Northern land Guardians learn to turn passion to stories at ‘first of its kind’ retreat in Yellowknife

Northern land Guardians learn to turn passion to stories at ‘first of its kind’ retreat in Yellowknife

‘More than just data and reports, you've got to have the spirit in it too’

Northern Indigenous Guardians gathered in Yellowknife this week to learn about turning their love for the land and water into stories.

Guardians are part of an Indigenous-led conservation network that acts as on-the-ground experts to advance the protection and management of traditional lands and water. The program is funded by a combination of federal, territorial, provincial and Indigenous governments as well as private donors.

Eight participants from the program travelled from across the N.W.T., Yukon and B.C. to Yellowknife for a five-day retreat.

The Northern Indigenous Stewardship Circle, an organization that helps facilitate information-sharing amongst environmental stewardship programs across Northern Canada, says the retreat is the first of its kind.

Participants discussed how storytelling can advance their work by sharing their passions with the public and accessing funding opportunities through media relations and proposal writing.

Kyanna Lennie-Dolphus travelled from Tulı́t'a to attend the retreat.

She is involved with the Guardians program through the Sahtu Renewable Resources Board. She now works closely with researchers, elders and other members of her community in gathering data to protect the land and water. She said her interest in protecting the environment began when she was young, spending time on the land at her grandfather’s cabin.

“Being a Guardian in general is just about protecting our Indigenous sovereignty in a way,” she said. “We are the eyes and ears and boots on the ground.”

Lennie-Dolphus explained what she sees coming out of the gathering, “I think this workshop is really about the whole transition from just being field work boots on the ground people and putting them in these positions to help them thrive.”

Amos Scott, a filmmaker and the project director for the Stewardship Circle, was the lead facilitator for the retreat. He said part of the goal is to help Guardians communicate their love for the land and water and expand it to others.

“What we're trying to help the Guardians with in this workshop is the story telling aspect of the work that they do and how important that story is in terms of the environment, the land, the animals, the things that we care for as Indigenous people,” he said.

Shirley Coumont, is a Guardian with the North Slave Métis Alliance, said the aim for Guardians coming out of the retreat is to move beyond observation and data collection and bring the emotional aspect of story telling into their work.

“It’s more than just data and reports, you've got to have the spirit in it too.”

A spokesperson with the Northern Indigenous Stewardship Circle said that they hope to deliver more training like this in the future.

Niles Niemuth has more than a decade of experience in digital news. He has reported and edited stories covering politics, public affairs, labour and community issues in Canada and the United States. He holds a master's degree in history from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. You can reach him at niles.niemuth@cbc.ca.