Although a plethora of educational initiatives over the past 30 years were developed with the goal of improving the academic success of Aboriginal students in public schools, there continues to be a significant achievement gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal students in Canada (Battiste, 2000, 2002; Ireland, 2009; St. Denis, 2007, 2010; White & Beavon, 2009). In 2008, the Manitoba Minister of Education attempted to address this gap in part by mandating that faculties of Education across the province restructure teacher education programs to include a compulsory course on Aboriginal perspectives, histories and pedagogies. This mixed methods research explores the perceived impact of the mandate on the student teachers who completed the course entitled, “Teaching Aboriginal Perspectives” at Brandon University Faculty of Education during the 2008 – 2010 academic terms. Donald (2009), St. Denis (2007), and Williams and Tanaka (2007) report that subtle and overt forms of resistance to mandated courses are displayed when students teachers are compelled to study Aboriginal issues as a requirement for teacher certification. As such, this research is conceptually framed using critical race theory (Bell, 1991; Delgado, 1995; & Dunbar, 2008), Indigenous or Aboriginal feminism (Canella & Manuelito, 2008) and Red Pedagogy (Grande, 2004, 2008). The methodology for this research is primarily phenomenological but articulated using Indigenous storywork (Archibald, 2008) and story (Wilson, 2008). The primary data sources include surveys or questionnaires and semi-structured interviews of students within the course, my personal story as an Aboriginal female professor of the course and the stories of new teachers’ experiences embedded throughout the report. The findings are analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequencies, means and percentages) and comparative statistics (chi-squares and t-tests) for quantitative items on the questionnaires, and constant comparative data analysis methods for open-ended questions on the questionnaires and the interview data. Findings show that the student teachers demonstrated growth in FNMI content and knowledge over both years of the study. The findings also indicate an initial resistance to course content which causes angst for both students and the instructor as students engage with contentious issues, the deconstruction of privilege and examples of institutionalized racism within the educational system. Although more positive attitudes regarding FNMI content, worldviews, pedagogies and people developed over the duration of the course, once student teachers move into the school system, their desire to implement their learning are often challenged by racist attitudes and practices, particularly in schools where administrators do not foster FNMI education. The study concludes by suggesting that the mandate and work that has begun in the Aboriginal Perspectives course is important, necessary work, but it must be sustained across the entire educational system and across the career stages of all teachers in order to change the social attitudes that continue to dominate in schools.

Objective : to explore wheeled mobility use by First Nation Elders who live on reserves in Canada. Purpose: to gain an understanding of the importance of Elder cultural participation, the perceptions of the effects of participation on health, how cultural participation has changed since becoming a wheeled mobility user, the barriers to participation, and thoughts on how participation can be improved. Method: A database search of the literature was conducted in an iterative manner from September 2015-June 2017 to locate research related to wheeled mobility. The population of interest was First Nation Elders who live on reserve in Canada. All types of study designs and methods were considered. An interpretive phenomenological study was also conducted in order learn about the lived experiences of First Nation Elder wheeled mobility users in accessing the cultural elements of their communities. Data were collected using a demographic form and a semi-structured interview. Findings: The author did not find any studies on wheeled mobility use by Elders on reserve, or their impacts on cultural participation during the literature review. Several barriers to cultural participation were brought forward during the phenomenological study which included: lack of access to outdoors; lack of transportation; inaccessible paths of travel; lack of access at the events; and feelings of sigma and burden.

This thesis includes two stand-alone articles with the overall purpose of critically exploring experiences related to sport-for-development from the program participants’ perspective on the one hand, and from the practitioners’ perspective on the other. After outlining the research objectives and present a review of literature, theoretical framework, epistemology, methodology, methods, and analysis, the first article focuses on the YLP participants’ experiences with a particular interest on empowerment processes. Specifically, I employed a Critical Youth Empowerment (CYE) framework in relation to youth experiences and larger community involvement with youth programming (Jennings et al., 2006). Photovoice was conducted and supplemented with eleven semi-structured interviews, one focus group and a month-long participant observation. The above-mentioned research was juxtaposed with a second article presenting an autoethnographic account of my own experiences as a practitioner and researcher. My autoethnography mixes theory, methodology, and methods throughout the narrative. My hope was to produce a theoretically rich and reflexive account of the experiences that led me to conceptualize sport-for-development differently. This self-critical piece aims at providing an opportunity for readers to reflect upon and hopefully challenge their own practices, knowledge production, and research orthodoxy.

The exploratory study focused on First Nation students and First Nation education counsellors within Ontario. Using an interpretative approach, the research sought to determine the relevance of the counsellors as a potentially influencing factor in the students’ post-secondary program choices. The ability of First Nation education counsellors to be influential is a consequence of their role since they administer Post-Secondary Student Support Program (PSSSP) funding. A report evaluating the program completed by Indian and Northern Affairs Canada in 2005 found that many First Nation students would not have been able to achieve post-secondary educational levels without PSSSP support. Eight self-selected First Nation Education counsellors and twenty-nine First Nation post-secondary students participated in paper surveys, and five students and one counsellor agreed to complete a follow-up interview. The quantitative and qualitative results revealed differences in the perceptions of the two survey groups as to whether First Nation education counsellors influenced students’ post-secondary program choices. Students perceived themselves to be their greatest influence, while the counsellors felt their influence was greater once students made their program decisions, through encouragement and follow up support. The study raised questions regarding challenges faced by First Nation education counsellors to provide consistent academic, personal and cultural/social supports to their sponsored students. While the study suggested the role of First Nation education counsellors had evolved little from its original financial-administrative role and toward a more rounded offering including interpersonal, academic and cultural supports, in keeping with an educational decolonization process, counsellors face chronic program under funding and are under-staffed. To enhance First Nation students’ academic success, federal and provincial governments and First Nations are encouraged to further support First Nation education counsellors with greater training opportunities (expansion of the Ontario Native Education Counselling Association’s Native Counsellor Training Program), a higher ratio of counsellors to students, and support and promotion of their ability to provide interpersonal and academic counselling. The study challenged First Nation education counsellors to seek more opportunities to maintain consistent engagement with their students, especially with more autonomous or older students. First Nation students were also challenged to seek more from their counsellors than sponsorship.

The exploratory study focused on First Nation students and First Nation education counsellors within Ontario. Using an interpretative approach, the research sought to determine the relevance of the counsellors as a potentially influencing factor in the students’ post-secondary program choices. The ability of First Nation education counsellors to be influential is a consequence of their role since they administer Post-Secondary Student Support Program (PSSSP) funding. A report evaluating the program completed by Indian and Northern Affairs Canada in 2005 found that many First Nation students would not have been able to achieve post-secondary educational levels without PSSSP support. Eight self-selected First Nation Education counsellors and twenty-nine First Nation post-secondary students participated in paper surveys, and five students and one counsellor agreed to complete a follow-up interview. The quantitative and qualitative results revealed differences in the perceptions of the two survey groups as to whether First Nation education counsellors influenced students’ post-secondary program choices. Students perceived themselves to be their greatest influence, while the counsellors felt their influence was greater once students made their program decisions, through encouragement and follow up support. The study raised questions regarding challenges faced by First Nation education counsellors to provide consistent academic, personal and cultural/social supports to their sponsored students. While the study suggested the role of First Nation education counsellors had evolved little from its original financial-administrative role and toward a more rounded offering including interpersonal, academic and cultural supports, in keeping with an educational decolonization process, counsellors face chronic program under funding and are under-staffed. To enhance First Nation students’ academic success, federal and provincial governments and First Nations are encouraged to further support First Nation education counsellors with greater training opportunities (expansion of the Ontario Native Education Counselling Association’s Native Counsellor Training Program), a higher ratio of counsellors to students, and support and promotion of their ability to provide interpersonal and academic counselling. The study challenged First Nation education counsellors to seek more opportunities to maintain consistent engagement with their students, especially with more autonomous or older students. First Nation students were also challenged to seek more from their counsellors than sponsorship.

Wastewater sludge is considered a valuable source of nutrients and energy. Freeze/thaw treatment is an efficient dewatering method for wastewater sludge management in First Nation communities located in cold climate conditions. Natural freeze/thaw is a simple, practical and low cost method, which can effectively dewater sludge. The objective of this research is to evaluate dewatering, nutrient recovery and organics separation of wastewater sludge originating from different wastewater treatment processes using freeze/thaw processing. The results of experiments showed the effectiveness of this method in sludge dewaterability and solubilisation of organics and nutrients. The sludge solid content increased by approximately 10-fold after treatment. It was effective in solubilisation of about 15.2%, 33.5% and 21.5% of total nitrogen, total phosphorus and total chemical oxygen demand to soluble one, respectively for the non-BNR sludge. However, anaerobic digestion of the solid cake post freeze/thaw treatment did not show enhanced methane yield compared with fresh sludge. / February 2017

Kashechewan, a flood-prone remote First Nation in northern Ontario, is the focus of this thesis. It is an exploration into the factors that have contributed to the community’s decline and current state. By looking at how these factors influence built form, the principles, possibilities, and concepts that are latent within it are used to re-establish ways in which the people can view, value, and act upon the land to create lasting change. The discussion has larger implications about how we, as Canadians, live with the land and built forms, and react to one another both as a collective, and as individuals. It is an attempt to dissolve the distinction between ‘aboriginal’ and ‘colonizer’ to open up greater design possibilities. Composed as a series of explorations into the physical and spiritual form of the community, this thesis weaves together three parts of its larger story connected with the thread of narrative poem. Part I opens a discourse that considers the impact of the system and establishment of Aboriginal Reserves on the community. Part II explores the notion of remoteness alongside methods of movement and transportation of people and materials. Part III engages the ephemeral, discussing memory and the meaning of transient moments. Stemming from these streams of exploration, three individual designs are proposed. The first explores flood-resilient architecture as a sensitive response to the river and engages the future expansion of the community beyond the walls of the dike. The second envisions an integration of movement into a centralized community hub. The third lays out an approach to abandoning the site while preserving its sacred spaces. In each case, the design explores built form as a tool for fusing back together the spirit of the land and the narrative of the people. Through the metaphor of flooding as a conversation between the light and the dark, this thesis looks at the history of abuse between aboriginal and colonizer, and the current abuse of substance and soul from which an architectural premise moves forward. The thesis attempts to embrace the complexity and difficulty of designing with such inherent obstacles to overcome by taking inspiration from the simple and sublime beauty of the place and distilling it into built form.

ABSTRACT The objective of this Grounded theory thesis was to apply the Harvard Project on Indian Economic Development’s Nation-Building model as a theoretical framework to examine Muskoday First Nation’s efforts to regain control over their lands and resources within the Treaty framework. Additionally, this model has generated discussion, but has not been tested to any great extent in the Canadian context. Muskoday First Nation was selected as case study because the community was one of the original signatories of the Framework Agreement on First Nations Land Management and had implemented its own Land Code. Additionally, Muskoday is the first community in Saskatchewan to successfully negotiate and implement a Treaty Land Entitlement Claim. The purpose of my thesis research was to determine what internal mechanisms contributed to Muskoday First Nation’s efforts to restore authority of their reserve lands and resources. The findings of the research indicated that Muskoday First Nation has a strong cultural drive for authority over the lands and resources and maintains collective ownership over lands as agreed upon in Treaty.

Growing development pressure in Ontario’s Far North has prompted northern First Nation communities, who have recognized these potential outcomes, to initiate community-based land-use planning. In 2009 the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (OMNR) announced Bill 191, An Act with Respect to Land-Use Planning and Protection in the Far North, to guide the planning process and promote a balance between conservation and development. The way the legislation develops and advances will be a determining factor in the degree of benefit to local communities. This manuscript thesis explores the issues related to land-use planning in Ontario’s Far North, specifically the James Bay lowland region, through two articles. Information collected through participant observation, an extensive multi-disciplinary literature review, interviews with key policy actors and review of transcripts from Standing Committee hearings was combined to inform the development of both articles. The first article explores the landscape to highlight the abiotic, biotic and cultural features of the region. This article provides a scoping exercise to begin to describe features that should contribute to the creation of the community-based land-use plans. The second article critically examines the development of Bill 191 to guide land-use planning through policy, organizational and operational institutional levels from a First Nations perspective. Themes of power, social justice and participation in the planning process are central to the consideration of the emerging planning process. This review reveals a process that, instead of initiating a new relationship between the government of Ontario and First Nations, has contributed to increasingly acrimonious relations between the two. / Thesis (Master, Environmental Studies) -- Queen's University, 2010-10-25 12:37:47.676

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