Despite compaction causing the soil's surface to become dry and dusty, some plants still grow. However, this is not the end of the soil's story. In this single event, human activity undid the thousands of years it took for the soil to be a space where life could thrive in harmony with the local climate. This caused soil compaction, where the soil pores are pressed together and the soil becomes more rock-like. In 2010, the soil's life-rich surface was stripped away and it was then pressed for the construction of a highway. Until 2009, the soil experienced the cycle of harvest which involved the disruptive effects of annual soil tillage, vehicle traffic and the application of biocides for plants and animals deemed pests. We try to imagine, from the soil's point of view, how detrimental the impacts of human activity have been. Credit: University of Calgary/Fritz Tolentinoīefore European colonization, Indigenous communities had long histories of stewarding the land and living reciprocally with the soil. Indigenous communities have long histories of stewarding the land and living reciprocally with the soil. The Prairie Pothole region, where Land of Dreams is located, is typified by a mosaic of grasslands and wetlands.Ī tipi on the Land of Dreams site. Our goal is to use STEM education to press for social justice and environmental protection.Įnacting this vision requires using Indigenous knowledge to carefully listen to the stories the soil reveals.ĭigging deeper into this land, we encounter various faces of the soil shaped by climate, topography, parent material and time. The vision of Land of Dreams is to create a place where communities who are forcefully displaced from their land gather and reconnect to the soil through small-scale agricultural practices, while learning about Indigenous ways of stewarding the land. The region has traditionally been stewarded by the Niitsitapi, Îethka Nakoda and Tsuut'ina Nations, and more recently Métis Nation Region 3. Over the past three years, we have worked with our community partner, Land of Dreams, a 30-acre community urban farm in southeast Calgary. In the years and decades to come, what will our lasting legacy be in the story the soil tells? Whether we know it or not, soils are the silent partner that sustains us.

Only by understanding our past and current relationship with soil can we reflect and change our partnership with soil from extraction and exploitation to respect, relationality and reciprocity. If we do not listen to the stories of the soil, we as humans might destroy the soil which supports countless lives. Yet despite our reliance on soil, humans entrenched in colonial mindset and systems have been poor soil stewards and generally ignorant to the destructive and extractive practices we inflict on soil. The soil can tell stories of their past to anyone who takes the time to listen.

Living earth soil