Deep Dive with Dr. Melinda Adams: Solastalgia & Soliphilia
Season 3: Episode 22
Climify Producer Cam Burkins rejoins Dr. Melinda Adams to go deeper into her life and work. In particular, this episode explores solastalgia (or climate anxiety) and soliphilia (cures or mitigation methods against that anxiety). Melinda shares Traditional Ecological Practices that provide hope for our collective future, which will surely be Matriarchal!
Listen to this episode on: Spotify, Apple, Google and other places you get your podcastsAbout our guest
Melinda Adams, Ph.D. belongs to the N’dee San Carlos Apache Tribe and is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography and Atmospheric Science and Indigenous Studies at The University of Kansas. She is a cultural fire scholar and practitioner and is NWCG certified.
As a fire scholar, Dr. Adams concentrates on encouraging public participation in prescribed and controlled burns, getting more people fire certified, and placing more Indigenous-led cultural fire to the ground with allies, agencies, and Tribal members: “Decolonizing fire” as she describes.
Her research focuses on the revitalization of cultural fire with Tribes at the intersection of ecology, environmental science, environmental policy, and Native American Studies.
She examines plant and soil physical-chemical responses to cultural fire including culturally significant plant yield, and nutrient cycling capacity. This work is rooted in the place-specific, land stewardship lessons of Indigenous cultural fire practitioner-partners.
Broader implications of this research include deploying cultural fire as a climate adaptation strategy while mitigating the frequency and intensity of catastrophic wildfire.
Dr. Adams holds her Bachelor of Science from Haskell Indian Nations University (one of thirty-seven tribal colleges located across the United States), her Master of Science from Purdue University, and PhD from the University of California, Davis.
On the web
Melinda M. Adams, PhD (personal site)
Melinda M. Adams, PhD (Kansas site)
Resources in this episode
People
Books
Original Instructions: Indigenous Teachings for a Sustainable Future
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants
Articles
Indigenous Ecologies: Cultivating Fire, Plants, and Climate Futurity
Solastalgia to Soliphilia: Cultural Fire, Climate Change, and Indigenous Healing
Podcasts with Melissa
Organizations
Terms
Humble Fire
Indigenous Matriarchial Ecologies
Traditional Ecological Practices
The Black Line
Find more about how to teach climate design in your classroom at www.climatedesigners.org/edu
Music in this episode
Nature sound effect by bbc.co.uk – ©2023 BBC
Theme music by Casual Motive
The Dance by Octavia Romero
Design Team
Consulting
Climate Design Assignments
At the end of each episode, we ask our guests what their ideal climate design project would be. They have four weeks with a class full of design students. We translated their response into a project brief that you can use for your class.
