An afternoon with Wouter Bijdendijk: Plant Power

Join us for a talk on the ethnobotany and applications of plants by anthropologist and performer Wouter Bijdendijk where he will discuss his new book Plant Power. There will be an opportunity for questions and Wouter will sign his book afterwards.

About the book

Plant Power is a full-color reference guide to beneficial plants and mushrooms. While knowing that spending time in nature and eating healthy is important, we often dismiss the fact that plants have been used as healing medicine for thousands of years.

In this guide, Wouter Bijdendijk highlights thirty mushrooms, herbs, flowers, fruits, nuts, bulbs, and roots that support the immune system, digestion, endurance, vitality, and the brain—from ginseng and turmeric to chaga and reishi to olive and chamomile. He also explores several plants that have played a significant role in rituals and ceremonies, such as fly agaric, blue lotus, cannabis, and peyote cactus, enabling our ancestors to connect with deeper layers of themselves, the spiritual realms, and the Divine. Michelin star chef Joris Bijdendijk provides two delicious vegetarian recipes for each major plant, offering culinary delights to help you easily incorporate the medicinal powers of these plants in your life.

A journey through the deep and ancient roots of plant knowledge, from folk uses to mystical properties to the vital role of plants in human evolution, this book shows you how to harness the natural power of plants to revitalize your body, integrate your spirit, and empower your life.

About the author

Wouter Bijdendijk is an anthropologist who specializes in ethnobotany and pharmacognosy. Following a degree in cultural anthropology from Amsterdam University, he studied pharmacognosy at the Utrecht Institute CAM and clinical herbalism at Herbal Constituents Inc. in Colorado, USA.

Further studies took Wouter to gain insight into Siddha medicine, Ayurvedic medicine, and Kalaripayattu at the Bhargava Kalari Sangam and C.V.N. Kalari in Kodhikode, India. He also holds a degree in museology from Amsterdam University of the Arts.

Growing up with his siblings in the city as well as in the countryside, Wouter’s curiosity and love for nature blossomed from childhood on. His special interest in performing arts led to a career as renowned mentalist and magician Ramana, who captivates audiences worldwide with his brand-activating stunts, mentalism, and Indian magic.

For more than twenty years, Wouter traveled the world performing, while continuing to study herbal medicine from all corners of the globe. He has also been volunteering for more than ten years in Amsterdam Free University (VU) Botanical Gardens, Botanische tuin Zuidas, where he keeps almost extinct original European black bees (Apis mellifera mellifera).

A creative author, lecturer, and TEDx speaker, Wouter has two daughters and lives in the Netherlands.