Saging the World

The viral trend of smudging is endangering white sage. Metric tons of white sage (Salvia apiana) are being poached across wildlands to supply an international demand for smudge sticks, essential oil and other products. This plant is deeply rooted in the cultures and lifeways of Indigenous communities of Southern California and northern Baja, the only region that white sage naturally occurs in the world. The devastating theft and the appropriated trend that it fuels stand in sharp contrast with the values and traditional practices of regional Native communities. Indigenous advocates express that white sage that has been irreverently ripped from the wild, sold on the black market, shipped across the planet, and burned without regard for Indigenous practices has no medicine. Native people have long fought for the protection and recognition of white sage. Rose Ramirez and Deborah Small, authors of the Ethnobotany Project, and white sage advocates say it’s time to Sage the World: we need to boycott wildcrafted sage products, grow native plants like white sage, and reorient perspectives of plants as ‘resources’ to ‘relationships.’ David Bryant, CNPS’s Director of Education & Engagement, will speak about the Saging the World campaign, sharing co-led efforts with Rose, Deborah and Indigenous partners to protect this imperiled plant.

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