On Nov. 5, the film Signal Fire by director Kelly Milner was shown at the Princess Twin in Uptown Waterloo.
The film was released in tandem with the paper “Towards reconciliation: 10 Calls to Action to natural scientists working in Canada” by Carmen Wonga, Kate Ballegooyen, Lawrence Ignace, Mary Jane (Gùdia) Johnson and Heidi Swanson.
The ten calls for action within the journal article highlight the gaps within natural sciences and research practices to enable reconciliation while bringing to light the lack of representation of Indigenous peoples in this field.
The film, set in Northern Canada, provides a deeper understanding of the issue and questions the underlying philosophy of science and its origins. “Science was in fact the belly of the beast. It was where they dispossessed us of knowledge,” said Dawn Martin-Hill, a professor in the department of anthropology and Indigenous studies at McMaster university.
The sciences have often rejected and dispossessed Indigenous knowledge and human relationships. This dispossession was tied to the colonial project that formed the bases of modern scientific practices two centuries ago.
“[It is important to realize] these different biases and lenses that we’ve been raised with and be aware there are other ways to look at world and reestablish those connections, which probably most had and kind of lost through school and training,” said Heidi Swanson, associate professor and Jarislowsky Chair at Wilfrid Laurier University and adjunct professor at the University of Waterloo. “We can find a better way — giving people a place to start is important.”
Understanding the socio-political context of the land is vital. As Swanson points out, scientists and researchers have tremendous amounts of power, which they do not realize.
They influence perspectives, decisions and policies in a way that Indigenous knowledge is not. As the paper alarmingly points out, the sciences lack representation of Indigenous peoples, especially youths. Based on this, how can we incorporate different perspectives when one side is barely represented and where can young researchers start?
The film and the paper aim to answer these questions.
“I am thinking that in this global change of reconciliation and decolonization, the first step that you are going to do as a young person coming in to look at the land is go and ask permission. Knock on that door and ask, is it okay if I come here?” said Gùdia, Lhù’áán Mân Ye Shäw, Elder of the Kluane First Nation.
“I think proper reconciliation requires us to make those human relationships the foundation of everything we do. Research doesn’t start when you get into the field and start collecting data. It takes months, sometimes years of conversations and trust building,” said Kyle Bobbiwash, an Anishinaabe-Ojibwe assistant professor and an Indigenous scholar at the University of Manitoba.
Building relationships is key to reconciliation focused research practices, but this process could take years as Swanson notes. To start, young researchers can attend community events, talk to elders and other community members about their research, try to involve Indigenous youths in their research and ask permission. It is not simply about collaborating or having conversations but understanding that Indigenous knowledge is complementary and essential to understanding the world around us.
“The first step is to decolonize ourselves,” said William Alger, Dehcho Guardian, Líídlii Kúe First Nation.
Contributed Photo/Signal Fire Film on Youtube. Clip from film’s 2023 trailer.
