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Fascinated by science, she grew up in Forest Lake to become a pharmacist, learning the ways of Western medicine. Then she took an educational foray into a jungle in Peru, where she witnessed the power of nature's bounty and its ability to heal.

After a diagnosis of thyroid cancer, Grauds experienced a more personal awakening. She explored the realms of nature and spirit with a shaman who became a mentor. With a combination of Western practices and "green medicine," she won her battle with cancer.

Grauds, 59, is a graduate of the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy and a shamana, the female term for shaman. After more than 25 years away, she has returned to the Twin Cities to head two new programs at Metropolitan Community and Technical College in Minneapolis. The school is the first in the country to introduce a degreed program in clinical herbalism and a certificate program in shamanic studies, which will debut in fall of 2007. She will speak at the first Northland Bioneers Conference at the college this weekend.

She spoke with us about her life, her work and green medicine's significance in modern health care.

Q. What is "green medicine?"

A. Green medicine is a term that has become popular in the past 10-plus years to describe a movement, a general consciousness that the green of nature has good medicine for us. We are turning more toward nature and natural medicines. In the human experience, when we move toward high-tech, we counterbalance it with high-touch. It's a return to the natural.

Q. How does green medicine fit into the realm of complementary therapies?

A. Complementary medicine is a term Western medicine uses for all kinds of healing modalities outside of Western allopathic medicine. That includes green medicine but extends to energy medicines, massage, chiropractic, acupuncture, traditional Chinese medicines and the like.

Q. How do science and spirit blend in green medicine?

A. The science and the spirit of medicine are talking the same story. They're simply speaking in different languages, different poetry. In Western medicine, they say plants have an active ingredient. In the world of shaman or spirit, they say a plant has a powerful spirit doctor. They're talking about the same principle. The spirit world is about the story, the essence, the energy, and shamanism looks at altered-states reality.

Q. What happened in your "aha" moment in the jungle?

A. On the first trip in1994, I was standing in the jungle, which is all about plants, and the shaman's medicine is plants. I woke up to an old truth: Plants and medicine are inextricably linked. We have forgotten that with synthetic, modern pharmaceuticals. But 25 percent of prescription medicines come from plant sources. Mother Nature is still the cheapest and best chemist.

Q. How is the public responding to a blend of "green" and Western medicine?

A. The public has no problem with it anymore. It has become complementary medicine by definition. We have enough science under our belts, enough understanding of how complementary and Western medicines can integrate with each other. The new programs at Metropolitan Community and Technical College wouldn't have been approved and happening if they weren't acknowledged. Herbs and shamanic studies don't have to be counterculture anymore.

Q. What are the remaining barriers?

A. Each section in the cog of health care needs to move forward. Some insurers don't cover complementary medicine and therapies. In some models, insurance companies set up a personal fund consumers can use for whatever kinds of care they want. And some are looking at costs in the long run rather than the short run. The high cost of health care is fueling an interest in green medicine and spirituality. We've gone from counterculture to necessary integration.

Kay Harvey can be reached at 651-228-5468 or at kharvey@pioneerpress.com.

What: The first Northland Bioneers Conference, featuring scientists and others exploring solutions to today's environmental and social challenges. The event will intersperse satellite broadcasts from the 17th annual Bioneers Conference in San Rafael, Calif., with live keynotes by Twin Cities innovators.