| Although the importance of a culture of literacy dominates educational research, Oral Traditions have resurfaced with renewed interest in the correspondence between landscape and language. Singing, dancing, and living in the recognition of the continued relevance of ancestral songs is a (re)construction and (re)conceptulization of Latvian culture which encompasses teachings and traditions embodied in dainas, teikas, tautas pasakas and tautas dziesmas, which could be translated as stories and songs of the people. My exploration of the question "Is all land sacred?" includes a critical examination of photographs, travel logs, and poetic writing that have developed as part of my fieldwork. Through an investigation of teachings of Latvian and Mohawk Elders, I explore the cultural process characterizing the spiritual connection and eco-poetic response to Australian, North-American, and Latvian landscapes. In their totality, these foci offer a plausible answer to central questions about culturally restorative practices within environmental education. |
