Gullah/Geechee Rising SEA Campaign Launched for World Water Day

Gullah/Geechee Nation ♦ March 21, 2019 ♦ 1 Comment

The leaders of the Gullah/Geechee Nation will release their ocean action plan on World Water Day 2019.  As members of the International Alliance to Combat Ocean Acidification, they saw the need to insure that the sustainability work that is being done within the Gullah/Geechee Nation incorporates protection of the ocean.  Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation (www.QueenQuet.com) recently testified on behalf of the ocean before the United States Congress.   The video from that testimony (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WhgndFLXk0&t=144s) has brought not only national, but also international attention to numerous water related issues that the Gullah/Geechee Nation is faced with including ocean acidification and sea level rise which is contributing to flooding in the region.

As governmental agencies on the local and state level discuss adaptation and resilience, the Gullah/Geechee leaders are not consistently part of the discussions and their communities are not targeted for funding.  Queen Quet is currently serving on the equity committee for the National Adaptation Forum where she will be an opening plenary presenter and is a member of the Climigration Network examining climate change and retreat.   Given her experiences in these forums, she saw the need to begin the “Gullah/Geechee Rising SEA” initiative in which SEA is an acronym for “sustainability equity alliance.”   

Just after the Gullah/Geechee Nation was featured in USA Today (https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/investigations/2019/02/18/gullah-cultures-african-roots-persevere-amid-threat-development/2809143002/), the official 501(c)3 for the Gullah/Geechee Nation, the Gullah/Geechee Angel Network (www.GullahGeecheeAngelNetwork.com) was chosen to be one of the non-profits that may receive a Community Thrives Grant so that they can collaborate with the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition (www.GullahGeechee.net) in launching the Gullah/Geechee Rising SEA.  For World Water Day, they are asking supporters across the world to donate to the CrowdRise fundraising link that is part of this campaign to qualify for a grant from USA Today: https://www.crowdrise.com/o/en/campaign/gullahgeechee-angel-network-south-carolina .  The Gullah/Geechee Rising SEA project will increase the capacity of Gullah/Geechees to bring their voice and their cultural traditions into resiliency and sustainability planning, community climate and environmental education, emergency and disaster preparedness and recovery training in order to insure native Gullah/Geechees are able to sustain  themselves and remain on their land which is currently jeopardized by a number of environmentally related issues including water quality, seafood safety, and sea level rise.   

As the Gullah/Geechee believe, “De wata bring we and de wata gwine tek we bak.”, so there was no better way to celebrate World Water Day than bringing together people that will rise up with them and protect the waterways.

Webe Gullah/Geechee Anointed Peepol! Lun mo bout who webe www.gullahgeecheenation.com