Join Jessa Fisher, Educator Naturalist at the Helmer Nature Center, for an all ages presentation on traditional Haudenosaunee uses of regional plants. This presentation will include a brief introduction to the culture, politics, and territory of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. A general overview of ethnobotany and different aspects of plant use by the Haudenosaunee will be followed by an introduction to the language of the Seneca, the Haudenosaunee tribe who traditionally hunted and fished in Irondequoit. The names and traditional medicinal, culinary, and utilitarian uses of native plants found growing in this region centuries ago which are still at Helmer today, will also be covered. 

This program is being presented in partnership with the Irondequoit Conservation Board.

About the presenter:

Jessa Fisher is an Educator Naturalist at the Helmer Nature Center, an outdoor classroom which has been part of the West Irondequoit Central School District (WICSD) since 1973. The 45-acre site hosts field trips and is an integral component of the WICSD curriculum. In addition, classes, families, and groups of all ages come to the Center's woods and wetlands from throughout the region to learn about, enjoy, and celebrate our natural heritage. The mission of Helmer Nature Center is to foster environmental awareness and promote global stewardship by offering the community experiences encountering and enjoying the natural world.

Jessa has been interested in the Haudenosaunee since her tweens when she spent her summers at her uncle’s cottage at the base of Bare Hill on Canandaigua Lake. She went on to practice applied ethnobotany with the Diné and Hopi tribes in Northern Arizona as a staff member of the Arizona Ethnobotanical Research Association (AERA). In her free time, she is an herbalist with a focus on native and naturalized herbs growing in this region. Jessa is honored to work at Helmer and with a school district so supportive of diversity and inclusivity.