Jason Lui in ETEC 521

http://www.publicaffairs.ubc.ca/media/releases/2006/mr-06-027.html

It is very difficult to find an article relating ecological issues with Indigenous technology.  But alas, I have found one that resides in a story about the $10.6 million, 4,200 sq.-metre Aquatic Ecosystems Research Laboratory (AERL) opened on the UBC campus on March 10, 2006.

Still being a UBC student at the present moment, I am glad that there is this new state-of-the-art research facility to help international decision-makers address, research, and discuss global environmental matters.

More importantly, it directly relates to ETEC 521 because the AERL culminates governments, non-governmental organizations, scientists, and Aboriginal and industry partners to address global environmental concerns.

Furthermore, the BC Aboriginal Fisheries Commission is a significant partner in this ecological research project with UBC – which shows that the Aboriginal community in BC has a voice in not just fisheries but also in technology.

http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol5/iss2/art30/

This article covers and shares about the rites of passage as a model for wilderness programs for Aboriginal youth.  It draws on the author’s experience in the field, particularly with Aboriginal youth in a community-based program called “Rediscovery.”  The Rediscovery program is discussed, along with concepts of traditional Indigenous education, culture, and knowledge.

The paper sheds much light on various topics such as:

- Rediscovering rites of passage

- Making human beings: learning from traditional education of Indigenous peoples

- A model for outdoor initiatory education

Being the outdoor education coordinator for grade 6 at my school, after reading this long paper, I have a greater appreciation for the development of the “Rediscovery” program – which successfully assists British Columbian Aboriginal youth in connecting with their Aboriginal community by getting them into the great outdoors (e.g. camping, outdoor excursions, etc.)

http://www.casts.ca/

CASTS was formed in 1992 by Calgary area Aboriginal educators concerned about the under-representation of Aboriginal people in science and technology fields.  CASTS is a national, non-profit corporation with the purpose of increasing the number of Aboriginal people in science and technology occupations in Canada.  CASTS mission is to assist Aboriginal students of all ages to enter, remain, and excel in the sciences while maintaining respect for their traditional culture and knowledge (www.casts.ca/about.htm).

Being the head of science in grade 6 at my school, I can appreciate how this website has been developed as a meeting place to share educational ideas (e.g. conferences, teacher resources, etc.) within the science and technology realm in the Aboriginal community.

http://www.indigenouseducation.org/whatwedo.html

In the midst of trying to find more information about how Aboriginals view education and/or technology – I encountered this website that described what steps they are taking to involve:

- Indigenous Science

- Indigenous Teaching and Learning

- Indigenous Strategic Planning and Evaluation

- Use of Technology for Indigenous Education

This website is a wonderful resource to get a glimpse at what the Navajo community is doing in terms of continuing their culture in education.

http://www.multilingual-matters.net/lcc/011/0250/lcc0110250.pdf

This 22-page paper consists of information that helps in defining how Indigenous education has been influenced by four fundamentally different concepts of community.  It is interesting to note that the author of this paper has no background in any Aboriginal culture – which makes his reflections objective.

I found this paper enlightening because it gave me a clearer picture of how an Indigenous community might approach education.  Being an educator myself, I have never set foot in an Indigenous classroom but now I may be able to start gathering information just in case I do visit one in the future or have more valuable discussions with my friend, who is half-Aboriginal and teaches grade six with me, about Indigenous education.

http://www.angelfire.com/hi2/hawaiiansovereignty/indigenousintellproprts.html

This article assisted me in wrapping my head around what Indigenous intelletual property entails.  Here is a quote from the website that helped me understand the issue:

“The problem with Indigenous intellectual property rights is that they are informal and unwritten, which makes it easy for outsiders to ignore, violate, and steal.  But these rights deserve respect.  Simple respect for human rights imposes on civilized societies a moral obligation to treat these rights as though they were formally registered.”

The paper goes on to discuss and what is happening in Hawaii with regards to Indigenous people there wondering – “to be or not to be (Indigenous)?”

http://www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca/aboriginalplanet/750/resource/global/rewipo-en.asp

This Canadian government website discusses and shares about the various international organizations, committees, conventions, conferences, and offices that they work with to bring about better understanding of the issues surrounding the preservation, promotion, and protection of the traditional knowledge of Aboriginal peoples in Canada and around the world.

Some of these organizations are:

• World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
• Council for the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPS)
• The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)
• Indigenous Issues & the Canadian Biodiversity Convention Office
• United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
• Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources

I am glad to see that Canada is working alongside the United Nations to further protect the voice, culture, and heritage of First Nations peoples around the world.

http://www.parl.gc.ca/information/library/PRBpubs/prb0338-e.htm

I am impressed at how our Canadian government (in March 2004) has published this document.  In my opinion, it adds to how the parliment is in support of protecting the voice and heritage of First Nations/Aboriginal/Indigenous peoples in Canada.

This website discusses several key issues:

1. How does Indigenous traditional knowledge differe from western science?
2. Why protect traditional knowledge?
3. How to protect traditional knowledge?
4. Limitations of the intellectual property rights regime in protecting traditional knowledge
5. International initiatives to protect traditional knowledge

I believe the Canadian government has done a wonderful job in answering these questions in a clear, brief, and concise manner.  Take a look if you have time.

http://sarpress.sarweb.org/sarpress/index.php?main_page=pubs_product_book_info&products_id=27

http://sarpress.sarweb.org/sarpress/images/pdf/sarpress_27.pdf

There is a book that one can order from School on Advanced Research on the Human Experience (SAR Press).  This website gives you a glimpse of how the book will look like but more importantly it allows you to flavour a taste of what the book will be discussing about.

Being an educator, I like that fact that the book has critical thinking questions included – mind you, I’ve only seen the same excerpt that you can read too.  An example of the question asked in the book would be: “What are the literal and figurative meanings of your translations (of colonization and decolonization) and what does this indicate about your culture’s view of these processes?”

Looks like a wonderful book to read upon to understand more about colonization and decolonization.

http://aerc.usask.ca/about.html

This is a website that describes what the Aboriginal Education Research Centre (AERC) is providing in terms of informing and sharing knowledge about “educational decolonization” among Indigeneous people (especially in Canada).

Being the head of science in grade 6, what I found most intriguing through this website was the term “Indigenous Science”.  I would have never imagined teaching First Nations science – but it is available.

AERC also describes itself as a place where they can share some of the ‘Best Practices’ they discovered across Canada and a bibliographic list of references related to Indigenous Science.