Winter is a Time of Sharing & Building Community
By Herman Michell

ìTo educate ourselves and our children, we must start with who we are, with the traditions, the values, and the ways of life that we absorbed as children of the people.î

—Dr. Eber Hampton, Chikasaw, president of Saskatchewan
Indian Federated College (SIFC) in Regina, Saskatchewan

  Winter is a time of sharing for many aboriginal people on Turtle Island. It is a time of deep reflection, dialogue, prayer and planning for the next three metaphoric seasons. Our Elders gently guide our travels into the past and help us remember who we are. They take us back to the first drum, the first heartbeat, and the first songs; the ceremonies and stories that help us remember our connections to the Earth and all our relations. Elders play a critical role in shaping understandings of what is needed to build our communities.
   Winter is a time of coming together. It is a time to sit around and keep the campfires burning as we listen to our kookums and mooshoms. It is a time when stories, knowledge and practices are shared for the survival of our nations. Winter is a time when the seeds are planted within the inner landscapes of our being. It is a time to plan and develop science programs so that a new era of scientists can walk away from tribal and non-tribal colleges and universities with skills they need to take care of the Earth according to the first instructions that were given to our grandmothers and grandfathers.
   Winter is a time when the wolf spirit walks and hunts for food in the great white north. As educators, we see the hunger in our students and strive to feed them what they need so they can walk and continue to hunt for new knowledge and new ways of doing things that go far beyond mainstream science programs. As first peoples, we have so much to share with the rest of humanity. Our understandings of science, nature, Earth, plants, and animals are embedded in the deepest ravines, hills and valleys of our being. It is through reflection, traditional tools and guidance from our Elders that we are able to access this knowledge.
   Winter is a time for community building. Like the red willow trees that are firmly rooted beneath the snow and tundra, we sway with the cold northern wind without breaking. It is by sharing and caring for one another that keeps us resilient. We are still here and we are poised to strengthen our nations by providing a balance of cultural traditions and scientific skills so that our people can take their rightful place in a world of many challenges.
   Tribal and non-tribal colleges and universities have a mission to honor the words of our traditional Elders by offering programs that will assist in improving the quality of life in aboriginal as well as non-aboriginal communities. We are in the business of training and preparing the next generation of leaders in health, medicine, nursing, the environment, conservation, engineering, and other areas of science and technology.

Professor Herman Michell, B.A., M.Ed., is of Cree ancestry from northern Canada. He is the acting department head of science and a lecturer at Saskatchewan Indian Federated College (SIFC) in Regina, Saskatchewan. He is also a Ph.D. candidate in curriculum and instruction with a focus on science and traditional aboriginal knowledge.