Exploring the link between education and reconciliation

The kids are off with back packs full of sharp pencils and loose leaf paper, eager to fill curious minds or at least we hope so. And it's not just the kids who are learning, many Canadians are too.

We're kicking off this new season of Unreserved by exploring the relationship between education and reconciliation.

 

In the spirit of learning and teaching, we here at Radio Indigenous decided to gain some knowledge too. Barbara and Clarence Nepinak are Anishinabe elders from Pine Creek Ojibway Nation, Man. They agreed to teach us how to build a tipi and share the cultural teachings that go with it.

This fall, every new undergraduate student at the University of Winnipeg must meet an Indigenous course requirement to graduate. The U of W is just one of two universities — the other is Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ont., — to mandate a baseline knowledge about Indigenous people and culture regardless of faculty.

Kevin Lamoureaux is the vice president of Indigenous affairs for the university, he'll explain what this course means to both Indigenous and non-Indigenous students.

A children's book series based on an Inuk grandmother's survivor story has become a top seller. The series of four books are written by Christy Jordan-Fenton and Margaret Pokiak-Fenton. They were inspired by Margaret's residential school experiences. The CBC's Betsy Trumpener joined them at a small country school outside Fort St. John, B.C.

It wasn't that long ago that Indigenous children in residential schools were beaten for speaking their mother tongue.
It's no surprise then that many of our languages are in danger of being lost forever. But across Turtle Island, many people and communities are working together to revitalize and reclaim their languages. CBC's Martha Troian visited one family in northern Ontario who are doing their part to revive the language of the Anishinabe.

Any parent knows that school supplies can be a drain on money and time. And the Prince George Native Friendship Centre wanted to help. Earlier this week they gave out about 700 backpacks to families in need. CBC's Jordan Tucker went to the centre where volunteers were hard at work assembling the backpacks.

This week's playlist:

Sierra Noble - Be Who You Be

A Tribe Called Red and Tanya Tagaq - Sila

Moe Clark - I Find Grace

The Johnnys - Nisakihtan Kiya Kisoskatowin