This fall, 30 Trent students were guided through traditional Indigenous practices in Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory on Manitoulin Island by community Elders and Knowledge Keepers as they participated in land-based learning camp funded in part by the Government of Canada’s Innovative Work-Integrated Learning Initiative and CEWIL Canada’s iHUB. 

The camp provided opportunities for students to connect with each other and gain a better understanding of themselves. For many, this was also their first interaction with an Indigenous community and land-based learning. 

“We were gifted an opportunity to be a part of something that can change our lives for the better. I believe I grew and evolved both personally and professionally, and I will always be thankful,” says Charlotte Mizzi (Lady Eaton College), one of the participating students.  

In this hands-on experience, students were taught practices such as harvesting and stripping poles for the construction of a traditional tipi, sharing of star knowledge, and language lessons, as well as the creation of birch bark canoe crafts, quill crafting and leather art. Students participated in ceremonies with firekeepers and learned to set gill nets, and how to clean and prepare smoked fish. 

Speaking of the experience, Chloe Devlin ‘21 (Otonabee College), the experiential education coordinator from Careerspace who planned the camp, said: “It was an immense privilege to support students throughout this project and to witness the change in their confidence, their connection to the land, and their understanding of Indigenous ways of being through this opportunity. We hope to share this experience to highlight the importance of land-based experiential learning and the effect it can have on students as they move forward in their lives.” 

Thanks to the funding from CEWIL iHub, a grant-based program that aims to enable and promote curricular work-integrated learning, students were able to attend and participate in the camp without financial barriers.