Hi Bioneer,
As we conclude the first day of Bioneers 2024, we're energized by the powerful ideas and calls to action shared by our speakers. Their insights challenge us to reevaluate societal norms and inspire us to drive positive change.
From questioning the American way of life to advocating for education and environmental stewardship, each speaker echoed a common theme: the need for collective action and systemic change.
Join us in reflecting on these powerful messages and considering how we can each contribute to a more just and sustainable world.
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IN THEIR OWN WORDS
Inspiration from Bioneers 2024 speakers.
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- "The American way of life must be up for discussion, or else we will not win this climate movement. What is the American way of life? I have some truths to dispel. We’ve absorbed a lie of individual exceptionalism. We were taught that we are the exception, that America is the one, and that we should be joyful in our domination. It’s the basis of a lot of our success, and it is a lie. We’ve swallowed a poisonous elixir that talks about achieving something on your own. Individualism. The truth is, we stole most of it, we took the rest of it, and everyone who fought, we fought against them. That is our nation. If you think that history is over, the way the U.S. is moving in the world right now is an extension of how it moved so many years ago. We have devoted our prayers to a ridiculous religion of capitalism, and we are now caught in this rapture of extraction. We have to be willing to change not only what we believe but how we move in this world." -Colette Pichon Battle, Taproot Earth
- “Land acknowledgments have to happen through reciprocity. We cannot say, ‘Welcome to this territory that embraced my ancestors. We were born to these lands and waters, and we faced 3 waves of genocide. Next on the agenda…’ We can’t do that.” -Corrina Gould, Sogorea Te’ Land Trust
- "Education is the one way that we can counter the fascism that is happening in our society. All of the money that is going toward prisons should be going toward education." -Dolores Huerta, Dolores Huerta Foundation
- "I don’t believe in a mythical existence. I believe the universe unfolds in patterns of interconnectedness that my ancestors have understood for generations. I’ve dedicated my life to the culture because of a small sentence that my grandmother always told me growing up: 'One day, they will need people like us.'" -Samuel Gensaw, III, Ancestral Guard
- "What I love about the prairie is it’s one of the most biodiverse regions on the planet. 100 acres of prairie supports 3,000 species of insects. Nature reveals that for it to thrive, we need diverse ecosystems. Our libraries mimic that concept best." -Taylor Brorby, author & activist
- "We’re clearly in a moment of crisis. We’re being told we’re so polarized, but we’re actually polarized from our elected officials, not from each other. Most of us believe we’re interdependent. We believe that everyone around us deserves a good life." -Saru Jayaraman, One Fair Wage
- "The thing that’s really exciting to me is in the local philanthropy community. There are conversations happening that were not happening 5-10 years ago. People understand that journalism is a public good and are recognizing that journalism has gone away in too many communities and needs protecting." -Larry Ryckman, The Colorado Sun
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The Local Honeys take the stage at Bioneers 2024. |
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Nina Simons: Beyond Binaries, Towards Solidarity |
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"I may prefer to think of myself as liberated from patriarchy, misogyny, racism and dog-eat-dog capitalist habits of mind, but those cultural patterns have been around a long time and they’re deeply embedded in our psyches. To pretend otherwise can prevent us from working seriously on evolving beyond our long-standing conditioning. " -Bioneers Co-Founder Nina Simons
The full text of Nina Simons' emotional and inspiring keynote has been published. |
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- The Electronic Frontier Foundation is the leading nonprofit defending digital privacy, free speech, and innovation. Consider supporting the organization's campaigns to defend your right to repair your own products and devices and protect your data in the face of corporate concentration. (Mentioned by Cindy Cohn)
- Join a growing union of debtors organizing to abolish debts and build financial and political power with the Debt Collective.
- Join Filmmaker Sylvia Ryerson (CALLS FROM HOME) and Building Community Not Prisons in opposing the proposed $500+ million dollar construction of Federal Correctional Institution Letcher, a 1,408-bed federal prison to be built on a former mountaintop removal coal mine site in Roxana, KY. As a federal project, your voice counts, wherever you live: Learn more and submit a comment.
- Support Taproot Earth, a nonprofit that builds power and cultivates solutions among frontline communities advancing climate justice and democracy. (Mentioned by Colette Pichon Battle)
- The Dolores Huerta Foundation passionately advocates for social justice, focusing on empowering marginalized communities through grassroots organizing, civic engagement, and education initiatives. Learn how to join as a volunteer or intern. (Mentioned by Dolores Huerta)
- Make your voice heard along with UltraViolet, a powerful and rapidly growing community of people mobilized to fight sexism and create a more inclusive world that accurately represents all women, from politics and government to media and pop culture. (Mentioned by Elisa Batista)
- July 2026 will mark the 250th Anniversary of the birth of the United States. It's time to redefine America from the ground up. Learn how to join #Next250. (Mentioned by Saru Jayaraman)
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Full video recordings of all Bioneers 2024 keynote presentations will be available to our entire audience soon. In the meantime, you can enjoy and share a growing selection of video clips by visiting us on Instagram and TikTok: |
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