Field Placements Description


CANADIAN FIELD PLACEMENTS


  • Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, Winnipeg, Manitoba
  • Canadian National Railway (CN) /Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC), Ontario
  • Canadian National Railway (CN)
  • Fisher River Cree Nation, Manitoba
  • Manitoba Hydro, Manitoba


Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, Winnipeg, Manitoba

Sunday Lizu was hosted by the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs (AMC), a regional political Indigenous organization that works for the protection of First Nations rights and Treaty rights in Manitoba. Sunday's main activity was his participation in the analysis of health data for the Regional Health Survey and in preparing the data for repatriation back to Manitoba First Nations communities.

See more photos here.

Canadian National Railway (CN) /Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC), Ontario

In recognition of it's commitment to environmental stewardship and sustainable development, CN entered into a partnership with Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) to renew and restore wetlands in the Bellville area. Ian Toal was embedded with DUC learning how they went about selecting, designing, constructing and monitoring wetlands. Two of the projects to be funded involved First Nations - one was the rebuilding of a dike to preserve a large and important wetland on Hiawatha First Nation land, and the second was the construction of a wetland on the Tyendeninaga First Nation school ground as an educational opportunity for the students at the school.

See more photos here.

Canadian National Railway (CN)

 Megan Prydun and Kirsten Junker-Andersen were introduced to corporate culture and strategies during their placement with the Canadian National Railway (CN). From learning how train yards work to building connections with indigenous communities CN track runs through, they were provided with the opportunity to view indigenous development issues in Canada from different perspectives. Their most impactful experiences were when they  accompanied the Manager of Aboriginal Relations into indigenous communities. As a corporation, CN has begun to recognize historical and present barriers to employment for Aboriginal peoples and connecting with these communities, along with urban indigenous organizations, is taking the first steps to bridging some of these existing gaps.

See more photos here.

Fisher River Cree Nation, Manitoba

 Two students were hosted by Fisher River, Tatenda Bwawa and Susan Maxson. They were welcomed in by the Chief and Council and were encouraged to take part in the various areas that the council was involved in. Through this Susan was able to see how different parts of the community worked and especially how services were provided on the reserve, in particular economic development. Living with a local family enabled them to become involved in community activities. Tatenda's involvement in Fisher River included participation in health care strategic planning and raising chronic diseases awareness, finance meetings with chief and council and officials from the federal department of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada (AANDC).

See more photos here.

Manitoba Hydro, Manitoba

Reuben Garang was hosted by Manitoba Hydro, a Crown Corporation and the province's major energy utility. He learned about Manitoba Hydro's past relationship with Aboriginal communities and hydro-electric power generation development and the new partnership approach toward sustainable development. He learned that Hydro is rethinking ways of doing development and building mutual relationships with the First Nations communities.

See more photos here.



INTERNATIONAL FIELD PLACEMENTS


Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC), Wisconsin, USA

Heidi Cook was placed with the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC), an organization of eleven Ojibwe tribes in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan. She learned about the implementation of Treaties between the Lake Superior Chippewa (Ojibwe) and the United States government, in particular with regard to resource co-management.
She also participated in biological assessments of Siscowet trout of Lake Superior and cultural projects including recipe testing for a traditional foods cookbook.


REMISA project, India

Janna Barkman and Alejandro Dominguez-Suberbie spent ten weeks in Anchetty, Tamil Nadu, India working in the Revalorizing Small Millets in Rainfed Regions of South Asia (RESMISA) project which is funded by the International Development Research Council (IDRC) and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). Local NGOs and academics of Tamil Nadu have expressed concern in the loss of varieties and local indigenous knowledge (IK) related to small millets and associated crops which are increasing threats to local food security.

The project examines the value of IK learning and explores possibilities of bridging informal learning mechanisms with formal learning institutions as a way to promote IK transmission and support community food-security initiatives. Janna used participatory research methodologies to identify local learning dimensions which may support or discourage food security initiatives.

See more photos here.