Oshkigin: Spirit of Fire (2021)

• 66%
• 2021
• Andrew Bydlon
• Tom Deschenes

Not all fire is bad. Increased droughts and longer fire seasons in recent decades have caused more frequent, dangerous, and intense fires across the country. But for thousands of years, Native people used fire to prevent these intense fires, while also using it to cultivate the land, build communities, and preserve natural forests. Current laws preventing controlled burns have changed both the environment of the Upper Midwest and the culture of Native Tribes. Like the fire that rejuvenates the forest, a small group is working to revive this valuable practice. Oshkigin - Spirit of Fire shows the ways that traditional fire uses can reconnect us with the land and preserve the natural world.