We are back from our summer break! Before we get started, stop! Take a deep breath in … and … out. Pause. Where is the sun in the territory you’re on now? Where is the moon? Observe and connect. In this episode, Heather is joined by Wet’suwet’en PhD candidate Sandra Martin Harris, who urges us to slow down, check in with the land, and connect with our bodies regularly for health and wellbeing. We also hear about Sandra’s involvement with The Planetary Health Learning Garden, a place of connection. It is a collaboration between the Public Health Association of British Columbia, the University of Northern British Columbia, and the Rural and Remote Doctors of British Columbia, to foster land-based wellness and connection between health and environmental workforces. As Sandra tells us, we need to be in relation to one another to understand that our wellness is deeply connected to the wellbeing of the land, the waters, the mountains, the trees, and all beings. When there’s more connection, there’s more resilience, especially during difficult times of burn-out, climate change, and limited staff.  



Sandra Martin Harris is from the Wet’suwet’en Nation of the Laksilyu, Little Frog Clan and is a member of the Witset First Nation. She is a PhD candidate at the University of Northern British Columbia in the Natural Resources and Environmental Studies Graduate Program, and a member of the LEAPH team. Sandra is an Indigenous community developer and an Indigenous Focusing Complex Trauma (IFOT) practitioner. As a facilitator and planning mentor, she shares body centered and land-based ways to find a pathway and grow through complex trauma/toxic stress. 



This podcast is created by the Impact Chair in Transformative Governance for Planetary Health at the University of Victoria, with production support from Cited Media. We receive additional support from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research You can find us at https://indigenousplanetaryhealth.ca/