Public lecture to focus on Canada’s North and the role of oral traditions

November 4, 2016 – Orillia, ON

Lakehead University Acting Chair and Professor of History, Dr. Ron Harpelle, will visit the Orillia campus on Wednesday, November 9 to present a public lecture about the role of oral traditions in the exploitation of natural resources in Canada’s north.

The challenges of development are evident whenever natural resources are being exploited and the Canadian North is a prime example.

“Northern Canada is one of the most important front lines for natural resource exploitation and the people who have lived in these regions for centuries want to ensure that the exploitation of their resources is sustainable and beneficial to their communities,” explains Harpelle. “In dealing with governments and corporations, First Nations, Métis and Inuit people often rely on oral tradition to establish their rights and to understand the environmental, economic, social and cultural impact of the changes taking place around them.”

In this presentation, “Mobilizing Traditional Knowledge: Pushing the limits of Oral Tradition in Canada’s North,” Harpelle looks at two projects that explore some of the limits of traditional knowledge and how those limits can be pushed to mobilize knowledge to benefit individuals, communities and humanity as a whole. The first project involves the repatriation of knowledge through the writings of Sheila Burnford and the art of Susan Ross. The second is a glimpse at the challenge of conveying knowledge to future generations about the Giant Mine, which is one of the most toxic industrial waste sites in Canada.

Dr. Ron Harpelle teaches history at Lakehead’s Thunder Bay campus and his research focuses on issues of immigration, integration, racism, labour and the post-colonial world. He is particularly interested in natural resource development and is a researcher with the Resources, Economy and Society Research Group (RESRG), which is presenting this lecture, with funding by the Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). 

The lecture takes place at 6 pm at Lakehead Orillia’s downtown campus, Heritage Place, 1 Colborne Street W. in room OH 4. Admission is free and everyone is welcome to attend.

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MEDIA:  For more information, please contact Communications Officer, Kathy Hunt, at 705-330-4008 ext. 2014 or kjhunt3@lakeheadu.ca.