CREE WAYS OF KNOWING (NEHIYO ITÂPISINOWIN): Indigenizing University Education

In this Public Lecture, Joseph Naytowhow will present an overview of Cree ways of seeing/ knowing (nehiyo itâpisinowin). These ways challenge the conventional organization of knowledge by discipline in the university curriculum and also the distinction between theory and practice. While rooted in tradition, Cree ways of knowing are not stuck in the past but rather open up vital new avenues for “remembering forward.” The Naytowhow lecture will be of particular interest to those concerned with making indigenous knowledge an integral part of the university curriculum and exploring the far borderlands of interdisciplinarity and intercultural relations.

Joseph Naytowhow will also lead a seminar on “Indigenous Art as Performance,” which draws on his vast experience as a performer, including his recent role as Coyote (mîscakanis) in the stage adaptation of Maria Campbell’s “Little Badger and the Fire Spirit” at Sum Theatre, Saskatoon. 10 a.m. on Thursday, November 3, 2016 in EV 11.705 (Milieux Resource Centre).

Biography
Joseph Naytowhow is a gifted Plains/Woodland Cree (nehiyaw) singer/ songwriter, storyteller, and voice, stage and film actor. He comes from the Sturgeon Lake First Nation Band in Saskatchewan. As a child, Joseph was influenced by his grandfather’s traditional and ceremonial chants as well as the sounds of the fiddle and guitar. Today he is renowned for his unique style of Cree/English storytelling, combined with original contemporary music and traditional First Nations drum and rattle songs. Joseph is the recipient of many awards. He also holds a Bachelor of Education degree from the University of Saskatchewan.

This event is co-sponsored by the Centre for Sensory Studies, the RPLC Transformations in Indigenous Communities team, and the University Research Chair in Computational Media and the Indigenous Future Imaginary.