We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Rebecca Steele. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Rebecca below.

Rebecca, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Have you ever experienced a times when your entire field felt like it was taking a U-Turn?

The last five years, I was busy operating a garden business, but the universe started to take me in a different direction of focusing on my herbal business, Tonantzin Botanicals and forming a non-profit education group called The Well at Tecolote.
Gardening has always been a big part of my career even when I was a public school teacher, but as I began working with more educators and healers in nature, I began to shift toward conservation and plants specific to this region of Texas.
While sustainability is key in our teachings, I started to attract in more people with indigenous connections to Tecolote (my headquarters and nature sanctuary in the medical center). This was parallel to my own family and ancestral healing.
Our most successful events and workshops are indigenous themed from cooking to gardening to wildlife conservation.

Rebecca, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Rebecca Steele is owner of Tonantzin Botanicals, a TEK (traditional ecological knowledge) herb company and founder and President of The Well at Tecolote, a regenerative education and healing center. Her herbal work is ancestral, as her family is Otómi and Cohuiltecan. As an herbalist, she focuses on Meso-American Ethnobotany in order to blend culture and adapt for climate resilience. Both entities reside at the nature sanctuary in the medical center, TecoloteSA. Becca is the land steward here where she keeps demo gardens using regenerative techniques and practices conservation by leaving a portion of the land wild to forage our herbs and keep the wildlife welcome.

Training and knowledge matter of course, but beyond that what do you think matters most in terms of succeeding in your field?

Always prioritize networking in your field and outside of it. Use travel, classes, workshops of any kind to expand your portfolio and network.
In my experience within the garden/landscaping industry, there are many people who will NOT support you, but there are a great many people out there who will. You have to find your niche and your people.
It’s important to keep grounded to your community. Your community is your support and ultimately will help guide you to people who want to see you grow and be a part of what you are doing. They will put you in contact with that mycologist you want to work with or that volunteer group that wants to help build your rain creek.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Any kind of nature-based business will have low seasons. There are many times as a self-employed person, I cannot replicate a busy season or perfect season of clients and classes. Sometimes things that have worked, don’t work this time around and you have to be ok with that. I use those low times to readjust my marketing strategies or class proposals. We aren’t meant to stay the same and neither are businesses. It’s in your best interest to continue to grow and expand when given the opportunity.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @tonantzinbotanicals