By Jasmin Winter, 2nd year MDP student
I first came across the Initiative for Indigenous Futures
(IIF) in my first-year MDP Research Methods course, while I was writing a paper
about Information and Communication Technologies and Indigenous community
development. IIF’s commitment to prioritizing Indigenous self-determination
when considering technological engagement was an immediate breath of fresh air
amongst the existing literature, and I was nothing short of inspired by the
nuanced approach to their projects. If you had told me at that point that a
year and a half later I would be sitting in their lab for my domestic field
placement, I would have been pretty speechless. One thing’s for sure, I would
have definitely had had much more motivation to get through those late nights
writing that final paper!
 |
|
Can you spot me amongst the green screened IIF team?
|
For some context, IIF
is a partnership of universities and organizations “dedicated to developing
multiple visions of Indigenous peoples’ tomorrow, in order to better understand
where we need to go today.” IIF is conducted by Aboriginal Territories in
Cyberspace (AbTeC), a research network based at Concordia University. And the
physical space at Concordia in which AbTeC and IIF activities take place is
called Obx Labs.
If you’re having trouble keeping up with the terminology,
don’t worry. You could always reach out to Jason Lewis (IIF’s primary
investigator) or Skawennati (partnership coordinator), who run this whole
operation. Reaching out to Jason while I was writing my paper was actually the
first step in me meeting Dr. Julie Nagam, Associate Professor at UofW and Chair
in the History of Indigenous Arts of North America at the Winnipeg Art Gallery.
She is a co-investigator for IIF, and between then and now, became my
supervisor for my Major Research Paper. She also took me on as an RA, in part
to help out with the third annual IIF symposium, which will be hosted in
Winnipeg at the end of this year. Therefore, my key role during my placement
involves acting as a bridge between Winnipeg and Montreal to get the symposium
organized. Looking back, everything really fell into place rather
serendipitously.
 |
|
Got my hands on a nifty IIF logo t-shirt.
|
What initially drew me into IIF’s work was their Skins workshops, where they share a
comprehensive toolkit of digital media skills with Indigenous youth and allow
them to create a playable video game rooted in traditional storytelling. With
four iterations under their belt, word has begun to spread, and the team has
actually been invited out to Hawai’i this July to conduct Skins 5.0. While I won’t be
joining them, being able to sit in on the Skins
meetings and absorbing everything that goes into the process has given me
invaluable insight into program planning.
Since being at IIF, I have also been able to see a virtual
reality project being produced, as well as witness the production of
Skawennati’s new machinima. What’s funny is that I actually learned about
Skawennati through her machinima well before I learned about IIF. TimeTravellerTM was presented
to me during an Indigenous art history course in my last year at McGill, which
was actually taught by Hannah Claus, who is now a resident artist at the lab.
Machinima, for those who don’t know, is a portmanteau of “machine” and “cinema,”
and involves the capturing of film in virtual environments.
On May 27, I had the honour of presenting Skawennati’s machinimas (including TimeTravellerTM, She Falls for Ages, and Words Before All Else Part 1) at a workshop titled “On Time Travel” in Toronto. The workshop was one in a series produced by the Shattered Moon Alliance, and created from the impetus of wanting to explore science fiction worldbuilding from the perspectives of women of colour. You can find my blog post about it here.
On May 27, I had the honour of presenting Skawennati’s machinimas (including TimeTravellerTM, She Falls for Ages, and Words Before All Else Part 1) at a workshop titled “On Time Travel” in Toronto. The workshop was one in a series produced by the Shattered Moon Alliance, and created from the impetus of wanting to explore science fiction worldbuilding from the perspectives of women of colour. You can find my blog post about it here.
 |
|
Ready to present at “On Time Travel”! Definitely one of the
coolest workshops that I’ve ever attended.
|
During that weekend, and all throughout my time here with
IIF, I have been able to further substantiate the need to move away from
simplistic narratives of the “digital divide,” and see first-hand how
Indigenous peoples can be positioned as creators, not just consumers, of
digital technology and new media. I have picked up on new vocabulary and
conceptual ways of thinking, like how Indigenous peoples can hack the “source
code” of different technologies in both a literal sense, and figurative one -
by challenging the underlying worldviews that have influenced dominant
technological development narratives. What makes IIF’s approach truly unique is
the way that they create opportunities for Indigenous peoples to focus on their
“wants,” and not only their “needs” when it comes to their futures, carving out
space for whole new dimensions of imagination and potential. Through
technological empowerment, IIF ensures that Indigenous peoples can all at once
draw from the past and reclaim future imagery that has been denied through
colonial narratives that suggest an inevitably in assimilation. The irony in
this colonial logic, of course, is that Settlers would have never had a future
had it not been for Indigenous peoples and their knowledge. This fact has
become that even more relevant during this year because of the anniversary
celebrations of Montreal 375 and Canada 150. It is more clear to me than ever
that these events should not be viewed as celebrations of progress, but a
recognition of the interconnectedness of the past, present, and future.
On a personal note, being back in Montreal after graduating
from McGill two years ago is a constant flux between feelings of familiarity
and strangeness. Strangeness, especially, because I am now working at
Concordia, and living on the opposite side of campus. But these past six weeks
with IIF have made the return so worthwhile, and truly exceeded any of my
expectations. This is, above all, due to the high expectations set out by Jason
and Skawennati. The team and the subsequent environment that they have curated
is entirely conducive to respect, innovation, and fun. I can honestly say that
I am learning something new every day that I am here, and I look forward to
soaking up as much as I can during this last month of my placement.
