In this episode of Fight For Our Existence Podcast, I sit down in Yosemite at the Grizzly Giant with Aanthony Lerma, Tara Fouch-Moore, and Irene Vasquez of the Southern Sierra Miwuk Nation.

We talk about Indigenous stewardship, cultural burning, forest health, language revitalization, and what it means to care for land your ancestors have known since time immemorial. From black oaks and bedrock mortars to fire, food, medicine, and the responsibility of being in relationship with the land, this conversation shows why Native people must be part of caring for these places.

This is not just about protecting trees or reducing fuels. It is about restoring Indigenous knowledge, honoring the relatives around us, and making sure the next generations can still walk these lands, speak their language, and carry the work forward.

Special thanks to Yosemite Conservancy for their support of this podcast episode.

Thank you to Tiśina Parker of the Southern Sierra Miwuk Nation/Kutzadika’a Mono Lake Paiute for recommending my podcast for this event. I appreciate you trusting me with this space and helping make this episode happen.

Guests:

Irene Vasquez — Southern Sierra Miwuk/Mono Lake Paiute, Cultural Ecologist

Tara Fouch-Moore — Southern Sierra Miwuk, Director of Landscape Stewardship

Aanthony Lerma — Southern Sierra Miwuk , Landscape Stewardship Coordinator/Firekeeper