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Curtis Hotel adventure package

A hotel room doesn’t typically accommodate 24 people comfortably, but this quirky Denver hotel manages to do it, while also somehow adhering to social distancing guidelines. The pop-culture-themed Curtis Hotel in Denver has 13 unique guest floors, each with a different aesthetic. From video games to Star Trek, disco, and more, this hotel has a theme for everyone, and now it’s adding a Choose Your Adventure package.

Photo: The Curtis Hotel

The package allows guests to rent out an entire floor and create a customized experience that allows them to enjoy the shared space together. The floor can accommodate 24 guests spread across the 12 guest rooms — so you don’t technically have to come within six feet of anyone — and guests can choose from a variety of adventure options. These include laser tag, game night, private chef’s table dinners, tailgating parties, silent discos, slumber parties, and — for the truly unlucky — a divorce-themed party.

Photo: The Curtis Hotel

The Choose Your Adventure package starts at $2,000, and will be available through the end of 2020. For further detail and to learn more about how to customize your experience, reach out via email.

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Thailand park mailing litter

In Thailand, bad-mannered campers have been warned — litter will be coming back to haunt them.

Recently, employees at Thailand’s Khao Yai National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site 100 miles northeast of Bangkok, mailed back the litter to some shameless campers who thought they could get away with thrashing this magnificent area by leaving behind a tent full of trash.

Photo: TOP Varawut – ท็อป วราวุธ ศิลปอาชา/Facebook

After some work tracking down the offenders, park employees packed up the litter and sent it with a note saying, “You have forgotten some of your belongings at the Khao Yai National Park. Please let us return these to you.”

Photo: TOP Varawut – ท็อป วราวุธ ศิลปอาชา/Facebook

The practice was supported by Varawut Silpa-archa, Thailand’s minister of natural resources and environment, who reminded people via Facebook to take their trash with them upon departure, and threatened to send it to them as a souvenir if they did not. He added that campers who break the park rules will be reported to the police.

Litterers in Thai national parks face fines of up to $16,000 and five years in prison. The campers responsible for this particular incident were blacklisted and banned from returning to the park for overnight stays.

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All national parks are free soon

National Public Lands Day is this Saturday, September 26, and that means all national parks in the United States will be free to enter.

In addition to being a free day for park-goers, it’s also one of the biggest volunteer days of the year. The holiday is organized in partnership with the National Environmental Education Foundation, and encourages Americans to join various volunteer projects aimed at preserving the environment, promoting sustainability, and encouraging others to get outdoors. For a list of all the volunteer events in your area, use the National Park Service’s website; there are trail maintenance projects, clean-up events, bird counts, and more.

According to the NPS, National Public Lands Day “celebrates the connection between people and green space in their community, inspires environmental stewardship, and encourages use of open space for education, recreation, and health benefits.”

It’s one of a few days per year that the NPS welcomes visitors to its properties for free, with the next being Veteran’s Day on November 11.

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How to road trip Dalton Highway

“Don’t take the car past Lake Galbraith, or it’ll be too far for us to rescue you.”

The woman at the rental car agency wasn’t laughing. In a briefing that felt more like a CPR training course than the fine print of renting a Ford Explorer, she listed all the hazards that awaited us on the Dalton Highway. There were treacherous potholes, hundreds of miles of unpaved road, almost zero service stations, no cell reception, and bears.

“Have fun, guys,” she said without a hint of irony. “It’s gonna be a blast.”

Turns out, she was right on all counts.

I had enlisted a friend to share the journey with me, as I was told traveling the most remote highway in the country alone wasn’t the smartest idea. Credit to him for accepting an invite that pretty much read like this: “Hey, you wanna drive into the Arctic Circle on a highway that I’m pretty sure was in Ice Road Truckers?”

When you tell people you’re going to Alaska to “drive on a highway,” they react like you just told them you’re having SPAM for dinner. But anyone who knows the Dalton Highway understands that it’s perhaps the only road in the United States that can claim to be a destination in itself. Starting in Fairbanks, Alaska’s second largest city, the highway stretches 414 miles north to the Arctic Ocean through lush forests, winding rivers, dramatic mountain passes, and Arctic wilderness. It’s the most remote major highway in the US, ending about 600 miles north of where Into the Wild’s Chris McCandless starved to death in a disused bus.

With that comforting thought in mind, we drove our car off the lot and to our first — and most important — stop of the entire trip: the supermarket.

Before you go

Built in 1974 to supply the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System, the Dalton Highway initially served solely as a commercial haul road. Although the infrastructure has improved since then, it still remains a trucker’s road at heart. Paved sections alternate with long stretches of dirt and gravel, only two fuel (and food) stops exist between Fairbanks and Deadhorse — the highway’s northern terminus — and you won’t find a single McDonalds, Walgreens, or grocery store. Basically, if you didn’t pack it in Fairbanks, plan to live without it.

Photo: Ovidiu Hrubaru

People always tell you not to go grocery shopping on an empty stomach because you’ll buy everything in sight. Well, go on an empty stomach. This is the last chance you’ll have to stock up on food; you don’t want to be 250 miles above the Arctic Circle and realize you’re three meals short.

Our most important purchase was a cheap styrofoam cooler that allowed us to bring perishables on the journey. This really came in handy for cold cuts, cheese, pre-cooked chicken, yogurts, Lunchables — hey, there won’t be anyone around to judge you — and one of those crappy $3 birthday cakes they sell in the dessert section. We’ll come back to that later.

Beyond groceries, you’ll need a vehicle hefty enough to store your food purchase — and more importantly, to get you safely up the Dalton. A car with four-wheel drive, spare tires, and traction control is a must. You should also have a CB radio so you can communicate with other cars on the road, alert trucks if you’re turning around a hairpin curve, and call for help if needed. The Northern Alaska Tour Company in Fairbanks rents cars specifically for traveling up the Dalton Highway, so it’ll make sure your vehicle is properly equipped.

It’s also a good idea to bring bear spray. Much of northern Alaska’s land is owned by the Bureau of Land Management. That means it’s essentially public land with very little state intervention, and almost no designated trails. If you want to hike, you’ll have to forge your own path through the wilderness. It’s unlikely that you’ll be fending off bears, but better to have spray and not need it than not have spray and wish you’d bought better running shoes.

Stop 1: Yukon River Camp

Once you leave Fairbanks you won’t encounter your first outpost of civilization for about three hours. The Yukon River Camp isn’t just a simple truck stop. It’s a camp right on the banks of the mighty Yukon River that offers you a rare glimpse into a different pace of life. The camp is staffed by people from all over the country who came to Alaska seeking adventure, and each has a unique story to tell about how they wound up living on the Yukon River. You might even get to join the staff by the campfire as they watch for the Northern Lights.

Photo: Eben Diskin

A two-minute walk will bring you to the river, in the shadow of the Yukon River Bridge. If you notice two tents on a raft floating in the river, it’s not a couple of campers trying to one-up you. It’s Neil Ecklund and his son, Lauro. Meeting Neil and Lauro will make you feel like you’ve gone back in time to an age when tents were houses, you caught your own dinner, built your own fire for warmth, and the river was the primary means of transportation.

Neil Eklund competed in the famed Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in the early 1980s, and has lived on the river since before the Dalton Highway existed. Now he and his son Lauro build log rafts, fish, transport firewood on the river, and mush dog teams. They also run a variety of tours including dogsledding, camping, log rafting, and Northern Lights expeditions. If you’re lucky, Lauro will even show you his kennel of rambunctious sled dogs.

Stop 2: Wiseman and Coldfoot

Not long after you leave the Yukon River Camp you’ll cross into the Arctic Circle. There are no visitor centers, road markers, or dramatic changes of scenery to mark the occasion — just a sign slightly off the main road that says “Arctic Circle.” There’s also a dispersed campsite in the vicinity of the sign, for those who want to say “I camped on the edge of the Arctic Circle,” but otherwise your passage is unceremonious. Just before the Arctic Circle sign, you can stop briefly at Finger Mountain. This deceptively named attraction is more like a large pile of stones than a mountain, but climbing to the top — which will take you 10 minutes — does give you a sweeping view of the lonely road, and a sense of the vast Arctic wilderness.

Photo: Eben Diskin

About three hours from the Yukon River Camp, you’ll have your choice of two lodgings — Coldfoot and Wiseman. If you have time it’s worth spending a night at both. Coldfoot, which you’ll reach first, is the oldest stop on the Dalton Highway. It has less of a summer camp vibe than the Yukon River Camp, but there are a wide range of excursions led by knowledgeable guides to keep you busy, and you’ll be staying in the trailers used by the workers who built the Alaska Pipeline, which is a pretty cool perk.

Photo: Eben Diskin

Coldfoot Camp pretty much has an excursion for every season and interest. There are packraft adventures, snowshoe trips, Arctic mountain safaris, Northern Lights viewings, dog sled excursions, and fat bike tours. Our fat bike tour took us to the peaceful Slate Creek on the Chandalar Trail, an old Gold Rush road. On the way back, our guide Dan showed us an abandoned school bus where a resident of Coldfoot used to live with his entire family. Now it’s a treasured part of Coldfoot Camp’s folklore.

When I made an obligatory Chris McCandless joke, Dan replied that the Into the Wild protagonist is a sore subject for many Alaskans, who believe McCandless is portrayed as a hero when he should be a cautionary tale. “There’s only one difference between that guy and the people who actually live up here,” Dan said. “Competence.”

Just a half-hour north of Coldfoot you’ll find the tiny village of Wiseman. Unlike Coldfoot and the Yukon River Camp, Wiseman is an actual village, and has been long before the highway was built. Located ten minutes off the Dalton, at the end of a dirt and gravel road, the old Gold Rush town is home to 14 permanent residents, all of whom live in log cabins among the trees.

Photo: FloridaStock/Shutterstock

Much like Neil and Lauro on the Yukon River, the people of Wiseman live a subsistence lifestyle, surviving largely on hunted meat. Stroll around the village and visit Nikki Reakoff’s craft shop, where she makes jewelry from animal fur, bones, and antlers; check out the vintage abandoned cars that have been sitting in the woods for decades; and spend some time down by the river. On Sundays you can even attend a church service led by local trapper Jack Reakoff.

I ran into Jack when he was sifting through some cranberries in his yard. Behind him, a pile of moose and caribou skulls. When I told him I was writing about the Dalton Highway he seemed amused.

“Everyone says Dalton’s dangerous,” he said. “But they shoulda seen it twenty years ago. I was here before the highway, and that was a tough haul. As long as you’ve got common sense, I guess it’s as safe as any other road.”

He was right.

Photo: Arctic Getaway Log Cabins

Contrary to what you might think, lodging in Wiseman doesn’t consist of a chilly night in a canvas tent while Jack Reakoff patrols the perimeter for bears. The Arctic Getaway Log Cabins are both cozy and well-appointed. But the best part of your stay won’t be the warm bed — it’ll be your hosts. Berni and Uta hail from Friesing, Germany, and lucky for us, somehow found their way to Arctic Alaska.

The first thing you notice won’t be the rustic cabins or the moose skulls mounted above the doors. It’ll be the hand-built ping pong table sitting in the yard. Berni built the table himself, and it doesn’t take much convincing for him to drop everything he’s doing and play a game, or twelve, with you.

Over the Atigun Pass

Once you depart Wiseman and Coldfoot, your journey truly gets interesting. There are no more stops, fuel stations, or lodgings for 230 miles until Deadhorse, which represents the end of the highway just before the Arctic Ocean.

About an hour north of Wiseman, you’ll see the landscape change dramatically. The green, wooded wilderness you’ve grown accustomed to will suddenly give way to flat terrain. Previously, there was a sign marking the spot of the “last tree” and the beginning of the arctic tundra, but that tree has since been cut down. As you approach the Brooks Range, you’ll find yourself wanting to stop every five minutes to take pictures of the dramatic snow capped mountains.

Photo: Bruce Wilson Photographer/Shutterstock

The epic views really hit their stride on the Atigun Pass, at an elevation of nearly 5,000 feet. This is the point at which the highway crosses the Continental Divide, and the steep grades and hairpin curves make it one of the road’s most treacherous stretches. Use your CB radio to alert other drivers when you’re rounding curves, take it slow, and you’ll be fine. Honestly, you’ll want to drive as slow as possible anyway to really take in the views.

On the other side of the pass, the landscape looks dramatically different. The mountainous geography flattens and it suddenly feels like you’re driving through the Midwest, minus the cornfields. You can choose to go all the way to Deadhorse and Prudhoe Bay, which are essentially oil refinery sites, or turn around and head back. If you do decide to turn around, don’t do so without first visiting Lake Galbraith, about 27 miles north of Atigun Pass. The lake has a parking area and a few campsites, and it’s a great picnic lunch stop before embarking on the journey home. We took this opportunity to enjoy some cheap birthday cake, in celebration of reaching our northernmost point.

Treat yourself in Fairbanks

When you finally return to Fairbanks, your car will be caked in mud and you probably won’t look (or smell) much better. The only way to cap off an intrepid adventure on the most remote highway in the country is with a well-earned spa day. (No, that’s not just wishful thinking.)

Photo: Eben Diskin

Chena Hot Springs Resort, just under an hour from Fairbanks, is a geothermal spa ideally suited to travelers who have just returned from a rough week on the Dalton. You can treat yourself to a massage, take a dip in the outdoor or indoor hot tub, or enjoy the healing waters of the geothermal Rock Lake. There’s also an excellent restaurant on site serving locally caught salmon, a famous tomato bisque, and vegetables grown in the on-site greenhouse.

The most eye-catching part of Chena isn’t even the Rock Lake or the private massage cabins — it’s the giant ice museum sitting just outside the main entrance. The Aurora Ice Museum is the world’s largest year-round ice environment, created using over 1,000 tons of ice and snow. It houses dozens of meticulously carved and illuminated ice sculptures, including an ice bar where you can purchase appletinis served in glasses made of ice. There’s also a few bedrooms carved into the ice. Rumor has it, no one has successfully lasted the night without retreating to the main hotel, but if you were bold enough to brave the Dalton, you should also be bold enough to spend the night in a block of ice.

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Reality show to send person to space

There’s a new reality show opportunity that will pique the interest of travelers, but only those who are truly intrepid. A production company named Space Hero, Inc. has supposedly managed to book a spot for a civilian on a 2023 mission to the International Space Station, Deadline reports. The amateur astronaut will be selected as part of a televised competition.

All casting hopefuls will have to go through astronaut training and face challenges that test their mental, physical, and emotional strength. The show’s viewers may also be involved in the process, voting for their favorite contestant. The winner will accompany astronauts aboard the SpaceX Dragon rocket that will take them to the ISS. The mission is reportedly scheduled for 2023.

After the selection process, the show will follow the winning contestant on a 10-day trip in Earth’s low orbit in the ISS.

To be chosen, you don’t need a background in aeronautics. The show is only looking for people who have a love of space and a thirst for exploration.

According to Marty Pompadur, the former News Corp Europe chief who leads the production company, “Space Hero is the new frontier for the entertainment sector, offering the first-ever truly off-planet experience. We aim to reinvent the reality TV category by creating a multi-channel experience that offers the biggest prize ever, to the biggest audience possible. Space Hero is about opening space up to everyone — not only to astronauts and billionaires.”

The exact details surrounding the search and the network on which the show will be broadcast have yet to be announced.

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The prettiest small towns in Mexico

Over the past decade, Mexico City has edged its way into the tourism spotlight that’s long shone on resort destinations like Puerto Vallarta and Cancún, exposing travelers to a facet of the country that extends beyond its beaches. Though we love to see the city rake in the recognition it deserves, Mexico’s coasts and capital are just the tip of the country’s proverbial iceberg. It is the 14th-largest country in the world by area, after all. From charming towns in the lesser-trafficked highlands to sleepy cities with ruins to rival Chichen Itza, here are seven destinations that prove just how magical Mexico can be when you leave the crowds behind.

1. Cuetzalan

Photo: Miguel Rodriguez Paredes/Shutterstock

Saturdays and Sundays in Cuetzalan, a town about two hours southeast of Mexico City in the Puebla state, are nothing short of magical. Every weekend, “flying men” known as voladores perform a traditional Mesoamerican dance while dangling from a pole outside the Parroquia de San Francisco de Asís. This ritual, originally created to promote rain and fertility, was recognized by UNESCO as an example of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2009. Sundays in Cuetzalan also spell the weekly tianguis, an open-air market that invites Indigenous locals to set up stalls with fresh produce, flowers, handicrafts, clothing, coffee — you name it.

During the week, spend your days hiking to nearby waterfalls and sampling yolixpa, a digestive drink made from herbs, honey, and aguardiente that’s difficult to track down outside of Cuetzalan. Later, venture roughly 25 minutes outside the town’s bounds to see Yohuálichan, one of the most impressive pre-Columbian archeological sites anywhere in Mexico.

2. Taxco

Photo: Belikova Oksana/Shutterstock

Taxco is a small, striking city of whitewashed buildings and red roofs that’s spread out against the green hills of Mexico’s southern Guerrero state. Up close, the baroque Templo de Santa Prisca cathedral in Plaza Borda is the architectural centerpiece, a gift to the former silver-mining capital from one of its most celebrated barons, Don Jose de la Borda. Though tourism has taken over as Taxco’s primary source of revenue, it’s still worth visiting for the silver goods alone: You could spend days pursuing the many platerias, or silver shops, lining the street to stock up on jewelry, kitchenware, and other souvenirs.

3. Todos Santos

Photo: Matt Gush/Shutterstock

A Baja California Sur beach town that’s been gaining in popularity over the past few years, Todos Santos is everything that Los Cabos is not. Quiet and still somewhat undeveloped, it’s a fishing village that’s just as famous for its surf breaks as it is the saguaro cactuses that speckle its sandy shores. Todos Santos is bohemian but not cultivated, full of galleries that attract artists and spiritual enclaves that seduce soulful types. Still, visitors would be remiss to spend much time away from the world-class beaches that backdrop the town. There are at least six worth exploring in the area, but Playa Cerritos is often called the nicest, particularly for swimmers.

4. San Cristóbal de las Casas

Photo: Daniel Carmona Ruiz/Shutterstock

Cobbled streets, colonial architecture, open-air markets: San Cristóbal de las Casas has all the hallmarks of must-see small-town Mexico. There’s more to absorb in this particular town than rows of Insta-worthy balconies dripping with flowers, however. Located in the Chiapas highlands a few hours from the Guatemala border, San Cristóbal is surrounded by a rich mix of Indigenous villages, large tracts of farmland, and fragrant pine forests.

El Arcotete Parque Ecoturístico is the perfect entry point into the highlands, with trails leading to rivers to be canoed, caves to be spelunked, and even a zipline to get your adrenaline pumping. Back in town, make time for the Amber and Jade Museums, as well as Casa Na Bolom, the former home of archeologist Frans Blom and his wife Gertrude Blom, a journalist, photographer, and anthropologist. Now a museum, the property is also a hotel fit for a truly special stay.

5. Campeche

Photo: emperorcosar/Shutterstock

Campeche is a historic harbor town on the Gulf of Mexico. To start, its fortified center earned the small city a World Heritage site designation in 1999. Not only are the 16th-century Spanish colonials bright and beautifully restored, but the port was also integral to the colonization of the Yucatán Peninsula. To learn about the region’s pre-Hispanic heritage, visit the Museo de la Arquitectura Maya, then experience history up close at the nearby Calakmul ruins. Later, wind down the day with a stroll along the malecón outside the inner walls before enjoying the fresh seafood. Eat up: You’ll need the fuel for nights filled with live music and salsa dancing.

6. Tlacotalpan

Photo: javarman/Shutterstock

To simply exist in Tlacotalpan is a treat. Much of the town’s charm lies in its practically neon-pastel Spanish-Caribbean architecture, which received World Heritage status in 1998. Time spent here is delightfully slow, with days spent meandering along the Papaloapan River, sauntering around Plaza Zaragoza and Parque Hidalgo, and poking into the town’s handful of museums and galleries. Hardly crowded or action-packed, Tlacotalpan is the epitome of small-town Mexico and a definite must for anyone passing through the Veracruz state.

7. Izamal

Photo: SL-Photography/Shutterstock

Izamal is the Yucatán state’s Yellow City, so named for the coat of bright yellow paint covering the majority of the city. A sight to behold, Izamal also has a long, important history, having originally served as a site of worship for the Maya deities Itzamná and Kinich Kakmó. Grand pyramids are woven throughout the landscape, earning the city a second nickname: the City of Hills. Visit the 112-foot Kinich Kakmó pyramid about 15 minutes from the city center on foot for the views of Izamal in all its golden glory, followed by Itzamatul, Habuk, and the rest. You’ll appreciate the contrast to nearby colonial sites like Convento de San Antonio de Padua.

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Indigenous Two-Spirit explainer

Two-Spirit, a traditional social and ceremonial role found in Indigenous tribes throughout Turtle Island (i.e. North America), was first used as a label in English during the 1990s. The relatively new term, which sometimes appears as the ‘2’ in LGBTQ2, still creates confusion in queer and straight communities alike, so we sat down with a couple of Indigenous folx who identify as Two-Spirit to set the record straight.

Geo Neptune (they/them) identifies as queer, trans, non-binary, and Two-Spirit and is a member of the Passamaquoddy Tribe in Indian Township, Maine. On top of being a master basketmaker, Geo is an accomplished artist and community leader who advocates for the preservation of tribal history and language.

Ryan Young (they/them) is a multidisciplinary artist who identifies as queer and Two-Spirit. Ryan grew up in the Ojibwe community on the Lac du Flambeau Reservation in northern Wisconsin and currently lives in Santa Fe, NM. Much of their work focuses on the Two-Spirit experience.

Today, Two-Spirit traditions and their recent resurgence pack valuable lessons concerning gender, sexuality, and community. Consider Geo and Ryan your guides to a greater understanding.

The meaning of Two-Spirit

Photo: Geo Neptune/Instagram

Two-Spirit is the English translation of an Ojibwe word (niizh manidoowag) that, at its most rudimentary, refers to an Indigenous person who “embodies both the masculine and feminine spirit,” says Ryan. But Two-Spirit is an umbrella term for a concept far more complicated than that.

“It is not simply sexual orientation. It is not simply a spiritual role or a societal role. It is not simply a gender role,” Geo explains. “It is all of those things at once.”

Using English to describe the meaning of Two-Spirit is difficult “because it tends to be very black and white,” says Geo. Geo’s elemental description of the term is perhaps most fitting: “If the sun is male and the moon is female, then Two-Spirits are the dusk, Two-Spirits are the dawn, and Two-Spirits are the time in which the sun and moon occupy the sky at the same time.”

Still, it’s essential to know that there are a few black-and-white rules when it comes to identifying as Two-Spirit. They include the following:

If someone does not belong to an Indigenous tribe, they cannot be Two-Spirit. Identifying as L, G, B, T, and/or Q does not give someone liberty to identify as 2.

When singer Jason Mraz referred to himself as Two-Spirit in a 2018 Billboard interview, he received severe backlash for co-opting the term. Mraz, who is not a member of an Indigenous tribe, is attracted to both men and women. He apologized for misunderstanding and misusing the term on Twitter. Still, the lesson remains — Two-Spirit is an identifier for Native people only.

Someone who is Two-Spirit can identify as either part or none of the acronym LGBTQ. Two-Spirit is all-encompassing.

All of these identities can coexist, as they do for both Geo and Ryan; they do not cancel each other out.

Being queer is integral to being Two-Spirit.

“Some people think Two-Spirit shouldn’t be included in the LGBTQ acronym because it aligns with Western colonial systems of thought. It exists outside of that,” Geo says. Still, Geo believes that being queer is a definitive part of being Two-Spirit: “Just because you’re queer doesn’t mean you’re Two-Spirit, but you aren’t Two-Spirit without being queer.”

Being LGBTQ and Indigenous does not necessarily mean someone is Two-Spirit.

Someone who identifies as L, G, B, T, and/or Q is communicating a sexual or gender preference. Being Two-Spirit requires acknowledging the spiritual and social responsibilities associated with the role.

The origin of Two-Spirit

Although the concept of the Two-Spirit has been a part of Indigenous life for millennia, the English term was only adopted by Native tribes in 1990 at the third annual Native American Gay and Lesbian Gathering in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Those at the conference agreed it was the best way to describe their community “using colonial languages,” says Geo.

Two-Spirit encompasses a long list of words used in a diversity of native tongues and traditions. It acts as a bridge between native and non-native communities, giving English speakers an entry point for understanding a part of queer Indigenous culture. Most importantly, it puts the power of self-identification back in the hands of Indigenous people after centuries of subjugation.

The power of language

Photo: Ryan Young

“Our language is who we are,” Geo says. “It’s our connection to the place in which we were created.”

Language is the cornerstone of culture. It shapes identity, builds community, and preserves history. But language can also be the cornerstone of oppression. It enforces ideologies, builds walls, and rewrites the past.

“When Native people lose access to our languages, it changes a fundamental part of our worldview and a fundamental part of who we are as Indigenous people,” says Geo.

Geo’s tribe, the Passamaquoddy, are a First Nations people whose language existed solely as an oral tradition until 1980. Passamaquoddy is the only Native language on the Eastern Seaboard of Turtle Island that wasn’t relearned through reclamation efforts following the destruction caused by European colonization. But even the Passamaquoddy were subject to the oppression of language.

When Europeans began making contact with native tribes nearly 500 years ago, their languages introduced the idea of a gender binary that had no place in Indigenous culture. Soon, languages like English and the gender ideals they enforced overpowered native traditions.

A history of oppression

The westward expansion and genocidal onslaught of white settlers in Turtle Island left no room for Indigenous voices. As a result, some of the earliest records of Two-Spirits come from the perspective of colonizers who used unsuitable language to frame Native people within their limited worldview.

Jesuit priests from the 1600s used the French term berdache, which translates to “kept boy” as a derogatory term for men who didn’t prescribe to European sex or gender norms. As colonization and Christianity spread, so did the label. Berdaches soon became synonymous with sexual deviancy and were ostracized from society.

While Two-Spirit has been used in favor of berdache for the past 30 years, the queer-phobic connotation lingers. When Geo first heard the term Two-Spirit, it was as a slur. “Every time I heard it spoken in my community, it was not in a good context,” they recall.

For Ryan, a family friend once said, “You have to choose if you want to be Native or queer, because it’s really hard to be both.” Ryan questioned the statement’s validity but lacked the language to explain their intersectional identity.

“Not a lot of people in our communities talk about how queerness or gender fluidity might’ve been a part of our traditional values,” says Ryan. Still, they knew it would be impossible to pick one identity over the other and began digging through scholarly texts to find answers.

That’s when Ryan discovered documentation from the Ojibwe tribe that unlocked a vital piece of history. Ryan’s sexuality and gender expression weren’t in opposition with their heritage — they were a part of it.

Much like Ryan, it wasn’t until Geo began studying the history of Two-Spirits that their perceptions began to change. “I would read these stories about Two-Spirits in the past, and it was almost as if I was reading stories about myself, or about who I wish I really could be,” Geo recalls.

A history of community

Two-Spirit people traditionally held revered roles in their tribes. They were medicine makers, warriors, ceremonial leaders, artists, and political negotiators. They sometimes lived harmoniously in same-sex relationships. They sometimes took on the roles of both men and women. Some histories recount tribal communities throwing celebrations for young people who came out as Two-Spirit — the very opposite of today’s gender-reveal parties, which continue to affirm the false construct of a masculine-feminine binary.

“The native view of gender identity was far more modern than the contemporary view,” says Ryan.

Finding a Two-Spirit community today

Art by Ryan Young. Left: Portrait of Ty Defoe. Right: “My Gender is Indigenous” Photo: Ryan Young

The work of reclaiming space for Two-Spirit people isn’t always easy, but the advent of social media certainly simplifies the task. Both Geo and Ryan have met an array of Two-Spirits through platforms like Instagram, including each other. “There are so many amazing Two-Spirits I’ve found online who inspire me to be the best that I can be,” says Geo.

From San Francisco-based drag queen Landa Lakes to performer-and-writer Ty Defoe, there are myriad voices within the virtual community representing the dynamic range Two-Spirit identities can take within their communities.

For anyone interested in learning more about all things Two-Spirit, it’s essential to speak directly to people who identify as such. “Find folks who are credible,” Ryan warns. “Make sure the community they come from acknowledges them. There are a lot of people who claim Native identity, but it isn’t necessarily true.”

2Spirit, Native LGBTQ, and Indigiqueer News is a Facebook group that shares information about conferences, ceremonies, retreats, and other important information that directly reflects and impacts Two-Spirit people.

Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirits (BAAITS) is a San Francisco-based group dedicated to restoring Two-Spirit people’s role in First Nations communities. Their annual Two-Spirit Powwow brings together Two-Spirits from across the nation to socialize and organize, often with a political bent.

Indigenizing Love, an educational PDF by Western State Center that features Ryan’s artwork, is an easy-to-use guide for learning more about the meaning of Two-Spirit.

For a pop-culture twist on being Two-Spirit, Ryan recommends reading the 2018 fictional novel Johnny Appleseed — a bildungsroman by Joshua Whitehead. “ [Johnny Appleseed] was the first time I felt I could identify with a character outside of them just being queer,” Ryan notes.

When consuming content about being Two-Spirit, ensure it amplifies voices from the community. Anthropological texts written about Indigenous people without including their voices are a modern form of oppression. Books that still use berdache in favor of Two-Spirit are desperately outdated.

The power of representation

Photo: Ryan Young/Eighth Generation

Language is only the first step in reclaiming one’s power. The next step is using that language to be heard — a job Geo and Ryan take very seriously.

Geo was recently elected to the school board in Indian Township in September, becoming the first openly trans Two-Spirit to win public office in Maine. Ryan’s recent works, including contributions to an upcoming book by the American Theatre Wing and a blanket design for Eighth Generation, make Two-Spirit people both subject and audience.

This level of visibility is still new for the modern Two-Spirit community, and the impact is already far-reaching.

While Ryan grew up without language to describe their identity, their two-year-old nephew is already creating his own. He refers to Ryan as ‘Uncle Aunty’ — a nickname bestowed with love.

“We’re doing all of this reclamation work, so when the next generation of Two-Spirits are ready, we can hand it to them, and say, ‘This is your bundle for you to pick up,” says Geo.”‘ It’s here for you when you’re ready.'”

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Interactive air quality maps

Wildfires in the West are worse this year than any in recent memory. Northern California, Oregon, and parts of Washington have been dealing with intense fires, and their resulting smoke is turning the sky an eerie shade of orange and polluting the air. The smoke from the West Coast is so intense that it’s visible from space and drifting east across the country, and even reaching Europe. Now, many people are forced to consider the air quality before they venture outside.

This can be confusing, especially if you’re unfamiliar with air quality indexes and have no idea what the numbers mean. Luckily, There are a few resources designed to make it easier for you. NOAA released an interactive map that allows you to look at factors like visibility, fire detections, near surface smoke, and more.

AirNow also has a tool for measuring air quality. The website highlights air quality information at the local, state, and national levels with an interactive map. It uses the official color-coded Air Quality Index to communicate whether air quality is healthy or unhealthy, as well as give data on current fire conditions and air quality forecasts so you can take the appropriate measures to keep yourself safe.

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UN report on biodiversity targets

In 2010, the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity set 20 global goals to preserve biodiversity around the world. The results are in, and humanity has failed miserably on a global scale. According to the 220-page report issued last week, we didn’t meet a single one of the 20 Aichi Targets as the 10-year goals were called. But there was a glimmer of light in the report.

The report detailed how over-consumption, rampant population growth, and increasing encroachment into natural habitats threaten not just ecosystems on the outskirts of major cities but also habitats everywhere on Earth. The overwhelming diagnosis is this: Humankind is failing to prioritize the wellbeing of any species other than ourselves. But when we do take action, progress is both noticeable and significant. Here’s a quick summary and a look to the future.

What does the report say?

The overall findings of the new report are not exactly uplifting, so let’s get the hard data out of the way first before we look at the spots where progress has taken place. The report issued last week noted that humanity on a global scale has failed on each of 20 targets set out as part of the UN’s “Decade on Biodiversity.” These include educational targets such as the first target on the list, which stated that by 2020 people should be “aware of the values of biodiversity and the steps they can take to conserve and use it sustainably.”

It also included specific targets for conservation. Target 6 stated that “all fish and invertebrate stocks and aquatic plants are managed and harvested sustainably” while Target 11 aimed to protect “17 per cent of terrestrial and inland water, and 10 per cent of coastal and marine areas.”

Because the targets were not met, many species have become endangered or threatened during the past 10 years, pushing progress overall backward in some instances and underlying potential threats to global food systems. Much of this came as no surprise, as multiple studies conducted between 2010 and now had documented the lack of progress. One United Nations report issued in 2019 showed that one million of the planet’s nine million active species face possible extinction in the coming years.

But as grim as the overall findings were, it’s not all bad news.

The good news

Photo: Ondrej Prosicky/Shutterstock

This most recent UN report looked directly at whether a set of 20 very specific goals were met. We know that they weren’t — but, as with anything worth reading, there’s more to the story. For instance, humankind has not protected 17 percent of the earth. But we’re close. Fifteen percent of land and freshwater habitat is currently protected globally, along with 7.5 percent of the ocean, and initiatives are in place around the globe to reach 30 percent by 2030. If the 30 percent goal comes to fruition, it would exceed the 2020 goal outlined in the 2010 Aichi Targets.

Fish supplies are also increasing in the areas where protections have been put in place, according to the National Academy of Sciences. Though we haven’t met Target 6, this conclusion is a positive sign that protections actually do work when they’re put in place. Furthering this conclusion are the report’s findings that between 11 and 25 threatened bird and mammal species were protected from extinction over the past 10 years, though the report doesn’t specify the exact number of species protected.

What happens now?

The report doesn’t just focus on the past 10 years. It also looks forward, calling repeatedly for “transformative change.” On a geopolitical level, this means that biodiversity should be a central focal point in future policy negotiations at national and international levels. The Convention on Biological Diversity reconvenes next year in Kunming, China, to set targets for the coming decade.

Matador’s weekly Climate Win column looks at where progress is being made week to week and notes simple changes and steps you can take to reduce your environmental footprint, both as a traveler and as a global citizen. We’ll also be following developments in biodiversity. Follow along to stay in the loop.

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2,500-year-old sarcophagi discovered

Recent archaeological excavations in Saqqara, Egypt, have led to the incredible discovery of 27 sarcophagi, as well as artifacts, buried more than 2,500 years ago. Saqqara was an active burial ground for over 3,000 years, serving as the necropolis for Memphis, the capital of ancient Egypt. The discovery is said to be one of the largest of its kind.

In a statement, Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said, “Initial studies indicate that these coffins are completely closed and haven’t been opened since they were buried.”

Photo: Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities وزارة السياحة والآثار/Facebook

The discovery was made in two phases. Earlier this month, archaeologists found 13 sarcophagi in a deep well, and only a few days later, 14 more were unearthed from another well.

Photo: Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities وزارة السياحة والآثار/Facebook

According to the ministry’s Facebook page, where it posted several pictures of the discovery, researchers believe there are many more coffins waiting to be found on site.

Excavations are continuing at the site as experts try to learn more about the identity of those who rest in the highly decorated coffins.

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