Rooted Remedios is a resource provided by Guerrero Student Center (GSC) and the Women and Gender Resource Center (WGRC) with the intention of helping students gain language and engage in concepts of Indigenous medicinal practices by establishing a supportive and educational space for Indigenous medicine and teachings. These practices include sustainable plant harvesting, social justice, traditional medicine, and overall health and wellness. This will be done by providing access and resources aimed at the benefit of Chicanx, Latinx, Indigenous, multiracial peoples, and lower-income or working-class community members.
The cornerstone of this project involves creating and sustaining botanica stations within the Women and Gender Resource Center (WGRC) and the Guerrero Student Center (GSC). These botanicas will act as focal points for dispensing medicines, accompanied by relevant information and directions of use. The botanicas will be open throughout the upcoming semesters with seasonal updates to the medicines provided.
The project also plans to host seasoned practitioners of Indigenous medicine, providing diverse perspectives on various aspects of traditional healing practices. Excluding the first month of the semester, they aim to host monthly speakers and workshops. This will create a student-led initiative, in collaboration with the centers, that will empower students to take charge of reaching out to speakers, planning events, and utilizing available resources.
The core impact of Rooted Remedios lies in providing educational opportunities and a welcoming space for marginalized community members to explore and learn about Indigenous medicinal practices directly from Indigenous practitioners.
Over the course of a year, the team—comprised of four undergraduate assistants, two graduate students, and two staff members—hosted 14 programs that reached 659 participants and built 10 campus and community partnerships. The project featured guest speakers, interactive workshops, and accessible “botanica stations” stocked with traditional medicines and resources.
The programming offered included the creation of plant and herbal medicine, such as rose water, candles, tea, and aloe vera, addressing mental health, wellness, immunity, the heart, nourishment (food as medicine), gut health, and healing spirits, scars, and soul wounds.
Post-program surveys indicated that 94% of participants rated their experience as excellent, 98% reported gaining knowledge about plant properties and their uses, and 87% said their understanding of Indigenous medicinal practices significantly improved. Rooted Remedios successfully blended cultural knowledge, sustainability, and community care, creating a strong foundation for future programming and student-led initiatives.
A participant shared:
"I’m overall really thankful for the experience. It’s been really hard finding places and people that can help me connect more with my ancestral roots so I’m incredibly thankful for that.”
