Introduction
Land-based learning brings traditional Indigenous ways of knowing and teaching into contemporary Indigenous education programs. The practice touches on many of the issues at the forefront for Indigenous peoples today – a 2019 report from the Samuel Centre for Social Connectedness outlines the numerous ways in which land-based learning fulfills goals set out in UNDRIP, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the TRC’s Calls to Action, and the MMIWG Recommendations. Land-based learning is also associated with positive outcomes when it comes to decolonization, mental and physical well-being, language revitalization, and self-determination for Indigenous peoples.
What is Land-Based Learning?
Speaking broadly, land-based learning can be defined as, “an Indigenized and environmentally-focused approach to education by first recognizing the deep, physical, mental, and spiritual connection to the land that is part of Indigenous cultures.” As its name suggests, land-based learning takes place primarily outdoors, on the land. However, it is important to recognize it as distinct from ‘place-based’ or ‘outdoor education’ programs in Western curricula.
Bringing students outdoors to engage in learning opportunities is an increasingly common practice in school systems in Canada, and has produced positive results for school-aged children across the country. However, unlike place-based/outdoor education programs, land-based learning goes beyond simply replacing the classroom with an outdoor space. Rather, it places a high value on spiritual and cultural connections to land, emphasizes respect and reciprocity, and centers traditional practices and knowledges that are specific to a Nation and the land it is based in. Importance is placed on the intergenerational transfer of knowledge. Family, Elders, and Knowledge Keepers are an integral part of the learning process. As one of the primary objectives of land-based learning is to connect students with traditional knowledge systems, it is not limited to just natural environments in rural settings, but can be engaged with effectively in urban settings as well.
Land-Based Learning and Decolonization
Through federal assimilationist policies and the Indian Residential School system, education has long been a tool of colonization. Scholars highlight how the dispossession of Indigenous land and education have historically been connected in the colonization of Canada.
“If settler colonialism is fundamentally premised on dispossessing Indigenous peoples from their land, one, if not the primary, impact on Indigenous education has been to impede the transmission of knowledge about the forms of governance, ethics and philosophies that arise from relationships on the land.”
-Wildcat et al., 2014
A critical component of decolonization, therefore, is reintegrating land-based learning into Indigenous education, and reviving the social, cultural, and linguistic knowledge that comes with connection to the land.
Mental and Physical Well-Being
Land-based learning programs yield positive outcomes for both physical and mental health. A 2023 Yellowhead Institute Special Report on land-based learning finds that, in Indigenous populations, connection to culture and land are social determinants of health. Fostering those connections, therefore, supports health and well-being. A 2020 study in the Northwest Territories, Yukon, and Nunavut found land-based programs positively increased mental health and wellness outcomes and improved resilience, self-esteem, and cultural pride amongst Indigenous youth. Further, a 2016 study on Indigenous food security found land-based learning programs in the North which focus on foraging, hunting, and preparing wild foods “are useful and effective in contributing to long-term food security for Indigenous communities in the context of changing environmental conditions.”
Language Revitalization
Many Indigenous languages are deeply connected to the land they originated on. As such, land-based learning is an integral part of language revitalization efforts. In a paper presented to the Canadian Commission for UNESCO, the Mi’kmaw connections between language and land are highlighted. Through an exploration of local folklore and geography, the report presents the case that disconnection from the land directly results in disconnection from the language and loss of vocabulary. With language loss comes the disappearance of untranslatable knowledge. As such, land-based learning programs offer promising opportunities to contribute to the revitalization of Indigenous languages and support the transmission of cultural knowledge stored within regional dialects.
Indigenous Self-Determination
Land-based learning is an effective avenue through which to understand, discuss, and teach concepts relating to Indigenous self-determination. A video about land-based education programming in the Northwest Territories highlights how traditional hunting practices can spark conversations and create learning opportunities about Indigenous self-governance and decolonization. The feature describes how educators can bring new dimensions to contemporary issues like decolonial government structures by discussing how they can relate to traditional teachings and hunting practices.
“The amount of stuff you can teach about politics and governance and freedom and self-determination when you get a caribou is quite amazing.”
-Dr. Glen Coulthard, 2021
Conclusion
Land-based learning is based in traditional Indigenous pedagogical methods and creates opportunities for the intergenerational transmission of knowledge, language, and culture. Though the specifics of educational programming will look different from Nation to Nation, land-based learning contributes to decolonization, promotes mental and physical well-being, facilitates language revitalization, and supports Indigenous self-determination.