Indigenous Environmental Network (IEN) is a non-profit organization that was established in the 1990’s with the goal of uniting Indigenous communities across both Turtle Island and globally. With the aim of environmental preservation through Indigenous practices, the organization stresses that environmental and cultural preservation are one in the same; that without preserving Indigenous and global space, cultural genocide looms. As part of their site and decolonization strategy, IEN developed Indigenous Rising: a blog and YouTube channel that curates and/or produced available content. Below is an example of their video content.
The ‘Centre for Global Soundscapes‘ is an organization who’s mandate is to document, globally, the worlds vast and ever-changing sonic environments. As part of their mission, they strive to document vanishing or endangered soundscapes.
Though this project may not have a direct link to Indigenous culture and technology, it inadvertently politicizes sound. That is, by documenting the effects that western economic policy has both sonically and environmentally on the world, the project captures the infiltrating sonic penetration of our modern structures.
It is possible to peruse the 1000’s of recordings from archived material. The site also provides a link to user generated recordings that subscribers to the record the earth project have created.
This paper, written by an Ojibwe PhD student at Trent University, addresses a number of “serious and complex environmental issues” facing Indigenous communities in the Canadian context. It is focused predominantly on post-secondary environmental education programs, and touches on the importance of Indigenous philosophies in education, including elders in program development, language, Indigenous ways of knowing, the connection to land. This document also touches on the ways in which Western science plays into supporting Indigenous education. I found it particularly interesting to explore the ways in which Indigenous education is addressed and promoted at a post-secondary level, and my predominant focus has been on earlier education.
Indigenizing Environmental Education: Conceptualizing Curriculum that Fosters Educational Leadership
This article reviews various reforms that have taken place in the public education systems across Canada that continue to exacerbate a gap between Indigenous knowledge and mainstream environmental education by highlighting two dichotomous perspectives. It further considers how to bridge this gap, by suggesting activities and ways for students to develop a meaningful understanding and sense of importance for place. Topics include oral story-telling, intergenerational knowledge sharing, and how to incorporate one’s environment into curricula in alternative ways.
This website provides information on a variety of educational programs available to students and adults to broaden their understanding of the Squamish Nation territory in British Columbia. The Cheakamus Centre was formerly known as the North Vancouver Outdoor School, and as the name implies, its main focus it centred on providing educational experiences based in nature and the surrounding environment. It also has an active role in the conservation of various areas on the North Shore.
TEDxDarwin – Chris Garner – Transforming the Teacher in Indigenous Education
This Ted Talk sees Australian educator Chris Garner challenge the ways in which educators can evolve in their practice to meaningfully improve Indigenous student success by engaging in school and increasing their graduation rates. Stories and example are in an Australian context but are very relatable and transferable to our communities in Canada. Chris Garner asks how we can make activities relevant to each student’s real life and desired outcomes, versus treating and assessing each student the same way.
Clearing
clearingmagazine.org
CLEARING is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that serves as “an online and print magazine for environmental literacy education in the Pacific Northwest and Cascadia bioregion.” It is a useful resource for educators looking for tools and strategies to connect environmental education/issues with their curricula, and offers best practice strategies. The bottom of the Monthly Newsletter section provides a useful, wide-ranging search option that allows you to browse information by theme or topic.
This document helps answer the question, “How can schools and teachers incorporate Indigenous ecological perspectives in environmental education?” It was written by two university professors and outlines numerous ways to incorporate indigenous philosophies and practices into the classroom. It is clearly laid out with easy to find headings and would be beneficial to any classroom. From utilizing aboriginal expertise to being open minded and prepared.