Seven neighboring land conservation organizations in Southern Maine are collaborating to learn about and honor the intersection of land conservation and Indigenous communities. Their first public project features beautiful children’s books by contemporary Indigenous authors printed along publicly accessible walking trails.
June 14 sees the launch of Tales on the Trails at York Land Trust, Kennebunk Land Trust and Great Works Regional Land Trust in Newichawannock. Kennebunkport Conservation Trust, 57 Gravelly Brook Road, is already set up for summer on its children’s Storybook Trail, where Minquansis Sapiel (Passamaquoddy), author of ‘Little People of the Dawn’ was one of the first authors to be featured. Kittery Land Trust, Wells Reserve at Laudholm and Arundel Conservation Trust will announce their grand openings throughout the summer and fall. All the trails will be freely available for people to walk - staying in place for months at a time.
Some of the authors will participate in the launches, presenting or reading their books, and visitors will have an opportunity to buy their own copies to take home. Every few months, the books will rotate around the different Land Trusts so that each community gets to experience the different stories.
Books to be featured include ‘Who Am I?’ by Julie Buchholtz, ‘The Canoe Maker’ by Jean Flahive and Donald Soctomah, ‘The First Blade of Sweetgrass’ by Suzanne Greenlaw and Gabriel Frey, ‘Little People of the Dawn’ by Minquansis Sapiel, and ‘Turtle’s Race with Beaver’ by Joseph Bruchac and James Bruchac.
The collaborating land trusts hope that these stories and artist illustrations will entice children and families outdoors into nature and explore trails in different areas. They are also an opportunity to gain experience from contemporary Indigenous people about a deeper and more reciprocal relationship to land, informed by millennia of experience and culture. Visitors may explore further through organizations such as Wabanaki REACH, the Abbe Museum and the Wabanaki Commission on Land and Stewardship.
FMI on Tales on the Trails:
Arundel Conservation Trust:
Great Works Regional Land Trust in Newichawannock
https://gwrlt.org/newichawannock-woods/
Kennebunk Land Trust:
https://kennebunklandtrust.org/
Kennebunkport Conservation Trust:
Kittery Land Trust:
https://kitterylandtrust.weebly.com/
Wells Reserve at Laudholm:
York Land Trust: