Randy Kritkausky
Randy Kritkausky’s family tree includes Potawatomi ancestors and a French Canadian voyageur, or fur trader. These human ancestral roots, along with those of trees in the Vermont forest where he lives, have been the source of an awakening that compelled the author to listen to the beckonings of kin such as Coy-Wolf, in ways that a university education did not prepare him for. His family legacy includes both sides of the clash of civilizations that occurred when Europeans colonized the western hemisphere and created cultural conflicts that endure to this day. Living with this dual legacy has enabled the author to explore bridges between two distinct world views, and to suggest ways that we may navigate challenges of the 21st century [such as climate change and COVID]. While an enrolled Potawatomi tribal member, he lives off reservation and has spent his life in mainstream society as do millions of other tribally enrolled Native Americans.
