Evidence of meeting #47 for Indigenous and Northern Affairs in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was nunavut.
A video is available from Parliament.
5 p.m.
Liberal
Patrick Weiler Liberal West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC
Thank you.
You mentioned a couple of the challenges there. Noting that it may still be premature to ultimately assess this, I was wondering if you could speak a bit to some aspects of the implementation of the act that have been successful thus far and what guidance you might have for this committee as we begin or launch the parliamentary review this fall.
5 p.m.
Director, Indigenous Education and Affairs, Capilano University, As an Individual
Multi-year funding is one of the most significant pieces that has happened. The fact that people aren't having to renew their applications consistently is so helpful.
There's a mixed piece around regional entities that are doing funding distribution. It's very important that this remain, but also, in considerations for when people are having challenges doing funding applications through their regional entities, is there a backup space? Can they also apply via the federal funding? It's a very complex issue.
Sometimes questions of dialectal politics can come into play with that. Looking at dialects is really important, because they can get lost in the mix, but when you look at it from a linguistic perspective, you see that they can triangulate languages when some languages are about to become dormant. Those dialects are key to maintaining languages that are in critical states.
All of these things are quite complicated, and the more fluidity and pathways we have, the better.
5 p.m.
Liberal
Patrick Weiler Liberal West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC
That's great. Thank you very much for that.
I'd like to ask Ms. Alphonse my next question.
You spoke a bit in your opening about some of the good practices you've seen in New Zealand with the Maori. I was wondering if you could share those with this committee and how that might inform us in the review of this act and in assessing the effect of the act to date as well.
5 p.m.
BC Regional Innovation Chair for Aboriginal Early Childhood Development, Vancouver Island University, As an Individual
Thank you for the question.
For early childhood, children under the age of six can learn over a hundred languages. The Maori developed a full immersion in the Maori language within each of their communities, and they were able to revitalize it very quickly.
Many have adapted, and I've seen the different changes that have happened. I went to New Zealand to see their early childhood programs, and there is this strength. There is this strength within their community, and they keep branching the mentorship from the elders. Like what Melanie....
I keep going to your first name, Melanie. I'm sorry.
Melanie speaks to the elders, the eldership, the people who are the key knowledge holders of the language. Then it goes to the aunties and the uncles and branches more into that family collective space of learning. These language nests are all supported with curriculum. All the educators are supported when they're learning how to become an educator. They're fully immersed in the language as well.
That's really the success. It's a hub of support of language that's within the educational system. That's what I'm saying.
5:05 p.m.
Liberal
Patrick Weiler Liberal West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC
Thank you very much.
This was mentioned earlier by Ms. Huron. On a number of languages, I think the wording we used was that there is a “precariousness of the vitality of [the] languages”. I've certainly seen that, unfortunately, in my riding, with one of the nations, the shíshálh Nation, where some of the language is already in the process of disappearing at the moment. It's really the dedicated work of some members of the nation that has been revitalizing that language.
In the context of the implementation of programming, what advice, Ms. Alphonse, would you have on how we can ensure that resources are allocated for those languages that are most at risk of becoming dormant or of disappearing?
5:05 p.m.
BC Regional Innovation Chair for Aboriginal Early Childhood Development, Vancouver Island University, As an Individual
That was one of my talking points. In looking at the stats and looking at the indigenous act, I can see there is a variation in where funding is allocated. I recognize what you're saying about the Sechelt language and having the ability to access a tracking system of research to know where all these dialects are at with respect to dying out.
If you can find out where those are, that's the target—trying to reach those programs first, to revitalize their languages. That's what I would recommend.
5:05 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Marc Garneau
Thank you, Mr. Weiler.
Ms. Bérubé, you have the floor for six minutes.
5:05 p.m.
Bloc
Sylvie Bérubé Bloc Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I would like to hear more about the research. If you look at the current programs that help fund indigenous language revitalization initiatives, they mostly focus on education. Of course, you all mentioned it, and it's important.
Aren't there gaps in federal funding when it comes to research? Some communities would like to restore their language, but they are unable to do so owing to a lack of academic research or archives.
Witnesses here today have also spoken of barriers to language research.
My question is for you, Ms. Alphonse, Ms. Huron and Ms. Brice. Would you have any recommendations for bridging the gaps and breaking down these barriers?
5:05 p.m.
BC Regional Innovation Chair for Aboriginal Early Childhood Development, Vancouver Island University, As an Individual
Thank you for the question.
I would love to see more SSHRC or CIHR funds dedicated to revitalizing language, as determined within each of the communities. There would be a shared responsibility of funding allocated not only for the university but for the communities to be able to hold a space to develop programs, curriculum or technology to increase the number of language speakers.
5:05 p.m.
Director, Indigenous Education and Affairs, Capilano University, As an Individual
There are a few things here.
I agree that we need to have dedicated educational funding. Also, when we look at what's happening with WIPO right now, with intellectual property and the ownership of languages, we see this is a significant challenge.
Because linguists have done the data, technically they have ownership over language that they've collected, particularly historically, so we do have very sensitive archival information that is the possession of linguists. There are numerous cases of this data and these languages being willed to institutions or to other linguists, and there is no access point for the nations.
Many times at SSHRC and other funding areas, the publications go into.... It's less so now with research ethics, but there's still a wall that exists for accessing research findings when you go to pull documents. You have to be a student or a faculty member. We really need to work on access by our nations to the work that has been done, to the results, and ensure usable data has been created for them to work with. This has to be a collaboration, not just institutions creating a wall around the information they have harvested from our peoples.
5:05 p.m.
Associate Professor and Gabriel Dumont Research Chair in Michif/Métis Education, University of Regina, As an Individual
I definitely agree with the other panellists in terms of where the funding is directed as well as in terms of knowledge ownership to not only ensure that the communities own that knowledge but that it is also shared with them.
Lots of times western ways of knowing are greatly influencing how language learning and language teaching are taken up within the classroom. We already know through research that there are very effective practices that are based on indigenous language transmission initiatives. How can we get that information to our communities so that they are putting together programs that are already using effective practices?
As I also mentioned in my opening remarks, how are we compensating those fluent language speakers for their time and knowledge? That is a huge consideration that definitely impacts research. I have had many fluent speakers who are very interested in helping out, but when it comes to providing them with an honorarium, because they are on a guaranteed income supplement they are not in a position to help, because the honorarium impacts their income negatively.
There are things that need to be put in place to protect the knowledge as well as the time and experience that those elders and fluent speakers are bringing.
5:10 p.m.
Bloc
Sylvie Bérubé Bloc Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou, QC
Tell me about the importance of elders in transmitting the language to new generations.
We often talk about stakeholders, but what can elders do to ensure better transmission?
5:10 p.m.
Liberal
5:10 p.m.
Bloc
5:10 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Marc Garneau
Okay.
We have about a minute, but on the role of elders, we'll go in the same order and begin with Madame Alphonse.
5:10 p.m.
BC Regional Innovation Chair for Aboriginal Early Childhood Development, Vancouver Island University, As an Individual
In our community we're losing the elders, so a lot of them are recording the language. Thiyaas—Florence James, from Penelakut—is trying to create content through little YouTubes and document as much as she can, because we're losing a lot of our elders in our community. That's the one thing I am really concerned about—the elders we're losing and being able to hold on to the significant link to the words that we may not know.
It would be recording them, like the late Ruby Peter on the Simon Fraser University website, but it's very limited to community.
5:10 p.m.
Director, Indigenous Education and Affairs, Capilano University, As an Individual
The input of elders is paramount in this entire project.
Without them we can do nothing. They also hold that knowledge. From working with the elders, I know they are the ones who can really intuitively know how we can create new words to meet these modern times, based on their innate knowledge of how the language functions. They also hold the scientific and historic knowledge of our languages, the specialization that makes languages unique.
Mahsi.
5:10 p.m.
Associate Professor and Gabriel Dumont Research Chair in Michif/Métis Education, University of Regina, As an Individual
Again, I agree with the other panellists.
To echo my earlier comments, we have so very few elders. This ties into the comments from Ms. Huron—it might be Dr. Huron, so I apologize—about having access and not only having the elders in communities but also, as Danielle mentioned, banking as much of that language as possible.
5:10 p.m.
Liberal
5:10 p.m.
NDP
Lori Idlout NDP Nunavut, NU
[Member spoke in Inuktitut, interpreted as follows:]
Thank you, everyone. It is so good to hear everything that is being said today. As a member of Parliament for my constituents, I know that a lot of what you have shared here today is recognized by everyone who is indigenous here in Canada. Our language was, well, almost literally beaten out of us. There were people who were forced to speak English and were not allowed to use their mother tongue.
Now, in the act pertaining to indigenous languages, there will be funding allocated for each and every program—I guess indigenous programs—and I have a question for you. We all know that up north our children and our grandchildren are mainly speaking English now. Those of us who lost our own language, who were not permitted to use our own language, were full of anger. We were hurt. We were harmed.
Can someone—Miranda, or maybe Danielle—respond to my question? Do you see the importance of healing as a way to begin revitalizing our indigenous languages?