To those who have pledged their support for The Sunrise People, I am eternally grateful. You have no idea how much your generosity means, especially in these difficult financial times.

I'm not sure yet whether my goal will be reached - there are only 33 hours to go! Please pass the projects on to your friends and family. This project needs more people like YOU for it to succeed!

Best wishes and a wonderful weekend!

Christi

I just returned last night from a busy week/weekend in Seattle at the Traditional Foods Summit and the SEAchange meeting at University of Washington. 

Rosina, her aunt (Gigi), her niece (Donielle), and a member of the Pointe au Chien tribe (Theresa Dardar) all traveled to Seattle to share their stories and experiences with others. The Traditional Foods Summit was a satellite meeting of the Society for Applied Anthropology conference and focused on a variety of issues related to traditional foods (food safety, water, hunting rights, contamination, etc.).

I was asked by Peter Jones, the director of the Bauu Institute, to share the introduction clip to The Sunrise People and to talk about our experiences filming down in the Bayou. Fortunately, both Rosina and Donielle were able to also attend the session and share some of their personal insight into the situation.

On Saturday, the University of Washington hosted SEAchange (http://seachange.uw.edu/), a meeting focused on bringing various entities together to discuss the impacts of oil disasters - from Exxon Valdez to the Deepwater Horizon. Once again, Rosina and Co. were able to share some of their personal experiences, fears, concerns, and frustrations at how the government is dealing with this catastrophe, which we were able to film. This trip was a valuable experience and is one of the products of the hard work that many people from the Gulf Coast have put into communicating the REAL issues of what people are facing as a result of the largest oil spill our nation has ever faced. In addition, Patience Faulkner, a member of the tribal council from Cordova, Alaska, was part of this group and has worked tirelessly to help the Native Americans in coastal Louisiana. The Alaskans have formed a tight network with the Louisianians, providing their experiences with Exxon, sharing stories, and providing support. It is wonderful to see the strength in unity.

Please continue to pass this project along. The deadline for funding is coming up, and we are still far from our goal. Thank you to those that have pledged their support. It is greatly appreciated!

After almost three weeks of being down here in Southwest Louisiana, I am returning home today to Bozeman, Montana. The trip was successful and I was able to capture much needed footage of what is happening down here in the Gulf, almost 11 months after the start of the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster.

The Philippe family has found such a special place in my heart, and I hope that this film will draw attention to the repercussions and consequences of the type of energy sources we currently depend on.

If anyone is still interested and would like to know....YES...there is STILL OIL down here. It continues to wash up on the shores. The marshes and outlying barrier islands are filled with it. I am returning home to Montana with globs of oil stuck to my shoes that I couldn't remove. The stuff is stickier than honey, and it's all over the shorelines. I am angered by the state's and the government's attempts to cover all of this up. Thousands of fishermen are out of work and are suffering the consequences of that economic loss. Many that I met refuse to eat any of the seafood that is harvested from these waters, although they've been told that it's safe to eat. They know better. They see on a daily basis the death and destruction to the wildlife.

Thanks to those of you who have pledged your support. I am very grateful. However, I am still far from my goal and I need your help to spread the word. Please forward this story and project on to those who can help to make a difference. Every bit counts!