The Journeys to Makah 2010 was an event designed to promote Indigenous cultural knowledge: acknowledging inter-tribal connections, honouring elders, and the combination of physical, spiritual, and mental well-being in all participants. The Makah Tribal Council, along with the Makah Canoe Society, hosted the 2010 Tribal Journeys and invited all participants to Makah Territory in Neah Bay, WA – the furthest northwest tip on the lower 48 United States.
Every tribe and canoe attending the 2010 Tribal Journey presented their own songs and dances, along with their own tribal words of wisdom and stories, including stories about how climate change is affecting them in their everyday lives. Here, Alaskan student Meghann Piscoya describes the reason she participated in the Tribal Journey to Makah.
By Meghann Piscoya
Today I flew all the way over here to Vancouver, Canada from Shishmaref, Alaska. One of the reasons I came on this trip was to get our voices out there about Shishmaref and climate change. How Shishmaref is eroding, has no running water, our dump is too small, and that it is a little island.
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Monthly Archives: August 2010
Janelle’s journal: Tribal Journey to Makah 2010
The Journeys to Makah 2010 was an event designed to promote Indigenous cultural knowledge: acknowledging inter-tribal connections, honouring elders, and the combination of physical, spiritual, and mental well-being in all participants. The Makah Tribal Council, along with the Makah Canoe Society, hosted the 2010 Tribal Journeys and invited all participants to Makah Territory in Neah Bay, WA – the furthest northwest tip on the lower 48 United States.
Every tribe and canoe attending the 2010 Tribal Journey presented their own songs and dances, along with their own tribal words of wisdom and stories, including stories about how climate change is affecting them in their everyday lives. Here, Alaskan student Janelle Pootoogooluk shares her experience of Tribal Journeys to Makah.
By Janelle Pootoogooluk
Tribal Journeys 2010 was so much fun. It was a great experience. I met a whole lot of people I will always remember. I made a lot of good memories, had some good laughs, and faced some fears.
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In pictures: Tribal Journey to Makah 2010
The Journeys to Makah 2010 was an event designed to promote Indigenous cultural knowledge: acknowledging inter-tribal connections, honouring elders, and the combination of physical, spiritual, and mental well-being in all participants. Hundreds of photographs were taken to commemorate this year’s journey – below is a selection of pictorial highlights from the event.
Students on Ice arctic youth expedition diary: Final day
By Zoë Caron
We are nearing the expedition’s end. Our onboard team – or rather, family – begins to collect the pieces and connect the dots between the words and the direct effects of climate change.
Read earlier Students on Ice blog posts.
Lucy Van Oldenbarneveld of CBC Ottawa hosted a five-person “At Issues” panel this evening. I sat alongside, sharing the seats with Canadian Wildlife Service’s Garry Donaldson, arctic biologist Dr. David Gray, geographer Dr. Peter Harrison and Inuit elder David Serkoak. The issue at hand: Polar bear conservation. The audience: 80 inquisitive high school students.
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Students on Ice arctic youth expedition diary: Baffin Island
By Zoë Caron
Two evenings back, I gave an introductory presentation on climate change – the raw basics. The questions from these people are directly hitting the nail on the head, ranging from topics including renewable energy, oil drilling in the high arctic, and climate change impact on the oceans.
Read the other Students on Ice blog posts.
While climate change is a global issue, it first and foremost impacts the Arctic – and every individual on this special expedition is aware of that, whether 11 or 81 years old. It is mentioned daily without doubt, and is in the background or foreground of every location we visit here on Baffin Island and northern Nunavik.
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Students on Ice arctic youth expedition diary: A day for which to be grateful
By Zoë Caron
Clear crisp sky. Unbroken satin ocean. Bare rock island. We glide by quietly in the zodiac, as hundreds of walruses own the shores with their becks and calls.
This is Zoë’s second Students on Ice trip blog post. Read her first reflections on the trip.
Today is ice-free. We are north of 60 and we are clad in t-shirts, windbreakers, and 50 SPF sunscreen. The walruses roll over to expose their deep pink bellies – coloured by their blood rising to the surface of their skin, a sign of the warmest of body temperatures.
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Students on Ice arctic youth expedition diary: Passionate young minds
By Zoë Caron
The 10-year-old country girl in me has wondered for the past year, “Why in the world do I live in Toronto?” The city is vibrant, deep, wondrous – yet it is still a city. And no matter how hard I try to fully embrace that home, my veins still race with dreams of greenery and fresh breezes and a pure sense of stillness. As we sat on shore amidst mist-grazed grass and crumbled rocky slopes hugging our perimeter, overlooking Douglas Bay, that feeling was once-again revived.
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The adventure begins: Students on ice arctic youth expedition 2010
By Zoë Caron
The excitement was palpable in Ottawa’s beautifully restored Museum of Nature. Eighty university and high school students from 5 countries grinned through a “speed dating” session with the 35 authors, artists, elders, media celebrities, polar scientists, educators and researchers accompanying them on an adventure of a lifetime.