Indigenous Perspectives in Biology

BIOL/INDG 1492 – Lee Beavington and Anthony Fernandes

PlantFolk Project

Summary:
Students build a relationship with a specific plant, in a specific place, and engage in storytelling, reflection, and creative response.

Intention
The purpose of the PlantFolk project is to build relationship with a particular place, a particular
plant species, and other ecological interconnections. Through presence, reflection, and
creative process you will follow your curiosity in an inquiry-based learning approach.
Indigenous ways of understanding, including two-eyed seeing, will be guiding principles.
Sharing will occur through storytelling, reflective responses, creativity, and a decolonized
annotated bibliography.

Experiential Outcomes

1. Explore, observe, and build a relationship with a local place in your community.
2. Identify and describe a native plant species, including traditional ecological knowledge.
3. Engage in storytelling to share your experience of understanding.
4. Apply two-eyed seeing and other Indigenous ways of understanding.
5. Generate and answer inquiry-based questions inspired by your experience.
6. Reflect upon your experience through multiple modalities, including creative expression.
7. Create a decolonized annotated bibliography (acknowledging your mentors/teachers on this journey.)

Materials

1. Notebook and pen/pencil
2. Camera (or camera on phone)
3. Plant guides (available on Moodle)

Note: I created this decolonized term project to center Indigenous ways of understanding, local plant wisdom, creative expression, and honouring our mentors. For space reasons only this excerpt is included. Contact lee.beavington@kpu.ca for the full version.