Just before the summer solstice, I spent three days in Maine's Acadia National Park. As part of my time there, I joined with the Wabanaki peoples to offer a gesture toward a new beginning, exploring how the intersection of nature and culture can help us shape a better future. The Wabanaki peoples have lived in the land we call Maine for millennia. The roots of the word Wabanaki can be found in the Passamaquoddy word Ckuwaponahkiyik, or “people from the land where the sun rises.” As the people of the dawnland, they consider it their responsibility to welcome the sun for the rest of the continent. ____ 🌅 Tap into my story to see videos from Acadia. 🌅 See more photos and read about my time in the dawnland at the link in my bio. 📷 @austinmann ___ Thanks to everyone who made this possible including Chris Newell, Lauren Stevens, Roger Paul, @acadianps, @schoodicinst, @annaclynecomposer, Solon Gordon, @abbemuseum, @healthyacadiame, @friendsofacadia, @niatero, @upstanderproject ___ #wabanaki #indigenouspeoples #acadianationalpark #maine #dawnland

What an honor to join Wabanaki elders, musicians, and teachers in their tradition of welcoming the sunrise for the continent. Together with @acadianps and other Maine cultural leaders, we spoke about how we can follow the wisdom of culture and nature to bring hope as we emerge from the pandemic and build a future for the generations to come. ___ #cultureconnectsus 📷 @austinmann

"The Great Spirit is in all things. He is in the air we breathe. The Great Spirit is our Father, but the Earth is our Mother. She nourishes us.....That which we put into the ground she returns to us." - Big Thunder (Bedagi) Wabanaki Algonquin . "There is no death. Only a change of worlds.” - Chief Seattle [Seatlh], Suquamish Chief . "What is life? It is the flash of a firefly in the night. It is the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime. It is the little shadow which runs across the grass and loses itself in the sunset." - Crowfoot, Blackfoot warrior and orator . "Everything on the earth has a purpose, every disease an herb to cure it, and every person a mission. This is the Indian theory of existence." - Mourning Dove [Christine Quintasket] (1888-1936) Salish