Report on Susan and Brian’s participation at SSHRC’s Imagining Canada’s Future knowledge workshop on Leveraging Emerging Technologies for the Benefit of Canadians.
As a result of David Perley’s successful Knowledge Synthesis project entitled “Supporting Indigenous Resurgence with Digital Technologies”, we were invited to attend this SSHRC workshop with other project participants.
The agenda is a good indicator of the presentations and the work taking place on the topic with a lot of “selling” of opinions with a strong industrial / commercial focus without much research. The other Knowledge Synthesis project folks attending the workshop who are involved in research with Indigenous communities and their use of digital technologies include:
KS project title: Ethnoscape: Digital Heritage Access for Language and Culture in First Nations Communities
Lead Investigator: Turin, Mark – University of British Columbia who was represented at the workshop by Rory Housty (Heiltsuk Cultural Education Centre – ) and Gerry Lawson (UBC Museum of Anthropology – )
KS Project Description: Aboriginal languages and cultures are a cornerstone of Canada’s multicultural identity. Challenged by colonial institutions and processes, Indigenous cultures have suffered systemic harm and marginalization. The documentation and revitalization of First Nations, Inuit and Métis languages and cultural knowledge are increasingly cited as priorities in support of well-being in Indigenous communities. Recent research shows that Aboriginal youth suicide rates in Canada drop to zero in communities where at least half of the band members have conversational knowledge of their own Indigenous language.
The recorded cultural heritage knowledge of Aboriginal peoples exists in a vast array of media, both analogue and digital. Textual materials are in writing systems that require custom-made and specialized font solutions in order to be migrated to digital platforms. Digitized and born-digital media represent an infrastructure and resourcing challenge for First Nations, Inuit and Métis organizations that have a mandate to manage and facilitate access to cultural heritage. Yet developing appropriate access points and levels is a complex task for Aboriginal organizations, given varied protocols around cultural ownership and traditional knowledge, and vastly differing levels of digital literacy within and between community users, researchers and policy makers.
This project will describe, explore and synthesize how First Nations cultural heritage organizations are responding to digital opportunities and challenges through a specific focus on the expansion and uptake of emerging technologies cialis generique for collecting, protecting and connecting Indigenous cultures and languages. Through a review of research methodologies and practices in the Heiltsuk First Nation in British Columbia and beyond, this project describes the ‘technoscape’ of access and mobilization of digital information within the ‘ethnoscape’ of Aboriginal communities in Canada.
The knowledge synthesis report will identify gaps in knowledge, promising patterns and solutions and focus on recommendations for knowledge end-users to ensure that the openings and opportunities provided by emerging technologies for cultural documentation and language revitalization can be leveraged to benefit all Canadians, whether rural or urban, Indigenous or non-Indigenous.
KS Project Title: The Design and Development of Digital Return Platforms for Northern Aboriginal Heritage
Lead Investigator: Dawson, Peter C. – University of Calgary –
KS Project Description: The objective of this knowledge synthesis project is to compile information on past and present digital repatriation projects involving indigenous communities in the Canadian Arctic, as well as parts of Alaska, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, and Sweden. The scoping review will provide a means of identifying critical gaps in knowledge surrounding their implementation and use in remote regions such as the Canadian Arctic. Aboriginal groups across the Arctic are increasingly seeking to repatriate and reclaim cultural knowledge and material collections that were gathered from their ancestors as part of earlier colonial endeavors. These collections are generally held in trust by third party institutions, with their wholesale transfer back to source communities usually deemed impractical or impossible due to logistical complications that jeopardize continued storage and preservation. The concept of digital repatriation, or ‘digital return,’ has emerged as a means of re-building relationships between these institutions and source communities through the transfer of knowledge in the form of digital data. While no longer a nascent concept, digital return remains prone to a host of theoretical and practical issues. This is especially the case in Canadian Arctic communities, where internet access is severely limited due to expense and narrow bandwidth. The design and development of digital return platforms also frequently occurs with very little input from the intended users. While collaboration remains a strong theme in their development, digital return projects still struggle to re-establish a sense of ownership in source communities. Finally, the power imbalance of non-source institutions possessing the digital know- how, costly hardware and dedicated funds required to both build and access digital return platforms, often results in their own priorities for the project being given unequal weight. The Arctic is an ideal subject for a scoping review on digital heritage for several reasons. First, the remoteness and geographical separation of Arctic communities creates many technical challenges for designing digital return platforms, and there is a need to examine how these challenges are addressed by existing projects. Second, digital return projects in Arctic communities have tended to operate in silos, with many institutional teams seemingly unaware of the existence and objectives of concurrent projects operating at the grass roots level. Identifying current gaps in knowledge through this synthesis project will ensure that digital technologies are used to their fullest advantage when preserving indigenous heritage in Canada’s north in the decades to come.
KS Project Title: The Digital Gap: Access, Innovation, and Impact in Aboriginal Communities
Lead Investigator: DeCoito, Isha –Western University –
KS Project Description: Improving digital literacy underpins not only a nation’s capacity to provide individuals and groups with equity of access to social opportunity; it is a necessity for participation in the digital economy. As such, education must change. A shift must occur from the traditional view of educational practice to a transformative view which embraces learning as a social process, with students and teachers working in partnership and supported by digital technologies. This shift will challenge Aboriginal communities, specifically those where teachers potentially lack training and access to digital technology resources. Despite the fact that using digital technologies as part of the educational environment fits into the philosophy of active learning and constructivism, it poses a tremendous obstacle for teaching and learning in Aboriginal communities that may not have access or experience a digital divide. In spite of SSHRC’s database showcasing a number of digital literacy projects, no single or comprehensive overview has been conducted that takes into account the percentage of these projects, as well as other projects not funded by SSHRC that focus on Aboriginal learning and ways of knowing, including cultural influences, and the nature and impact of the projects on teaching/learning outcomes in K-12. Recognizing an opportunity to learn from these digital literacy initiatives, this application seeks to undertake a comprehensive knowledge synthesis of digital literacy projects focusing on Aboriginal culture and their impact on teaching and learning in K-12 education across Canada, with the intention to identify existing gaps/barriers in the current approaches in terms of facilitating learning as a social and cultural process. This knowledge synthesis will provide a national overview of digital literacy projects in Aboriginal communities, including successes, criteria for effective programs, how these successes can be applied to other digital literacy initiatives, and what can be learned from the failures. Finally, this knowledge synthesis will provide insights into the efficacy of digital technology projects and their potential to develop digital literacy and confidence in Aboriginal youth to attain educational goals and participate in a diverse workforce to assist Canada in becoming a global leader in innovation.
SOCIAL SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES RESEARCH COUNCIL OF CANADA
IMAGINING CANADA’S FUTURE
LEVERAGING EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES FOR THE BENEFIT OF CANADIANS
Canada Aviation and Space Museum 11 Aviation Parkway, Ottawa
May 19, 2016 – 9:00 am to 4:30 pm
Workshop Objectives:
- Convene academic, government, industry, and not-for-profit organization leaders to share insights on the critical societal impacts and opportunities related to emerging and game-changing technologies in Canada.
- Discuss emerging trends and knowledge gaps as well as practical and policy alignment and implications of knowledge synthesis projects.
- Lay groundwork for knowledge mobilization activities.
AGENDA
8:15am – meet at SSHRC building for bus ride to Aviation and Space Museum
9:00-9:20am – REGISTRATION (and continental breakfast)
9:20-10:05am – WELCOME AND OVERVIEW
- Ursula Gobel, Associate Vice-President, Future Challenges, SSHRC
- Alex Benay, President and CEO, Canadian Science and Technology Museum Corporation
10:05-10:30am – KEYNOTE ADDRESS: EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES: PERSPECTIVES ON INNOVATION IN CANADA – Patrick Horgan, Vice-President, Manufacturing, Development and Operations, IBM Canada
10:30-11:15am – NETWORKING BREAK
11:15-12:00am TRANSFORMATIVE AND ENABLING EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES – Moderator: Namir Anani, President, Information and Communications Technology Council
PANEL PRESENTATIONS
- Willa Black, Vice-President, Corporate Affairs, CISCO
- Deborah Fels, Professor and Director, Inclusive Media and Design Centre, Ted Rogers School of Information Technology Management, Ryerson University
- Susanne Lajoie, Professor and Canada Research Chair in Advanced Technologies for Learning in Authentic Settings, Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University
OPEN DISCUSSION – Panel presentations will be followed by an open discussion on topics of emerging technologies in research and education, the revitalization of indigenous languages and cultural heritage, and access, adoption and empowerment of diverse communities in Canada.
12:00-1:15pm – LUNCH AND MUSEUM VISIT
1:15-2:00pm – RISKS AND OPPORTUNITIES: NAVIGATING GAME-CHANGING TECHNOLOGIES AND INNOVATIONS – Moderator: Brent Herbert-Copley, Executive Vice-President, SSHRC
PANEL PRESENTATIONS
- Carl Caron, Executive Advisor to the VP Emerging Technologies, National Infrastructure and Future Technologies and Duncan Stewart, General Manager, Security and Disruptive Technologies, National Research Council Canada
- Don Lenihan, Senior Associate, Policy and Engagement, Canada 2020
- Mia Consalvo, Professor and Canada Research Chair in Game Studies & Design, Communication Studies, Concordia University
2:00-2:45pm – OPEN DISCUSSION – Panel presentations will be followed by an open discussion on topics of governance, privacy and security, the development and use of big data, and the societal impacts of game-changing approaches to innovation.
2:45–3:15 pm – NETWORKING BREAK
3:15–3:30pm – PARTNERSHIPS: ENABLING THE INNOVATION ECONOMY – Robert Luke, Vice-President of Research and Innovation, George Brown College
3:30–4:15pm – KNOWLEDGE MOBILIZATION IN ACTION – Opportunity for participants to interact with the SSHRC grant-holders on their knowledge synthesis at five thematic round tables:
- emerging technology in research and education
- revitalization of indigenous languages and cultural heritage
- access, adoption and empowerment of diverse communities
- governance, privacy, security and the rise of big data
- societal impacts of game-changing approaches to innovation
4:15-4:25pm – ADVANCING KNOWLEDGE FOR CANADA’S FUTURE – Ted Hewitt, President, SSHRC
4:30-4:45pm – WRAP-UP AND EVALUATION – Ursula Gobel, Associate Vice-President, Future Challenges, SSHRC
ADJOURNMENT
GRANT ADMINISTRATION Q&A (for knowledge synthesis grantees only)