Land Acknowledgement

We acknowledge that the land on which the Fetzer Institute and Seasons Retreat Center reside is the ancestral home of Indigenous peoples, including the Council of the Three Fires — the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi Nations. We especially honor the enduring presence of the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians (Gun Lake Tribe), who have long lived in and cared for this region.

We honor their sovereignty, spiritual traditions, and deep relationship with this land — now known as Kalamazoo. We also acknowledge the ongoing impact of displacement and colonization, and the injustices that Indigenous communities continue to face.

This land is sacred not only for its natural beauty but also for its layered history and the wisdom it carries. We commit ourselves to learning from Indigenous sacred wisdom, respecting ecological balance, and participating in the long work of truth, repair, and respectful partnership.

May our presence here be guided by humility, reverence and gratitude.