What is Public Lands: UnEarthed?

Public Lands: UnEarthed is an oral history project designed to document and share the experiences of BIPOC folks on public lands in Washington state. By unearthing and uplifting these histories, we hope to encourage our audience to connect with the outdoors, inspire the exchange of knowledge and experiences among more people, and show that the outdoors belongs to all of us.

Who is this project for?

This project is intended to uplift the historical, present, and future experiences of BIPOC individuals in Washington state and beyond!

Want to know more about this project or find out how you can get involved? Email: prasadini@goldenbricksevents.com

What can you expect from this project?

We are collecting interviews from interested BIPOC participants willing to share their stories of BIPOC impact on Washington public lands. We will archive these narratives to keep them accessible to the public far beyond the life of this project, then pair select stories with artists who can bring the accounts to life.

If you are interested in sharing your story with us, please click the button below:

Introducing UnEarthed Field School

A 10-week program with Y-WE (Young Women Empowered) where young people ages 16-21 get hands on experience with making their own oral histories. In this stipend program they participate in workshops, learn from oral historians, and plan their own interviews.

If you’d like a sneak peek at what the students learned and got into last year, follow along at @goldenbricksevents on Instagram + Facebook.

Spring Cohort

The spring cohort is a longer program that stretches into the summer culminating with a showcase at Golden Bricks Events’ signature Refuge Outdoor Festival. Returning participants explore deeper themes of place, art, and nature. Participants attended GBE events, wrote stories based on their interviews that culminated in a zine, and collaborated with a local artist of color.

See the collaborative art work below and click here to read the interviews that accompany some of the pieces.

Fall 2024 cohort. Back row youth participants: Fatima, Andrea, Anela, Rebekha, Alyn, Ruun, and Athena. Front row mentors and staff: Krystal, Maddy, Lara, Prasadini.

UnEarthed Art 2025

Meet the Artist: Yaminee (Yam) Patel, a Seattle-based mixed media artist whose work explores themes of cultural identity, community, and the intersection of art and everyday life. Inspired by her Indian heritage, Patel utilizes natural materials like rice, lentils, and chickpeas to create intricate and textured pieces that evoke comfort, warmth, and nostalgia. Patel is deeply committed to fostering a vibrant arts community. She volunteers at local organizations and actively seeks opportunities to promote and support emerging artists in the Seattle area. Through her work, Patel aims to bridge cultural divides and create spaces for meaningful connection.

We’re on Substack!

Substack will be the home for all of the exciting components of this project, such as:

• A collection of interviews from BIPOC community members in Washington state and along with them, the range of human emotions as stories are shared.
• Stories from our field school program led by Y-WE young people.
• Pictures, videos, transcripts, maps, notes, reflections that go along with the stories.
• Artistic renditions of the oral histories.

Through all of these stories, we aim to inspire connection and reflection—whether it’s between individuals, generations, or even between communities and the lands they inhabit. There’s so much beauty and wisdom in the stories we share, we aim to amplify those voices in meaningful ways.