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Press Release

Carleton University and partners receive funding to create new Aboriginal video games

(Ottawa) – The Department of Canadian Heritage has provided $375,000 to Carleton University and other partners to fund the next phase of a research project On the Path of the Elders that seeks to strengthen the identity and self-respect of Aboriginal youth.

The additional partners are technical consultant BlackCherry Digital Media, Our Incredible World (formerly Pinegrove Productions) and the Aboriginal group Neh Naak Ko.

The money will be used to incorporate new material in a website that contains, among other things, role-playing video games.

“This format is a wonderful way to foster the development of leadership skills and positive self-identity in Aboriginal youths to help prepare them to take a role in the real communities in which they live,” says Dr. Elaine Keillor, distinguished research professor emerita and principal research investigator from Carleton University. Other Carleton researchers involved in the project are Professors John Medicine Horse Kelly and Marie-Odile Junker.

The original video game was developed through a grant from the Inukshuk Fund and Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. Youths can explore the world, consult with community elders and gain first-hand experience of the consequences of their decisions concerning the history of Treaty Nine that was signed in 1905 by the Mushkegowuk Cree and Anishinaabe of Northwestern and Northeastern Ontario.

The new grant will allow three additional segments of the interactive web game to be developed, including ones that focus on researching the value of their land, moose hunting and police investigation. These are already in progress.

“Ultimately, the goal of the game is for players to complete six game segments and
obtain the six key building blocks that make up a self-governance model for Aboriginal people,” says John Seck, President of BlackCherry Digital Media.

The grant from the Department of Canadian Heritage will also fund:

    * Audio clips of historic audio recordings of Cree narratives;
    * Video clips of interviews with elders;
    * Photo gallery of 300 archival photographs from the Deschatelets collection in the archives of Saint Paul University;
    * Educational kits with a key focus on grades 4 to 10;
    * Step-by-step lesson plans for teachers, including student activity sheets and opportunities for community involvement.

Other participants in the project include Stan Louttit, James Bay Treaty 9 consultant and Wendy Campbell, education consultant and curriculum developer.

The Department of Canadian Heritage has funded various projects at Carleton that are now part of the university’s Centre for Indigenous Research, Culture, Language and Education (CIRCLE). Two of these projects include Native Drums http://www.nativedrums.ca and its sequel Native Dance http://www.nativedance.ca with technical partner The Sumner Group. Each of these websites contains a wide array of photos, videos and essays plus educational kits designed to be used in elementary and secondary schools in Canada.

Other important linguistic research initiatives with Aboriginal languages, specifically East Cree and Innu, have been supervised by Dr. Junker. Dr. Keillor, one of the co-directors of the centre, initiated the first course on First Peoples music of Canada at a post-secondary institution. CIRCLE facilitates the research and delivery of linguistic and cultural materials of the First Peoples of North America as well as all Canadians. A special focus is on cultural expressions linked with music and language, both for Aboriginal Canadians and other indigenous people.

The website for On The Path of the Elders can be found at http://www.pathoftheelders.com.

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For more information:
Lin Moody
Media Relations
Carleton University
613-520-2600, ext. 8705

This is the story of the Mushkegowuk and Anishinaabe Peoples of North-Eastern and North-Western Ontario, Canada and the signing of Treaty No. Nine (James Bay Treaty) in the indigenous territory known as Nishnawbe Aski Nation (People’s Land). Our goal is to provide you with an understanding of the historical times in which Mushkegowuk and Anishinaabe peoples signed Treaty No. Nine, and how this treaty has impacted the lives of our people.

We are very committed to documenting Elder knowledge that is slipping away in so many communities across Canada. Elder and traditional knowledge is a key resource that has been used to create the content for ‘On the Path of the Elders'.

Take your time now and explore the site. Jump right in and play the game, watch a video, view some photos or listen to a story. Read the essay. It contains a great deal of important, cultural information that will give you a firm understanding of the Mushkegowuk and Anishinaabe Peoples. Our hope is that this site enriches your life and you come to appreciate, more deeply, the history and culture of our people.

Walk with us, on the Path of the Elders