On March 27th, 2023, the Youth Climate Activation Circle joined in learning with Karen Vandenberg, Community Elder for the Dufferin County Cultural Resource Circle, and Skye Vandenberg, Environmental Scientist at the majority Indigenous-Owned Engineering and Environmental Consulting firm Neegan Burnside.

During our time together with Karen and Skye, we learned about the climate crisis from an Indigenous perspective, identifying the relationship between climate change, colonialism, and the climate inequities currently being faced in Indigenous communities across Canada.

Despite these challenges, Indigenous Traditional Knowledge needs to be a key part of climate solutions. Through learnings about the 13 Moons Turtle Calendar and the Seven Grandfathers Teachings, Karen and Skye highlighted how Indigenous Traditional Knowledge and values of reciprocity and relationality can work together with Western science to create pathways for decolonial climate solutions.

Thank you to Karen and Skye for this special presentation. We will carry your wisdom with us as we continue to reflect on our heavy history, our place in it, and how we can be better stewards to the land and to each other.

Further Learning:

Dufferin County Cultural Resource Circle

Indigenous Knowledges and Climate Change

The Seven Grandfathers Teachings