Saugeen Ojibway Nation (Anishinaabe) Ecological Knowledge

The project takes a “Two-Eyed Seeing” approach to investigate and address the concerns about fish and the water in the Saugeen Ojibway Nation Territory.

Artist: Charmaine Jenner

Membership-based researchers will conduct SON-based Ecological Knowledge interviews with knowledge keepers, including fish harvesters and Elders from the Saugeen Ojibway Nation, regarding lake whitefish and the species’ role within the food web. The interviews will include a mapping component to identify important information such as spawning shoals, key movement corridors, seasonal occurrences, and culturally significant locations.

This knowledge will be analyzed and used to inform other components of the Together With Giigoonyag initiative and ongoing Nation-to-Nation dialogue.

Two-Eyed Seeing

Two-Eyed Seeing was introduced in the early 2000s by Mi'kmaw Elder Albert Marshall, from the Moose Clan of the Mi'kmaw Nation, to describe the process of seeing the strengths of Indigenous ways of knowing through one eye and that of Western ways through the other, using both eyes together to benefit all. It places both ways of knowing on equal footing, while recognizing that each knowledge system has largely different approaches to knowledge acquisition.

The Together With Giigoonyag project uses Two-Eyed Seeing to inform research priorities and explore solutions for the co-managed Saugeen Ojibway Nation lake whitefish fishery, in light of recent declines that are poorly understood.

The painting above was created by Saugeen Ojibway Nation artist, Charmaine Jenner, for the Together With Giigoonyag project. The blended blues and greens represent the relationship between Father Sky and Mother Earth, as well as the land and water. The three faces represent the past, present, and future. The face to the right represents the Anishiinaabe view, the face to the left represents the Euro-Canadian view, and the central face is the marriage of these two views. The coming together of these two cultures is for the benefit of the environment, so we can be good caretakers as the Creator intended us to be. The line across the faces represents sight and clarity, with a shared vision. The seven eagle feathers represent the Seven Grandfather Teachings, which the Creator gifted to our ancestors: Wisdom, Love, Respect, Bravery, Honesty, Humility and Truth. The two eagles represent the guardian to the past and protector of the future. Sweetgrass braids represent body, mind and spirit; they remind us of our connection to our mother, the earth, and the unity of our people. The two fish at the bottom represent the Anishiinaabe concept and western concept. The water between these fish represents the Saugeen River. The sun is rising over our lakes, cradled by the escarpment.

Learn more about the Saugeen Ojibway Nation