Ramona Moonflower on protecting the Redwoods in the 90's, using forest therapy to re-connect to place

This episode of the Ground Shots Podcast features a conversation with Ramona Moonflower Rubin, an activist and forest therapist living in the Bay area of California.   Ramona Moonflower Rubin walks a path woven of science, spirituality and activism connecting human and ecological health. Ramona studied Cultural Ecology at the University of Santa Cruz and has a Master's in Public Health from the University of Michigan. She founded Healing Forest Guide to facilitate a deep conversation about how we experience and relate to the natural world. Ramona lives in Berkeley California on Chochenyo Ohlone ancestral land at the ancient settlement of Huchiun. She teaches from her diverse fields of study: ecology, permaculture, California native plants, sustainable agriculture, nutrition, public health, integrative medicine, cannabis science, ethnobotany and forest therapy. Based in her Judaic heritage and influenced by Buddhist, shamanic and earth-based traditions, Ramona's approach to spirituality is open and grounded in welcoming the sensory experience of the present. Her ceremonial practice is based on the conviction that other beings embody an intelligence, and that it is our sacred heritage and right to interact with and experience this intelligence. I sat down and had a brief conversation with Ramona after we both participated in the march to Oak Flat this past February with the Apache Stronghold primarily organized by the local San Carlos Apache folks. The march to Oak Flat is a prayer-focused walk with the intention of bringing awareness to an unlawful copper mine trying to make it's way on sacred Apache land.   In this episode with Ramona we talk about:   Ramona's environmental activism work being involved in protecting old growth Redwoods in the 90's in northern California   the different motivations behind the Redwood campaign Ramona was involved with in the 90's   different ways of approaching direct action   the connection between Salmon and the Redwoods   how the potential for grief increases the more we feel connected to the land around us in a society that does not feel that same connection   forest therapy Links: Follow Ramona on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/r_moonflower/ Ramona's website: http://www.healingforestguide.com   Support the podcast on Patreon to contribute to our grassroots self-funding of this project.  Support the Ground Shots Project with a one time donation via Paypal at: paypal.me/petitfawn    Our website with backlog of episodes, plant profiles, travelogue and more: http://www.ofsedgeandsalt.com  Our Instagram page @goldenberries Join the Ground Shots Podcast Facebook Group to discuss the episodes Subscribe to our newsletter for updates on the Ground Shots Project Theme music: 'Sweat and Splinters' by Mother Marrow Interstitial music: 'The Gray Sea' by West of Roan West of Roan's website: http://www.westofroan.com Hosted by: Kelly Moody Produced by: Kelly Moody and Opia Creative