The Bayou Culture Collaborative will host Culture and Climate Conversations, a series of community discussions intended to raise awareness about the cultural impact of the state’s environmental changes. At six events across south Louisiana, community members will explore how climate shifts and rapid land loss are affecting arts, heritage, and traditions.
Culture and Climate Conversations offers local artists an important platform to present their crafts, rituals, traditional practices, and other local knowledge now at risk. “As our land is changing,” said by Jonathan Foret, one of the founding members of the BCC, “we need to be intentional about preserving our culture.” This is one of many BCC projects intended to create networks of concerned Louisianians to develop action steps for endangered communities and traditions. The public is invited to participate in the BCC. For more information, see the Louisiana Folklore Society’s website.
Unless otherwise noted, all events are free and open to the public. Culture and Climate Conversations is funded through a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, with additional support from the Louisiana Folklore Society. For more information, contact Teresa Parker at tcparker@tulane.edu.
Schedule of Events:
Healing Landscapes, Preserving Communities
Monday, September 18th, 3 p.m.
Georges Auditorium at Dillard University
2601 Gentilly Blvd, New Orleans
Panelists: Pamela Arnette Broom, Urban Agriculturalist, Project Manager, 7th Ward Revitalization Project; Diane Honoré, Creole Healer, Black Masking Big Queen of the Yellow Pocahontas, Historical Interpreter
Moderator: Mona Lisa Saloy, Dillard University Professor of English and former Louisiana Poet Laureate
Stories of Cameron Parish
Tuesday, October 10th, 3 p.m.
Calcasieu Parish Library, Central Branch-DeBakey Community Room
301 W. Claude St, Lake Charles
Tradition bearers: Second-generation Cameron resident Judge H. Ward Fontenot; Creole, LA native and longtime Lake Charles community leader Dinah B. Landry
Moderator: Keagan LeJeune, Folklorist/Writer, Department of English and Foreign Languages, McNeese State University
Rougarou Fest Narrative Stage
Saturday, October 21st, 12 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Sunday, October 22nd, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Rougarou Fest
86 Valhi Blvd, Houma
Tradition Bearers: The Narrative Stage will feature several tradition bearers discussing and demonstrating basket weaving, creating moss dolls, preserving the Cajun healing tradition of traiteurs, uses of Louisiana medicinal plants, preserving the Louisiana French language, and sustainability in Louisiana’s fishing industry.
Moderator: Lanor Curole, Tribal Administrator, United Houma Nation
The Sportsman’s Paradise in a Changing Environment
Thursday, November 16th, 6 p.m.
Center for Louisiana Studies, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
Roy House, 1204 Johnston St, Lafayette
Tradition bearers: Dale Bordelon, Rapides Parish duck-call maker and conservationist;
Keith Dupuy, Denham Springs cypress pirogue restorer and antique boat expert
Moderator: Jacob Gautreaux, Adjunct Instructor of History, ULL
United Houma Nation Tribal Celebration (open to tribal members only)
Saturday, December 2nd, Time TBA
Bayou Black Recreation Center
3688 Southdown Mandalay Rd, Houma
Tradition Bearers: Grayhawk Perkins, Native American storyteller, stomp dancer, & oral historian; Raymond Clark, UHN palmetto hut builder, stickball expert, drummer & singer
Moderator: Lanor Curole, UHN Tribal Administrator
Landmarks & Land Loss in Terrebonne Parish
Sunday, April 14, 2024, 2:00 pm
Chauvin Sculpture Garden Picnic and Blessing of the Fleet Celebration
5337 Bayouside Dr, Chauvin
Tradition bearers: Cecil Lapeyrouse, 3rd-generation Cocodrie grocer and Cajun-French storyteller; Deborah Cunningham, Chauvin native and multi-generational shrimping family descendant
Moderator: Dr. Gary LaFleur, Jr., Professor of Biological Sciences, Nicholls State University
About the Bayou Culture Collaborative
A collective of more than 800 people and organizations, the Bayou Culture Collaborative (BCC) is organized through the Louisiana Folklore Society to accelerate environmental adaptation through culture and the arts. The BCC recognizes that culture is a powerful catalyst for action and that ecological disruptions threaten community ties to the land and resources that sustain cultural heritage and lifeways. The BCC is funded by Louisiana Division of the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, and Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program. To learn more about the BCC visit https://www.louisianafolklore.org/. Information about the Louisiana Folklore Society may be found at louisianafolklore.org.