Tag Archives: Fort McKay

Final Project – Gaming as a Strategy for Revitalization of Culture

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For my final project I wanted to capture the struggles of the indigenous peoples of Fort McKay, Alberta while shining a light on one strategy often overlooked at engaging youth: videogames.

I believe that while there have been positive changes made to curriculum to become more culturally sensitive, there is still a long way to go. The environment of schooling needs to change, and one strategy which engages many youth, while immersing them in a different virtual landscapes, is gaming.

As First Nations people fight to retain their culture and traditions, we can’t ignore the impacts of white culture upon youth. Embracing technology, videogames could be one method to help draw in youth who struggle to be successful in western approaches to education. Dovetailing videogames with curricula focused on traditional and contemporary indigenous practices could help ensure that the next generation is sensitive to the challenges and pressures that dominant culture puts upon minority groups.

I hope you enjoy my documentary style movie. Due to it’s length (22 minutes) it is captured in two parts. Be sure to set the quality to high resolution to get the maximum experience from this viewing.

To view the full transcript of my movie, with complete set of references, click here.
Mel Burgess.

Module 3. Post 5 – “Fort McKay – A Plan”

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The peoples of Fort McKay have a plan and continue to work towards a partnership with the dozens of corporations and mines which extract oil from the Alberta Tar Sands area. The tar sands completely surround the small town of Fort McKay, lying within 6 km of the town in any direction. They are essentially cut off by industrial development from their traditional lands. Rather than host violent protests, they are seeking to work with industry and have helped organize a panel discussion:

“The Fort McKay First Nation (FMFN) and the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business (CCAB) are bringing together industry experts in Oil Sands and Energy, Aboriginal Economics and Issues, and the Environment…”

Aside from awareness and a sharing of aboriginal perspectives, I am unsure what goals this panel discussion hopes to achieve. I believe that awareness and sympathies from outside of Fort McKay will be needed to help persuade industry to hear the collective voices of the aboriginal peoples of Fort McKay. A path forward which includes honouring treaties with First Nations of the McKay peoples seems like a simple choice to me (an outsider and non-aboriginal person), however, the push to make money, whatever the political or environmental cost, is a powerful force that cannot be taken lightly.

Mel Burgess.

Module 3. Post 3 – A Change in Focus: Fort McKay

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I have been researching the peoples of Fort McKay recently as I believe that their struggle epitomizes the struggle of First Nations people. It is a story of loss of language, culture, and many traditional ways of living to the economies of our nation. Their story shows how treaty rights are being ignored and I am keen to learn how the indigenous residents of Fort McKay are using technology to combat the quiet oppression they face every day by mass corporate practices.

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This video summarizes much of what the peoples of Fort McKay are up against. I will refocus my final project to highlight the issues surrounding the peoples of Fort McKay and how they are fighting back.

Mel Burgess.