WEIRS
I was originally drawn to photograph herring weirs by the sheer magnificence of their massive, mysterious structures. They came to also be a meaningful symbol of sustainability, a way of fishing that does not destroy or over harvest, employing the Indigenous notion of “The Honorable Harvest”.
“The Honorable Harvest, a practice both ancient and urgent, applies to every exchange between people and the Earth. Its protocol is not written down, but if it were, it would look something like this:
Ask permission of the ones whose lives you seek. Abide by the answer.
Never take the first. Never take the last.
Harvest in a way that minimizes harm.
Take only what you need and leave some for others.
Use everything that you take.
Take only that which is given to you.
Share it, as the Earth has shared with you.
Be grateful.
Reciprocate the gift.
Sustain the ones who sustain you, and the Earth will last forever.” – Robin Wall Kimmerer
