Why Indigenous Knowledge?
Indigenous knowledge is key to understanding changes to the land. It has been developed over extended periods of time through direct contact with the land, connecting knowledge of the land with people’s everyday lives. In Indigenous knowledge, ecological understanding intersects with culture, language, cosmology, history, and social life. Offering a holistic view of the land, Indigenous knowledge both overlaps with and goes beyond western science. It is a legitimate form of knowledge to be recognized within science classrooms as part of the curriculum’s Aboriginal focus.
For teachers who are unfamiliar with Indigenous knowledge, our teacher resources provide a helpful introduction that will get you started.
Curriculum Development Team
The work of pulling the community research findings into twelve lesson plans was done by three amazing women who have been involved in the Tracking Change project for several years. Special thanks to Carrie, Makenzie, and Alexandria for all of their hard work. Carrie, Makenzie, and Alex would like to give a special thanks to their student reviewer, Ryan Schaefer, and teacher reviewer, Nashra Kamal, for the time they took to read through all of the lesson plans, provide helpful feedback, and ensure that the plans are relevant for students and teachers in the Mackenzie River Basin. Thanks to Tracy Howlett and Abby D’Souza for helping to design and edit the finished Lesson Plan PDFs.
Alexandria Catholique
BA Student, University of Alberta
is a member of the Lutsel k’e Dene First Nation. Born and raised in the north, she is currently in the process of completing her Bachelor of Native Studies at the University of Alberta. Brought into this project by Brenda Parlee a professor from the Department of Resource Economics and Environmental Sociology in the Faculty of Agricultural, Life & Environmental Sciences/University of Alberta and associated with the progress done by Tracking Change, Alexandria brings her views as a northerner into the work done for this project.
Amabel (Abby) D’Souza
Research Assistant, Tracking Change
Abby is a former graduate student of Dr. Brenda Parlee, completing her MSc in Resource Economics and Environmental Sociology in January 2019. She has worked in the international context, having conducted research in Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand, and the surrounding areas. She is providing social media management, newsletters, InDesign/website editing, research, editing, and other various supports to the project.
Carrie Karsgaard
Ph.D. Candidate, University of Alberta
Carrie Karsgaard is a Doctoral Candidate in Educational Policy Studies at the University of Alberta, specializing in Theoretical, Cultural, and International Studies in Education. Using the Trans Mountain pipeline controversy as a case study, her doctoral research uses the large-scale data available on Instagram to trace and analyze how publics reinforce, reject, and/or destabilize settler colonialism as they leverage platform affordances to engage with the pipeline issue. In her work with Tracking Change, she has coordinated the Youth Knowledge Fair and supported young people from the Mackenzie River Basin to speak at events associated with the United Nations Conference of Parties (COP24).
Mackenzie MacKay
M.Sc. Graduate In Risk and Community Resilience, University of Alberta
Makenzie MacKay completed her Master of Science in Risk and Community Resilience through the University of Alberta’s Department of Resource Economics and Environmental Sociology. Her thesis explored the importance of Indigenous peoples in climate change and energy governance. Makenzie had the great opportunity to work with Inuvialuit peoples in Inuvik, NT, and Tuktoyaktuk, NT to investigate energy systems that are meaningful for the people that live there. She also researched the benefits of Indigenous youth participation in climate action related to the Tracking Change trip to COP24.
