I currently live in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, but I am an Inuvialuk from Tuktoyaktuk, one of the six communities that make up the Inuvialuit Settlement Region (IRC). There are a tremendous amount of influential people in my life as being raised in an Indigenous community is unique. Our connections and strength moves forward through our families and communities we were raised in. Knowledge passed on from those before us, is not seen as individual ownership of that knowledge, where one person is recognized as influential. Rather, it is traditional knowledge we use to guide us forward shared by all Inuvialuit and I believe that our knowledge and contributions stem from all individuals who have touched our lives.
Inuvialuit means the real people and we are represented by IRC (2021), which is the organization I would like to highlight as having made significant contributions to Inuvialuit education and technology. The first big impact came when our Inuvialuit ancestors refused and walked away from signing Treaty 11, presented to them by the Government of Canada in the early 1900’s. I was told Inuvialuit were invited to the shores of Tsiigehtchic to sign a Treaty on Gwich’in land and instead of signing, without words, Inuvialuit leaders left swiftly in their qayaqs in the middle of the night.
The second big milestone was the signing of the Inuvialuit Final Agreement on June 5, 1984 taking back control from decades of the Government of Canada’s attempts to assimilate and abolish Inuvialuit even after our ancestors refused Treaty 11 (2018). This Land Claim Settlement was the first of its kind in the Northwest Territories.
These milestones are relevant to the field of education and technology because they provide opportunity to share our perspectives, safely. The Inuvialuit Regional Corporation (2021) has now spent over three decades implementing and creating digital educational resources to reach Inuvialuit and learners all over the world. Some of the current examples of online resources created and available are:
- Taimani – At That Time (2017) is a visual guide of the Inuvialuit timeline from our perspectives.
- Inuvialuit Pitqusiit Inuuniarutait (2012) meaning Inuvialuit Living History is a digital resource highlighting the MacFarlane collection and Anderson River Inuvialuit
- Inuvialuit Digital Library (2014) is a valuable resource that provides support for Inuvialuktun teachers, and promotes the language as part of their mandate. This is a collaborative resource with the University of Alberta to provide resources digitally.
- Qilalukkat! Belugas and Inuvialuit (2019) is an exhibit showcasing the cultural practices passed on through generations and available for viewing digitally and in person at the Canadian Museum of Nature in Ottawa, Ontario.
These digital learning resources illustrate milestones Inuvialuit have achieved since refusing the Treaty first presented. Digital education and preservation give many who are facing struggles from centuries of abuse and colonialism a chance to build on our internal connections and move forward in a positive direction. The Inuvialuit Regional Corporations contribution in developing digital resources opens doors for Inuvialuit like myself, not currently living within the ISR, but where our family, communities, and hearts reside.
References
Canadian Museum of Nature (2019). Qilalukkat! Belugas and Inuvialuit: Our survival together. https://nature.ca/en/plan-your-visit/what-see-do/our-exhibitions/arctic-gallery/arctic-northern-voices-gallery.
Inuvialuit Communications Society (2018). Treaty Declined. Tusaayaksat Magazine: Spring Issue. Pg. 72-74. https://issuu.com/tusaayaksatmagazine/docs/tusaayaksat-spring2018-_online_2_
Inuvialuit Cultural Resource Centre (2012). Inuvialuit Pitqusiit Inuuniarutait: Inuvialuit Living History. https://www.inuvialuitlivinghistory.ca/.
Inuvialuit Cultural Centre (2014). Inuvialuit Digital Library. https://inuvialuitdigitallibrary.ca/.
Inuvialuit Regional Corporation (2017). Taimani: At that time: Inuvialuit Timeline Visual Guide. https://www.inuvialuithistory.ca/#!/home/.
Inuvialuit Regional Corporation (last edited 2021). Inuvialuit Final Agreement. https://irc.inuvialuit.com/about-irc/inuvialuit-final-agreement.
Hi Ashley, Thank you for taking the time to provide your feedback. I had to re-read your question numerous times, over the last week, and look up a few words in the dictionary. To answer your question, I hope, new and ancient culture merged in technology I believe is surviving through times of change. Culture is always changing and adapting. With technology we are able to hold on a little longer to the ways of our past, while demonstrating the active traditions, thriving cultures, and sharing with the world that we are alive today, ironically, through so many attempts to assimilate and abolish. Technology complements new with the old, from my perspective. – Myrna
Hi Myrna,
Thank you for sharing this beautiful perspective as well as the wonderful resources that were created through the collective contributions of many. I deeply appreciate the contextualization of where we stand presently in a digitally saturated terrain. It’s encouraging to know that technology can be used not just for preservation but also for furthering, bridging, and relationships built in respectful learning of culture through stories and histories.
Does the juxtaposition of new, novel, perhaps flash in the pan or flavor of the month technology, and digital archiving of ancient culture strike you as ironic, complementary, contradictory, or simply extant?
~Alisha