Project Description: Following the Calls to Action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the project aims to educate students on recognizing the shared history of Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples and the need to promote healing, equity, and respect for/of Indigenous cultures and values in Canadian Society. Students will do research in separate project related topic through community engagement. At the end of the project each participants will submit a final research report of project deliverable decided by the supervisor.

Project scope: The mission of UCN’s strategic plan is to serve northern Aboriginal communities and people with education, training, teaching, learning and research, while being inclusive and respectful of diverse Indigenous and northern values (UCN Strategic plan, 2021). This research project intends to initiate a knowledge sharing process in between northern communities and UCN students. Aboriginal communities in the northern Manitoba projects resiliency since time immemorial and people in these communities have been fighting colonialism, environmental racism and many other systemic oppressions for centuries while holding on to their insights and wisdom of traditional knowledge which are the foundation to their resiliency. There is much to learn from them and this research will create respectful the knowledge sharing process and will contribute to UCN’s strategic plan.

Project Goal: Goal of the project will be to gather knowledge about the current status of health, land based food and cultural activities organized by the communities and community based organizations.

Project Objectives: To achieve these goals students can take the following objectives

1. Conducting literature review on a chosen topic

2. Conduct interview with an Elder on a chosen topic

3. Collect health or food related traditional knowledge on a chosen topic.

Students will have to discuss the scope of their topic with the supervisor before they outline their task. Each students much have basic knowledge on conducting research with Aboriginal communities. Priorities will be given to those who has taken UCN's Research Methodologies in Aboriginal and Northern Studies Program (ANS 2100)

Potential deliverables:

At the end of the project each participants will submit a final research report/paper/assignment.

I will provide weekly lectures and research training to the participants. In addition to that I will provide bi monthly hands on instructions via research team meeting.