The Faculty of Environmental Studies (FES) continues its presentation, Indigenous Environmental Justice, the 2016-2017 FES Speaker Series, with an event on Jan. 25 featuring Sylvia Plain.
Running 12:30 to 1:45pm in HNES 141, “Great Lakes Canoe Journey: Mobilizing Indigenous Knowledge and First Nations Communities” will examine the origins of Plain’s project, the Great Lakes Canoe Journey”.
After conducting research on First Nations Water Policy across Turtle Island and learning about other Indigenous canoe cultures, Plain returned home and founded the project in 2014. The Great Lakes Canoe Journey envisions bringing together the citizens of the Great Lakes Basin on an annual basis by way of canoes to celebrate the relationship to the waterways and to learn about Anishinaabe canoe culture and canoe building.
Since the beginning of the project, Plain has created four new birch bark canoe builders, has taught over 2,000 elementary and university students, and recently built a birch bark canoe in her own community, Aamjiwnaang First Nation.
Plain is from Aamjiwnaang First Nation and is a community ambassador. After recently winning a Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Scholarship, she conducted research in New Zealand focusing on the personhood of the Whanganui River.
The series will continue on:
- Feb. 15, featuring Vanessa Gray
- March 22, featuring Krysta Williams
- April 12, featuring Adrianne Lickers
For more information, or to register, visit this link.