Read the latest news from SFU Library's Indigenous Initiatives

The eagle flies the highest in the sky, and in a coast salish story people would seek guidance from the eagle to gain knowledge of faraway places. This representational eagle wing relief was created to bring the knowledge to students as they seek guidance in their studies. -- Marissa Nahanee

Indigenous Initiatives, Project 57: Unlearning and learning together

For week 3 we're looking at what is meant by the term urban Indigenous.

Project 57: Unlearing and learning together posts are found here.

Attend the It Stops Here book launch with Rueben George and Guests

 

Join us for the launch of Rueben George’s It Stops Here: Standing Up for Our Lands, Our Waters, and Our People.

On August 30th, SFU Library is co-sponsoring the book launch event for Rueben George’s It Stops Here: Standing Up for Our Lands, Our Waters, and Our People.

Register to attend

The launch takes place at the Djavad Mowafaghian Cinema (SFU Woodwards) at 7pm on Wednesday August 30th. Registration is free/by donation to the Massy Arts Society.  

Learn more about the book launch and register to attend.  

Can't make it in-person? Register for the livestream!

About the book

The book is a personal account of Rueben George’s ongoing work of standing up against colonial extraction as a land defender.

SFU’s Burnaby and Vancouver campuses occupy lands that are part of the Tsleil-Waututh territory, and our communities therefore benefit directly from George’s environmental activism. It Stops Here is "part memoir, part call to action” and provides us with the opportunity to learn more about the ongoing responsibilities that Indigenous community leaders take on in the spiritual, cultural, and political realms, particularly in connection to land defense.  

Copies of It Stops Here will be available for purchase before and after the event, with a book signing happening after the moderated discussion. 

Pre-order It Stops Here from Massy Books.   

About Rueben George

Rueben George is a Sun Dance Chief, a member of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation, a family counsellor, and a “force of nature” (Dr. Pamela Palmater, Mi'kmaw lawyer, professor, and Indigenous rights advocate from Eel River Bar First Nation) in his work to protect the lands and waters that are under Tsleil-Waututh protection.

 

The book launch is being put on in collaboration between Massy Arts Society, Massy Books, SFU Library, and SFU Public Square. 

Salish Weave Box Sets: Art & Storytelling Project companion website

Image containing the project title, Salish Weave Box Sets: Art and Storytelling, the Salish Weave logo, and the SFU Library Indigenous Initiatives logo

The companion website for the Salish Weave Box Sets: Art and Storytelling Project is now available! On this site you'll find a visual annotated bibliography, and educational activities developed to for multiple disciplines.

The Salish Weave Box Set: Art and Storytelling Project is a series of conversations with Coast Salish artists. During these conversations, the artists talk with Ashley Edwards and Courtney Vance about their influences, processes, and how art is a source of knowledge sharing.

~ August 09, 2023, Ashley Edwards
​​​​​

 

 

The Indigenous Curriculum Resource Centre is now open!

The ICRC, showing the seating area, windows, and cedar.

Visit the ICRC on the 4th floor (north side) of the WAC Bennett to browse books about decolonizing curriculum and view art by Coast Salish artists.

Development of the ICRC started in 2020, and supports decolonizing initiatives of faculty members, instructors, and course designers. The collection includes materials on the impacts of colonization, why decolonization is needed in education, and centres Indigenous scholarship on teaching and learning. The ICRC itself is an example of how libraries can decolonize, by incorporating audio-video materials such as the Salish Weave Box Set: Art and Storytelling conversations, and using an Indigenous classification system to catalogue books. The space complements the ICRC webpages.

To read more about the design elements of the space, collections, and classification system, see Doing the work in a good way: Information for instructors and course designers about the Indigenous Curriculum.

~ June 1 2023

 

Tea & Teachings: Conversations around Indigenizing Curriculum 

What is curriculum indigenization? What forms can curriculum indigenization take? How can instructors implement curriculum indigenization in their classes?

If you are a faculty or teaching staff member with an interest in these questions, the Centre for Educational Excellence and SFU Library’s Indigenous Curriculum Resource Centre invite you to a series entitled “Tea and Teachings: Conversations about Decolonizing and Indigenizing Curriculum.”

Using conversation and co-learning processes, this series will help you to develop foundational knowledge related to indigenizing and decolonizing curriculum.

Register and find out more.

~ September 27, 2021

Salish Weave Storytelling Project

The ICRC is thrilled to welcome Courtney Vance to the team! Courtney is joining as a Research Assistant on a project looking into art as pedagogy and storywork, as described by Q’um Q’um Xiiem in her 2008 book, Indigenous Storywork. The project will be centred around the art and artists included in the Salish Weave Box Sets, and has been generously funded by the Salish Weave Fund at the Victoria Foundation.

Courtney (Selkirk First Nation) graduated in 2021 with her BA in Sociology and Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies, alongside a minor in Anthropology. She is starting her Masters in the Sociology program in September 2021. She’s particularly interested in integrating Indigenous knowledges and ways of knowing at the forefront of urban planning on the unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh), and kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (Kwikwetlem) First Nations. 

The Salish Weave Storytelling Project will invite the artists represented in the Salish Weave Box Sets to have a conversation about their artwork. These conversations will be recorded, with participants receiving a copy, and will be made available through SFU Library. It is envisioned that many SFU Faculties and Departments will be interested in hearing from the artists, from Indigenous Studies, to Contemporary Art, to Literature, and Education. Future ideas for these conversations include developing post secondary curricula around the Box Sets, and collaborating with campus partners on events.

~ June 10, 2021

Welcome to the Indigenous Curriculum Resource Centre!

Taanshi and welcome! My name is Ashley Edwards, and I’m the Indigenous Curriculum Resource Centre librarian. I want to extend a warm welcome to you, and share a little about what can be found within the Indigenous Curriculum Resource Centre (ICRC). 

Both historically and currently, education systems often repress, negate, and ignore Indigenous knowledge. Because of this it can be hard to know where to begin making changes in your own teaching. The ICRC gives educators at all stages a place to explore and get started with interrupting these harmful practices by Indigenizing curriculum.  

Start your journey with six core resources

We have curated these online ICRC resources specifically to assist faculty, instructors, and TA/TM/RAs with understanding how and why to decolonize and Indigenize curriculum. 

Learn about why this work is important, what Indigenous pedagogy is, and find resources you can use in your classroom. Exploring further, you will find assignment examples and much more as our site expands. 

The six core pages are supported by an increasing number of pages on topics like:

Questions? Feedback? Suggestions? Please reach out to Ashley at avandijk@sfu.ca

Date(s)
Now open