Hometown: Eureka, CA

Website:

Dates in Sitka: 2009-09

Jerry Martien is the author of Shell Game: A True Account of Beads and Money in North America, a history of economic exchange, as well as three books of poetry: Pieces in Place; Upriver Downriver; andJourney Work. During his residency he worked on a forthcoming book about caretaking—of both people and land—in California. He holds both a B.A and a Ph.D. in English, and was a lecturer in Creative Writing at Humboldt State University in California for twelve years. He was involved in the Poets-in-the-Schools program in three California counties for fifteen years. One of the early proponents of bioregionalism, he has been involved with the work of various regional environmental organizations. He has also worked with his neighbors to preserve and restore the coastal dunes near Eureka, California, where he lives.