Sedna's Message

Suzanne Swibold designed our institute's logo to feature Sedna, the human/seal/bird figure from the mythology of the sea-hunting cultures of the Eskimo people. She is the source of life and creation, and dwells at the bottom of the sea. She represents the peoples' soul; when they are happy and harmonious, she provides nourishment; when they are confused and out of harmony, she withholds her food. During times of starvation, shamans took the risky "journey" to her dwelling to ask what must be done to restore food to their people.

Sedna carries a specific warning to humankind. If we fail to protect our sea and ocean resources, we can scarcely imagine the consequences for humans or other life forms on the planet. The hints of Sedna's wrath are just beginning to cluster and alarm... in North America, we hear daily word of fishery collapses in the Grand Banks, Georges Bank, Pacific. International fisheries, marine ecosystems and coastal cultures have never been so unstable and precarious.

Sedna logo is Copyright © 2001by Susanne Swibold.