses, that flows from Lake Okeechobee to Florida Bay, moving only about a quarter-mile per day.

2. Ceremony is a form of resistance.

Through prayer walks and gatherings, Betty and her community practice ceremony as a form of activism. Each step, song, and offering re-centers human presence within a network of life that has been disrupted by extraction and control.

3. Alligator Alcatraz is part of a larger pattern.

Betty describes the proposed detention facility as one more example of how industrial and political systems see Indigenous land as empty or disposable. Her organizing through prayer, education, and direct presence helped bring national attention and legal action to pause construction.

4. Environmental justice and Indigenous rights are inseparable.

The conversation links the Miccosukee Tribe’s struggle for full federal recognition with the broader movement to restore balance between governance, ecology, and Indigenous sovereignty. Justice begins when Indigenous knowledge leads.

5. Joy and community are forms of survival.

Even amid ongoing fights for land and water, Betty’s stories centre laughter, family, and collective prayer. Joy is not a distraction from struggle; it is what keeps the work alive.

Photo by Lisette Morales, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

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Here is our lates Aunties Emergent episode, hosted by Cayuga curator and media artist Alex Jacobs-Blum. This is the second Aunties Emergent episode Alex has hosted this year - the first was with Grandmother René Thomas-Hill and her grounded approach continues to nurture the next generation of Indigenous storytellers. In this episode, Alex visits with Jaime L. Montour, an Indigenous woman of the Delaware, Turtle Clan, and Lenape Nations who lives in the Six Nations of the Grand River Territory.

Jaime, whose name Iotenerahtatenion means “leaves scattered by the wind,” brings a lifetime of experience connecting law, wellness, and spirit. She is a paralegal and the founder of JLM Professional Outsource and JLM AWAKENS, initiatives that weave together legal advocacy, holistic healing, and ancestral knowledge. With over 13 years of experience in family law and community service, Jaime shares powerful reflections on restorative justice, trauma-informed advocacy, and spirit-led reconciliation. Her voice reminds us that healing and accountability are deeply connected, guided by wisdom of land, language, and ancestor. ATTENTION: This episode includes stories of addiction and healing.

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The Aunties Dandelion is proud to share this new instalment of our Aunties Emergent series, guest-hosted by Alycia Two Bears, Mistawasis Nêhiyawak First Nation—an author, poet, full-spectrum birth worker, and land-based yoga teacher—who visits with Otakwan, Métisse, Otipemisiwak Nation—an educator, supermodel, producer, and activist. This mentoring series highlights the voices of young Aunties who are stepping into their gifts and responsibilities with courage, creativity, and honesty.

In this episode, Alycia leads a powerful dialogue on the urgent need to address bullying and lateral violence in our communities, focusing on expansive approaches to healing. Both Aunties share from the heart in a conversation that is as complex as the women themselves. They speak openly about the intersections of their identities, the responsibilities they carry, and the challenges of navigating community expectations. They invite us to reflect more deeply on how we care for one another, how we confront harm, and how we continue to build the full spectrum of our peoples.

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Four years ago, we sat down with Kahehtoktha Janice Brant one of the first Aunties we ever interviewed for this podcast.

She’s a Kanyen'kehà;ka Mohawk Seed Keeper, farmer, and co-founder of the Kenté:ke Seed Sanctuary. And honestly, that episode still stands out because of who she is - so we are very happy to include her in the first of our Aunties Revisited series.

Her name, Kahehtoktha, means “She goes the length of the garden,”. Janice has been doing this work for a long time - planting, protecting, organizing, teaching. And since that first interview, she’s only expanded what she’s doing.

We caught up with her again recently, in pajamas, with coffee. We also talk about her niece who’s starting to take on the seed work. Janice is still in it - and she is raising up the next generation of leaders.

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Wa’tkwanonhweráton sewakwé:kon — greetings love, and respect to all of you listening, and a special shoutout if you're making your way to or from the Great Law Recital in Tyendinaga.

In this episode, we’re visiting with Kawénnakon Bonnie Whitlow. Her name means in her words, and over the years, she’s lived profoundly into that name — through art, education, original language work, and some unexpected places too, like the world of disc golf. She’s a little bit of a fanatic and I think she’s pulling me in as well.

Bonnie doesn’t make a lot of noise about what she’s done — but she’s taken on big responsibilities and projects. She supported Tuscarora language learning for two years, making a weekly three-hour border-crossing trip. She’s been part of rites of passage, cultural resurgence, and grassroots projects that bring language and land into everyday practice, the PeaceMaker’s Journey.

She’s also out here proposing and designing a disc golf course for Six Nations that carry Haudenosaunee teachings, creating space for play, movement, and community.In this conversation, Bonnie shares how her different paths  are not separate. They run alongside each other, weave together, and shape how she moves through the world.This episode is a real treat – and it’s a long one - cuz we got a lot to say. We are dipping our toes into video as well as audio so check us out in 15 minute increments on our YouTube channel.

Nyá:wenkò:wa as always to Indigenous Screen Office Teyonkhiwihstakenha – for supporting these stories.

I’m Kahstoserakwathe. We’re Yeti Nihstenha ne TeKaronyakenare The Aunties Dandelion. Thanks for coming along to - Listen to Your Aunties

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We are living in tremendously uncertain times and this month’s guest, artist Yvette Molina, reminds us through her expansive work of the relationship between justice and care. Yvette is Mexican-American of Chippewa of Turtle Mountain descent who is currently artist-in-residence at the Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY. Her collaborative exhibition, A PROMISE TO THE LEAVES, centers the four elements: earth, air, water, fire, and a fifth presence, the cosmos. By focusing on these ancient, essential forces, Molina invites us to remember that humans, plants, and all earthly beings are composed of star matter and sustained by the elements. Her work encourages us to understand care as inherently relational. Care for one another, human and non-human alike, is care for ourselves and all of creation.

Yvette’s artistic practice is rooted in community engagement and activism - through processional banners, ritual, storytelling, costumes, collage, painting, and sculpture. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, including at the Stockholm Fringe Festival, the Brattleboro Museum and Art Center, the Visual Arts Center of New Jersey, Arsenal Contemporary Art, SPRING/BREAK Art Show, NADA FAIR, and the Legion of Honor and de Young Museums in California. She currently lives and creates in Oakland, California.

Nyá:wen to Indigenous Screen Office for supporting these important stories!

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Our Aunties Emergent mentoring program returns as guest host Alex Jacobs-Blum Gayogo̱hó꞉nǫʼ (Cayuga), Wolf Clan, Six Nations of the Grand River visits with Grandmother Renée Thomas-Hill Kanien’kehá:ka (Mohawk), Turtle Clan, Six Nations of the Grand River

As a Haudenosaunee woman, Grandmother Renee Thomas Hill carries the deep responsibility of upholding and sharing the teachings of “Our” Way of Life, guided by peace, power, and righteousness. Renee is founder of Grandmother’s Voice, a visionary Indigenous organization that aims to unite Indigenous voices while extending a warm invitation to individuals from all directions.

Renee is an auntie and grandmother to many and reminds us how the natural world cares deeply for us. “Right now it's the frogs that are singing and oh gosh, I get all excited hearing the frogs, and then when I wake up and I hear the birds singing, that's my medicine, says Grandmother Renee, “They're taking care of me. They're looking after me. The sun rises and it's taking care of me. So just those moments, slowing down and just appreciating everything that's around you is that medicine that builds up your immune system.”

Alex Jacobs-Blum (she/her) is a Gayogo̱hó꞉nǫʼ (Cayuga) and German visual artist and curator living in Hamilton, ON. Her research focuses on Indigenous futures and accessing embodied ancestral Hodinöhsö:ni’ knowledge. The core of her practice and methodology is a strong foundation in community building, fostering relationships, empowering youth, and Indigenizing institutional spaces. Her creative process is rooted in storytelling and challenging hierarchical power structures. Alex endeavours to facilitate transformative change infused with love and care.

Check out our February interview with Alex as our guest! 

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AUNTIE: Wa’tkwanonweráton Sewakwé:kon. Today, we’re visiting with Alex Jacobs Blum who is Cayuga and Wolf Clan, from Six Nations of the Grand River.

Raised away from her territory, Alex now engages dual tracks of art and curation to find a pathway—to the natural world, her Haudenosaunee teachings and community - and to herself.

Alex shares her remarkable journey back to Cayuga territory in Central New York a few years back where she reconnected with ancestors to find her path forward.

AJB: You know growing up - there was a lot of shame built up around my identity, so I had been working to unpack and unlearn that. And then when I was there - you know I just felt so validated in myself and I felt so surrounded by so much care.

AUNTIE: Alex is well-known for surrounding others with the same type of care as she nurtures a supportive web of relationships, uplifts young artists, and weaves Indigenous perspectives into institutional spaces. Through her transformative work she disrupts hierarchical power structures in storytelling and creates space for collective, Indigenous, matrilineal voices to be amplified. And in the wake of her mother’s recent passing, Alex’s work has become a way to make sense of her own profound loss.

If you’re in region around Six Nations, you can experience Alex’s work firsthand—her In the Shadow of the Eclipse residency is on view at the Art Gallery of Hamilton until March 16, 2025. She also co-curated Ascending Horizons with Métis artist Kim Anderson, now showing at the McMaster Museum of Art until June 20, 2025.

We are Yetinistenha ne Tekaronkyakánere – the Aunties Dandelion and wa’tkwanonhweráton greetings, love, and respect to Canada’s Indigenous Screen Office – teyonkhiwihstekénha – who provide the support to keep this show running. And can you do us a big favor by liking and sharing our episodes – and subscribe to our feed on your favorite platform. It goes a long way to support voices of Indigenous changemakers. #IndigenousArt #IndigenousCreatives #Haudenosaunee #Cayuga #IndigenousVoices #Storytelling #ArtCurator #MatrilinealPower #IndigenousMedia #AuntiesDandelion #ListenToYourAunties 🎙️💫

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