By Neha Sultana

In light of Treaties Recognition Week and Indigenous Education Week in November, this month's ground floor book display features the work of many Indigenous authors. poster promoting land-based learning display at the OISE Library You can find the materials on the New Titles shelf near the OISE Library service desk.

Treaties Recognition Week seeks to honour the significance of Treaties. This is done through learning to support individuals in developing an understanding of Treaty obligations, rights, and relationships, and further nurturing relationships between Indigenous and settler communities. Along a similar vein, Indigenous Education Week at the University of Toronto seeks to celebrate Indigenous communities, cultures, education, identities, and more. The theme for this year is “The Gift of Our Stories.”

From across our Research, Children’s Literature, and Curriculum Resources collections, the curated materials centre Indigenous Land-Based Learning and Treaty Education. This is especially through the lens of various Indigenous community peoples, informed by their unique knowledge systems, histories, as well as practices.

Book cover of Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer Braiding Sweetgrass (305.597 K499B) is written by Robin Wall Kimmerer, a botanist, author, and Professor of the Potawatomi Nation. Published in 2013, Kimmerer bridges scientific analysis with cultural wisdom from elders, family members, and overarching Indigenous histories on the Land, plants, animals, and peoples. In doing so, she drives forward the many lessons that can be learned from plants and animals: sweetgrass, strawberries, algae, etc., as our oldest teachers – a sense of consciousness which can only be obtained following a deep understanding and reciprocation of the earth’s numerous gifts and forms of generosity.

Written by Barren Lands First Nation member, author, and educator Herman Michell, Land-Based Education: Embracing the Rhythms of the Earth from an Indigenous Perspective (371.82997071 M623L) is an education resource that was published in 2018. Cemented in the view of Land-based education as a life-giving force – the land as both a healer and teacher, this text takes to Cree oral histories, experiences, knowledge, and practices. Bridging these Indigenous ways of knowing with various western curriculum orientations, Michell’s writing works to connect Land-based pedagogies to current discussions of climate change. In doing so, this text serves as an impactful, accessible, and practical resource for educators seeking to ground their practice in Indigenous environment-related discourses.

Book cover of A Walk on the Tundra by Rebecca Hainnu and Anna Ziegler, Illustrated by Qin Leng A Walk on the Tundra (JUV FIC H153W) is a children’s literature piece published in 2011 by Inuk author and teacher Rebecca Hainnu. Set in the Arctic summer, the story follows the main character, a child named Inuujaq who travels onto the tundra alongside her grandmother. As her grandmother gathers plants for medicine and teas, Inuujaq learns of the importance and use of various plants such as colourful flowers, mosses, shrubs, and lichens – their significance and nutritional benefits which extends not only to other wildlife such as the caribou and snow buntings, but to Inuit as well.

Book cover of Dakota Talks About Treaties by Kelly Crawford Published in 2017, Dakota Talks About Treaties (CR 323.1197071 C8991D) is a curriculum resource written by Kelly Crawford, a member of M’Chigeeng First Nation and Professor. The text follows the main character, Dakota, as she shares with her classmates the story of a trip she takes to Niagara Falls to attend a celebration for the Treaty of Niagara. Over this trip, Dakota learns of the sacred nature of Treaties, wampum belts, the history of the Treaty of Niagara in particular, and how Treaties function as a living promise between Indigenous peoples and settlers. In this sense, the text depicts how we all – teachers, students, and other people on Turtle Island – are Treaty people. Concluding with recommendations on the ways in which teachers can explain this truth to their students, this text serves as a valuable resource in beginning conversations regarding Indigenous and settler relations in education environments.