Description

This challenge will be an opportunity to connect with your local indigenous group. For our Ocean Health Wilderness Expedition, we will be in Haida Gwaii. There will be an opportunity to learn from Indigenous elders, hear about traditional knowledge, and share current practices from your own communities. There are several ways that your service can work on connecting with your indigenous community. A great place to start is to provide support, volunteer, attend an event or eventually host an event in partnership with an indigenous friendship centre in your community.

If you are hosting an event, a recognition of the indigenous land should be acknowledged. For example, “We acknowledge that the Vancouver Aquarium occupies unceded Indigenous land belonging to Coast Salish peoples. Unceded means that this land was never surrendered, relinquished or handed over in any way. We recognize that the unceded land that we occupy at the Vancouver Aquarium includes the territories of the Musqueam, Skxwú7mesh, and Tsleil-Waututh and Nations.”

In addition, this is an opportunity to learn which indigenous languages are spoken or no longer spoken in your community. For 2019, UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) has declared the International Year of Indigenous Languages, beginning the 1^st of January 2019.

---

Task

Here is what you need to do:

1. Explore this map to learn the indigenous land you currently reside on. I
2. f you are hosting an event, consider presenting a welcome that acknowledges indigenous land. 
3. Connect with an indigenous students’ association or one of Canada's native friendship center to learn more about the indigenous group in your community. 
4. Consider providing support, volunteer, attend an event or eventually host an event in partnership with an indigenous friendship centre in your community. 
5. Learn which indigenous language is spoken or no longer spoken in your community.

Once you have learned about the indigenous lands you live on, try to develop a greeting for future events that you host. Please learn a few words in the indigenous language near you or share some words in the indigenous language that you speak. You can find these from your Indigenous language departments in Universities, at native friendship centres, or through neat apps like this. On a new thread in the discussion board, please share these words. We hoped to hear them during the Ocean Health Wilderness Service in Haida Gwaii.

---

Continue to 2019 - Lake Superior »