CLIM086 - Indigenous Knowledge and Perspectives of Climate Adaptation

Course Description

This course invites learners into deeper thinking, reflection and content pertaining to Indigenous perspectives in climate adaptation and mitigation. Ultimately, this course provides a space for you to consider how and where Indigenous leadership can not only restore better-practice across social and political landscapes, but also heal relationships with our shared planet for future generations to come.

Course Outline

The course was designed by a team of Indigenous knowledge holders, Indigenous and non-Indigenous subject matter experts, and instructional designers. Throughout the design process, the intention was to craft a self-directed, accessible course that in its structure and its content, to the best of our ability, reflects Indigenous values.

No single course can cover the multiplicity of Indigenous perspectives, knowledge, voices, and cultural practices, so our aspirational goal for those who engage in this course, is that this will serve as a solid foundation from which to do more learning. Learning, of course, is the first step. But learning is only useful when it is translated into practice, and we hope that this course will encourage decolonized approaches to climate adaptation and climate action more generally.

Learner Outcomes

• Identify the Indigenous territories that you live in
• Recognize the complexity of Indigenous cultures in Canada and the historical context that impacts our work today
• Analyze the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action that relate to your work and personal life
• Value learning from the past in order to inform decisions made in the present and future
• Reflect on how learning from the past informs current decisions for future based outcomes
• Determine how Indigenous knowledge regards the concept of interconnectivity and how this practice can inform Land and Climate-based actions
• Develop an understanding of the voices of different Indigenous climate leaders reflect upon the impacts of climate change in their territories
• Relate what Indigenous communities are doing in terms of traditional and non-traditional methods of climate adaptation to your own work
• Explore the multi-generational impact of climate-related decision-making
• Consider the impacts of Indigenous-led research and climate adaptation leadership in response to emergent climate crises
• Examine the impacts of climate change on the social and cultural well-being of Indigenous communities
• Describe the significance of incorporating both Indigenous knowledge and Western science in climate adaptation projects
• Articulate the importance of centring Indigenous knowledge-keepers as experts
• Reflect on the ways that Indigenous knowledge related to climate adaptation may be considered as viable systems of scientific practice
• Appreciate that each individual community has different governance structures and cultural protocols, reflecting subjective knowledge systems from each community and Nation
• Recognize the importance of fully collaborating with communities as equal partners in climate adaptation initiatives
• Determine the importance of collaborative interactions and relationship-based learning opportunities with Indigenous communities
• Describe the practice of Critical Self-Location and be able to determine your own personal location within your current professional practice
• Identify different ways in which you can commit to your own actions of decolonization in your work and personal lives

Applies Towards the Following Certificates

• Climate Adaptation Fundamentals Micro-credential : Core Courses