GDE/PME 811 

The question I would like to focus on for this series of entries has a few different components. At the centre, I would like to explore how technology can be used as a tool within the context of Indigenous knowledge. I have previously done some independent consulting for FNESC where I helped to adapt their teacher resources for remote and blended learning and since then, I have been very interested in combining technology with Indigenous knowledge. I am also someone who enjoys using technology to enhance learning for students and teachers.

Some questions and topics I would like to inquire about are:

• How has technology played a role in Indigenous knowledge historically? 

  • What was the result? Was it positive or negative? 

• How do elders and knowledge keepers feel about using new technology? 

• What new or different protocols exist (or must be developed) surrounding the use of technology within the context of Indigenous knowledge? 

• Examining “two-eyed seeing” further with an emphasis on technology. 

This is by no means an exhaustive list of questions and topics to explore but one that I think will help guide me. I would like to, where appropriate, focus on specific people, places, and case studies as I find these the most interesting. 

If you have any additional questions or topics you think I could research, please let me know! 

carlyhills@gmail.com

In this blog entry, I look at an article written by Emily Jacobi entitled “Indigenous cartography and decolonizing mapmaking” published in Technology Solidarity (2020). Initially, I used this article as a basis for a virtual professional development session on Decolonizing Maps in 2020. In my previous district, we were lucky enough to have the Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada resource, an 11 x 8 metre map from the Canadian Geographic Society. You can download a PDF/printer friendly version of the map here. In my role as a district lead teacher in Indigenous education, I would use the map to help students and teachers understand this country, so-called Canada, in a different way -without political boundaries, capital cities, roads, etc. As Jacobi writes, “While the practice of mapping as indigenous erasure may seem like a relic of the past, the shapes drawn to accommodate eurocentrism have defined the world that we live in today, and maps continue to be used to justify the theft of Indigenous land.” Since the 15th century, maps have been a tool of colonizers to falsely depict “lands belonging to no one (terra nullius),” more specifically, non-Christians. In this way, cartography may be one of the first technologies to have such a profound impact on Indigenous knowledge. Map-making, however, was not exclusively a tool of colonial powers. Inuit people in Kalaallit Nunaat (Greenland), would traditionally carve portable maps out of driftwood that could allow for navigation in the dark and could withstand all weather conditions. 

Image

Source: Topografisk Atlas Grønland

“These three wooden maps show the journey from Sermiligaaq to Kangertittivatsiaq, on Greenland’s East Coast. The map to the right shows the islands along the coast, while the map in the middle shows the mainland and is read from one side of the block around to the other. The map to the left shows the peninsula between the Sermiligaaq and Kangertivartikajik fjords” (Inuit Cartography, 2016).

By allowing the process of map-making to be controlled by a central power, the ability for a single narrative of the land to emerge can be incredibly damaging. In other words, it is not necessarily the technology itself that can cause harm, but those who wield it.

In my next blog entry I will look into this in more depth by examining the mapping efforts of the Waorani peoples in Ecuador and how their contributions have led to the preservation and protection of their traditional lands from government infringement.   

Inuit Cartography. (2016). Retrieved 20 July 2023, from https://decolonialatlas.wordpress.com/2016/04/12/inuit-cartography/

In the second half of her article, Emily Jacobi writes about the efforts of Indigenous peoples in Ecuador to displace colonial maps which completely erased any aspect of Indigeneity from the land. Maps allow the author(s) to create a narrative or to present a story of the land. When maps show territory that is empty, it is easy to buy into the false belief that it is “nobody’s land” and that the government has the right to sell it off, drill for oil, or clear cut forests. When Indigenous peoples make their own maps or contribute to the map-making process, they can affirm their rich cultural heritage and deep connection to local ecology, history, culture, spirituality, etc. The Waorani people had resisted external influence for thousands of years -from the Incas the the Spanish conquistadores. When the Ecuadorian government began selling off blocks of land (read: traditional Waorani territory) to oil companies, the Waorani decided to do something about it. They created a map that had over 150 icons depicting everything from places where birds nested to villages, historic sites, locations for medicinal plants, etc. This process not only showed the land as it is, but also helped the Waorani people to create a vision for what they wanted for the land to become for future generations. 

In 2019 the Waorani won a lawsuit against the Government for not carrying out adequate consultation before creating oil blocks This was a significant violation of the communities’ rights to Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC). The oil block was removed and ½ million acres of the Amazon were protected. This win for the Waorani people set precedent for Indigenous activism not only within Ecuador but around the world. 

Further reading: 

https://waoresist.amazonfrontlines.org/explore/  

https://www.digital-democracy.org/mapeo  

In my work as a District Lead Teacher in Indigenous Education I encountered many questions regarding resources. What is appropriate? What is out of date? How do I know what resources to keep? A colleague I worked with created a handy flowchart to help teachers quickly sort through some resources -setting aside questionable books for further investigation. This worked exceptionally well for primary and elementary books as they were much more manageable to scan through (i.e., fewer pages, less words, younger content, etc.). After a few months, I started receiving emails from secondary teacher-librarians with another question, “Where and how should resources be catalogued?” This was a much more challenging question to tackle. Most libraries use either the Dewey Decimal System or the Library of Congress System to catalogue and classify resources which classifies books on Indigenous communities as “history” (Worth, 2019). While this may not appear to be significant, its impact is twofold. First, it paints Indigenous people as a thing of the past, not living, breathing, thriving communities. Secondly, those looking to do research or to learn about Indigenous people may miss vital information because they are not looking in the right section. Sandy Littletree, an Indigenous librarian and researcher of Indigenous knowledge, also notes that, “The systems are not really designed with our language and our behavior for research” (Worth, 2019). Meaning, the systems also can’t easily incorporate Indigenous languages that use non-Roman characters in the spelling of certain words (Worth, 2019). Indigenous creation stories get sorted with folklore or fairytales, for example, while biblical tales are in the nonfiction section (Worth, 2019).    

What is exciting, however, is that there are institutions like the X̱wi7x̱wa Library at UBC who are looking to change that by using an adapted version of the Brian Deer Classification system, a cataloging system created in 1974 by Brian Deer, a Kahnawake librarian. This classification system organizes books by geographical location according to the Indigenous group rather than alphabetically and uses traditional spellings.

To learn more about the Brian Deer Classification System check out his resource https://guides.library.ubc.ca/Indiglibrarianship/briandeer    

Worth, Sydney. This Library Takes an Indigenous Approach to Categorizing Books - YES! Magazine. (2019). Retrieved 8 August 2023, from https://www.yesmagazine.org/social-justice/2019/03/22/decolonize-western-bias-indigenous-library-books  

For this blog entry I wanted to show a visual that compares and contrasts Traditional Indigenous knowledge with Western Science. When I initially did this, I was surprised how many similarities there were. 

For this blog entry I wanted to show a way technology can be used to share Indigenous knowledge respectfully and appropriately. By using a source from the Okanagan Nation Alliance I've ensured that I've consulted an appropriate resource. I also tried to include Traditional Indigenous Knoweldge and Western Science in my infographic. 

Prior to being removed from their traditional lands to reserves in the late 1800s Indigenous Peoples used controlled "cultural" burns based on the traditional knowledge about their territories accumulated over millennia. B.C. became the first province to ban cultural burns with the Bush Fire Act of 1874 in B.C. Similar to the Potlatch ban (implemented in 1884) the burning ban aimed to remove ceremony and assimilate Indigenous Peoples. Fire was a crucial element and was used to:

• Manage the buildup of combustible materials

• Manage regeneration

• Manage pests

Cultural burns differ from planned and controlled burns which are executed by government forest managers. Prescribed fires are primarily done to get rid of built-up “fuel” on the forest floor where as cultural burns are done to fortify the land. Reducing the risk of wildfires as well as promoting the growth of medicinal and food plants. 

With each year we see increasing levels of fire activity due to climate change and fire suppression efforts are only delaying the inevitable. Provincial and federal governments should seek more opportunities to work with fire keepers to change the way we approach forest management. 

Boutsalis, Kelly. (2023). The art of fire: reviving the Indigenous craft of cultural burning. The Narwhal. https://thenarwhal.ca/indigenous-cultural-burning/ 

I wanted to include some quotes from recent texts I've read and reflected on that relate to my topic. 

“Indigenous Peoples hold an extensive wealth of knowledge, even if this knowledge has not always been recognized by post-industrial Euro-centric cultures.” (Battiste, 2005)

“In Indigenous Ways of Knowing, we understand a thing only when we understand it with all four aspects of our being: mind, body, emotion, and spirit.” ~ Kimmerer (2017)

“Getting scientists to consider the validity of Indigenous knowledge is like swimming upstream in cold, cold water. Couple that with the unblinking assumption that Western science has cornered the market on truth and there’s not much room for discussion.” ~ Kimmerer (2017)

“Learn to see from your one eye with the best or the strengths in the Indigenous knowledges and ways of knowing ... and learn to see from your other eye with the best or the strengths in the mainstream (Western or Eurocentric) knowledges and ways of knowing ... but most importantly, learn to see with both these eyes together, for the benefit of all” ~ Mi’kmaq Elder Albert Marshall 

I reached out to my friend Sheryl to ask her what she thought about some of my questions. Sheryl is nehiyawak and sixties scoop survivor from Saddle Lake. Sheryl currently lives in the unceded territory of the syilx/Okanagan people and is an author of young adult fiction as well as a district lead teacher in Indigenous Education with SD22 (Vernon). 

• How has technology played a role in Indigenous knowledge historically? 

  • What was the result? Was it positive or negative?
    
    Technology has always been around. It all depends on how you define it. Indigenous people had the technology for trapping, hunting, cooking and storing food. They also had technology for travelling distances and ways of mapping the land.
    
    I would say that with the ideology of 7 generations, past technology had a positive impact. However, with the increase of modern technology and colonization, this ideology got a little lost and modern technology has more negative impacts than positive, but many communities are reevaluating how technology is used today and are going back to past knowledge and bringing it into the present.

• How do elders and knowledge keepers feel about using new technology?
  
  I asked Bill Cohen his thought on how life would be if colonization never happened. He believed that even if colonization never happened that eventually indigenous people would have created similar technologies. I agree with him.
  
  Many elders think that modern technology is the worst because it came so fast that it was difficult to stay away from it. It made daily chores easier and so on. I’ve also heard elders curse technology because they say it has turned us into slaves and that technology is making people forget about looking after the future generations. That the youth are putting their focus into values that doesn’t align with core values.
  
  I think with anything they are okay with some technologies. They are hopefully that modern technology and indigenous values will balance out again. They know that we can’t go backwards.
  
  

• What new or different protocols exist (or must be developed) surrounding the use of technology within the context of Indigenous knowledge?
  
  New technology like chainsaws are used for old protocols such as fire keeping. However, fire keeping will always use its main technology of fire to clear dead trees or shrub to minimize gas build up in the atmosphere.
  
  Modern technology has been vitally important for language and language revitalization. Elders from thousands of communities are being recorded. As you already know, some nations have less than 200 fluent speakers.
  
  Fishing and fisheries are always of question. The Stolo nation honours the technology of the past to fish and preserve fish but they also have fishing boats. They still have to worry about over fishing and being able to ensure there will be fish for generations to come. I’m unsure if they have developed new protocols for mass fishing.
  
  I was just reading the other day about how remote indigenous communities are becoming more self-reliant with aerospace industry where they can “assert [their] own self-determination.” It best to see.
  https://www.cbc.ca/amp/1.6655202
  
  

Technology has always been a double edged sword. In some ways it has been incredibly helpful (e.g., vaccines) and in someways it has been harmful (i.e., social media). When it comes to Indigenous peoples, technology should be something that communities feel they have understanding of and are able to participation in. Keyboards with Indigenous language fonts allow for Indigenous languages to be shared online. This is hugely important because, as Sheryl mentioned in her comments above, many communities have fewer than 200 fluent speakers. When it comes to Indigenous languages, individuals are more likely to continue to learn, speak, read, and use a language when they feel it is valuable to do so. By utilizing and harnessing technology, Indigenous communities have the opportunity to preserve and grow language and culture.