Category Archives: MODULE 1

Jessica Presta: Module 1, Post 3

I wanted to draw attention to the First Nations in BC Knowledge Network’s website. This network was put together with the goal of facilitating networking and knowledge sharing among First Nations communities, individuals, and organizations within the province. A platform like this has the power to bring ideas and resources together to support the rebuilding and growing of Nations. Within the site there is a robust directory of BC First Nations services, Indian Bands as well as resources available to the Indigenous people of BC.

References

First Nations Technology Council (n.d.) First nations in bc knowledge network: A space to exchange information between first nations communities. https://firstnationsbc.ca/about-us

Jessica Presta: Module 1, Post 2

For my second blog post, I wanted to share some of the small ways I try and incorporate Indigenous voices and representation in my daily life. Through the use of digital technologies and the advent of social media, I am able to expose and connect myself to Indigenous content creators, and they, are able to create content and share to a worldwide audience.

One content creator I love and follow is Cree, James Jones, and goes by the name Notorious Cree. He shares his journey of reconnecting with his own culture through traditional dance and uses his platform to encourage others to do the same and to find pride in who they are. James Jones has found a way to connect with his audience through orality, using videos which are educational, and include teachings about his dance and his culture. To view his works, click here.

Another content creator who I enjoy following to learn about their culture is Shina Novalinga. She is Inuk and is known for her TikTok videos where she throat sings with her mom as well as her activism. Her content ranges from educational material about Inuit culture to some of the challenges people in her community and other northern Indigenous communities face. To view her works, click here.

I genuinely feel that social media is in the hands of the creator, giving them a platform from which they can tell their stories without the (colonial) influence of others. Both of these content creators have over 3.5 million followers, thus their reach is far. They control their stories and how they want to share their culture with the world, empowering themselves, breaking stereotypes and showcasing the diversity among Indigenous people across North America.

Jessica Presta: Module 1, Post 1

For my first blog post in Module 1, I decided to share a resource that has been impactful on my journey towards truth and reconciliation and decolonization. This is Len Pierre. He is the founder of Len Pierre Consulting and with his team, offers consulting, education and training, and guest speaker services. I have had the privilege of attending two of his seminars now, once as a nurse (with approximately 300 attendees) and once as a faculty member at British Columbia Institute of Technology. If anyone is looking to host a guest speaker for their organization to address anti-racism, Indigenous cultural safety, reconciliation and decolonization, I highly recommend reaching out to Len and his team. His ability to share knowledge related to these topics in a vulnerable  and transparent way is remarkable. You can visit his website here.

After attending my first seminar with Len, I followed him on LinkedIn and visited his website to discover what other resources are available to me. He has a few videos on his website from other events he spoke at, such as TEDxSFU which I recommend watching. In one of the seminars I attended, he spoke about the intentionality of the Canadian government in othering Indigenous tribes across Canada, the intentionality behind making them appear as savages who are not willing to become ‘civilized’ by adopting a colonial culture and some of the harmful stereotypes that developed as a result of this. As he discussed this and other tactics intended to oppress Indigenous people, I reflected on growing up in small communities of BC and how these stereotypes were perpetuated by the adults around me. This was evident in the way they were openly racist towards Indigenous people, repeating the same rhetoric used to oppress them, and I realized how this impacted my beliefs and how it gave me a deeper understanding of where these learned biases came from. I will never forget this moment and the impact it had on me and my ability to decolonize further.

Module 1 Post 5

https://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/documents/DRIPS_en.pdf

When we think about resources, I think it’s important to look at what global policy makers are putting out. The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is a good place to start; it provides a global perspective from a group that is highly respected. What I find interesting about this document are the direct parallels it draws to the 94 Calls to Action like the rights to self-governance, and education. Documents such as these highlight the importance and necessity of everyone to inform themselves of the issues to create more voices demanding change.

Module 1 Post 4

https://www.nccie.ca/knowledge-space/elder-knowledge/

The National Centre for Collaboration has a huge variety of resources that can be focused into specific regions. Localizing learning enables learners of all types to find connection to the land they work and play on, to the groups that have been keepers of that land since time immemorial. When we are able to make those strong connections, we engage in the material, the learning more authentically and meaningfully, and perhaps are more likely to apply that learning.

 

https://youtu.be/Z7uwHJ_ag3A

Module 1 Post 3

https://warriorkidspodcast.com/about

A colleague led me to this podcast that emphasizes education around Indigenous cultures, and the differences between different groups. Led by Pam Palmater, each episode is a journey into an untold story, a different perspective of a common theme and importantly ties it into creating change agents of the future. With a theme here of multimodality and multiliteracies, I find the podcast an excellent way to incorporate both of those things in replace of text heavy resources.

Module 1 Post 2

https://mediasmarts.ca/digital-media-literacy/media-issues/diversity-media/indigenous-people/common-portrayals-indigenous-people

Media smarts is one of my go-to resources for teaching students media literacy, critical consciousness and critical thinking. What I appreciate about it the most is that it is backed with research that they make available to anyone visiting their website which is in line with an underlying philosophy I have in democratizing learning. This article speaks specifically to the portrayals of Indigenous Peoples in media and provides resources for parents and teachers specific to the issue outlined in the article.

Module 1 Post 1

https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/2b658ebc77444977a04bd0f97e61823b

I particularly like digital storytelling as means for knowledge transfer as they are multi-modal, meaning multiple media types, directed towards telling a complete, robust narrative. The inclusion of maps, graphs, and data gives integrity to the text narrative, but also means the information accessible to all learners and consumers. The framework also allows for various cultures’ stories to be told in a meaningful way while respecting their societal and cultural norms; for example oral histories of many Indigenous groups. This, according to Cloonan addresses two aspects affected by the changing social norms of communication; “the variability of meaning making in different cultural, social or professional contexts and the nature and impact of new communications technologies” (pp 159).

In this story, the consumer is taken through various perspectives of Indigenous groups’ efforts to maintain, sustain and build a stronger, more ecologically stable future, for example the story of Maymand in Iran. It also highlights the ICCA’s (Indigenous Peoples’ & Community Conserved Territories & Areas) work in bringing awareness and positive contributions to Indigenous issues around the globe, and ensuring the sovereignty of groups is respected and upheld.

 

M1 P3 Blockchain and Indigenous Data Sovereignty

Another area of interest I have is Indigenous Data Sovereignty. Using blockchain to ensure that sensitive information reaches the intended audience has the potential to alleviate many concerns that different Indigenous groups may have in regards to recording and documenting culturally sensitive information.  Indigenous people may be more willing to record and disseminate culturally sensitive information digitally if there were secure options to do so. For example, the Plains Apache family that Prins (2002) had worked with were reluctant to film the ritual of the medicine bundle as they deemed it too sensitive to be recorded. If blockchain was an available technology at the time, the Plains Apache family may have felt more secure about recording that culturally sensitive ceremony if they knew that it would only be viewed by an audience they were comfortable sharing it with.

 

Prins, Harald E.L., “Visual Media and the Primitivist Perplex: Colonial Fantasies, Indigenous Imagination, and Advocacy in North America,” in Media Worlds: Anthropology on a New Terrain, eds. Faye D. Ginsburg, Lila Abu-Lughod, and Brian Larkin, Berkeley: University of California Press, 2002, 58- 74.

https://www.hpcwire.com/off-the-wire/study-explores-use-of-blockchain-to-protect-indigenous-genomic-data/

M1 P5 Cliff Cardinal

Last year, I attended Cliff Cardinals radical take on Shakespeare’s “As You Like It.” In a surprising plot twist, it didn’t end up being a performance about the classic play and instead, a 90 minute land acknowledgment from writer and poet Cliff Cardinal. It was an extraordinary reflective piece about reconciliation, the sincerity of land acknowledgments in Canada and other important big questions such as : Why are Indigenous people always seen connected to the ecosystem? And why can’t we separate a scientist delivering facts from her cultural identity?

Here is a review of the show (I wish I could find clips online of it!) : https://nowtoronto.com/news/review-cliff-cardinal-delivers-a-radical-take-on-as-you-like-it

If you ever have a chance to see his work, I highly recommend it!

 

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