HINU students amplify Indigenous views on environment [Video]

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Haskell Indian Nation University (HINU) students are amplifying Indigenous knowledge while interning at the Prairie Park Nature Center in Lawrence, Kansas.

Monica Chesarek, Crow, is studying environmental science at HINU, and she’s leading conservation efforts at Mary’s Park on the grounds of the Prairie Park Nature Center.

“It’s important to know the quality of water you have around you,” Chesarek said.

Chesarek said Indigenous people have personal, cultural and religious ties to “any and all living things,” which is why it’s important for their voices to be heard when it comes to the environment.

Chesarek’s family lives on the Crow Reservation in the northern Plains.

“My family lives there, my whole life is there, that’s where my heart is and I want to take care of them,” she said.

Chesarek graduates in May with her bachelor’s in environmental science, and she plans to get her master’s degree.

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