Education News Spring 2018 | Page 11

Inaugural Indigenous Speaker and Film Series Dr. James Daschuk Clearing the Plains Dr. Sherry Farrell-Racette Burning Buildings and Strong Women: Painting Stories for the Road Allowance Dr. Dwayne Donald Kikway enohte ohpinaman? Holism as Pedagogical Guide Melissa Mollen Dupuis I Belong to Where I Stand David Garneau Joseph Boyden may not be an Indian, but he is Indigenous: On the Indigenization of the University and Canada Dr. Angelina Weenie Askiy Kiskinwahamākēwina: Land-Based Education Indigenization Chair, Dr. Anna-Leah King (R) in collaboration with Dr. Heather Phipps (Le Bac) (L) organized a strong line up of speakers and films for the inaugural Indigenous Speakers and Films Series. Dr. King arranged the following Speakers: James Daschuk, Dwayne Donald, Sherry Farrell-Racette, Angelina Weenie, and David Garneau. Each presented around the theme Whisperings of the Land, moving attendees toward understanding Indigenization and knowing our close relationship to land cognizant of its historical desecration. The inaugural Indigenous Film series included Elder in the Making (Chris Hsiung), National Film Board films, Trick or Treaty (Alanis Obomsawin), Birth of A Family (Tasha Hubbard), as well as Muffins for Granny (Nadia McLaren), and some Wapikoni Mobile Short Films (Melissa Mollen Dupuis, who also presented as part of the Speakers Series). Ging Zhou (Andy), a visiting scholar from China to the U of R Department of Economics, attended the film Elder in the Making, directed by Chris Hsiung, a Chinese-Canadian who is new to Canada. In the film, Hsiung sets out to rediscover the shared heritage between Blackfoot Aboriginal people and Chinese people. Ging says, “Watching the film, I felt particularly impressed by Hsiung, how he processed integrating into the community. At the beginning it was a bit hard, but it got better after a bit of understanding [gained by] the immigrant in how to adapt to a new environment and better understand and communicate with the local people...Understanding the context of Aboriginal First Nations better. Because the film character reflects the Chinese people, I was very interested in that.” Education News | Page 11