Eating in the Oil Sands
OPT IDC Lecture: Janelle Marie Baker, "Eating in the Oil Sands"
Eating in the Oil Sands: How Boreal Forest Foods Speak to us
Oxford-Penn-Toronto International Doctoral Cluster (IDC) in Environmental Humanities
Tuesday 28 February 2023, 5 - 6pm GMT | 12 - 1pm EST
Online - register via Eventbrite.
In person: Northrop Frye Centre (VC 102) 91 Charles St West Toronto, ON M5S1K5 Canada
The Boreal Forest in what is now known as subarctic Canada is often overlooked as an abundant food source by settlers, but it continues to be a celebrated source of food and identity for sakawiyiniwak (Northern Bush Cree) communities. This tension is exacerbated by a rapid influx of oil and gas and logging activities in sakawiyiniwak territories. Through my ethnographic research in partnership with Bigstone Cree Nation, I describe how various food plants and animals are symbols of larger cultural and environmental actions on the land. From the view of the most valued food species, this talk will tell the story of sakawiyiniwak stewardship, reciprocity, environmental monitoring, and sovereignty.
Prof. Janelle Marie Baker is Associate Professor of Anthropology at Athabasca University. Her collaborative and community-based research is focused on sakâwiyiniwak (Northern Bush Cree) experiences with wild food contamination in Treaty No. 8 territory, an area of heavy bitumen and forest extraction. The Boreal Forest in what is now known as subarctic Canada is often overlooked as an abundant food source by settlers, but it continues to be a celebrated source of food and identity for sakâwiyiniwak communities. This tension is exacerbated by a rapid influx of oil and gas and logging activities in sakâwiyiniwak territories. Baker’s ethnographic research in partnership with Bigstone Cree Nation considers how various food plants and animals are symbols of larger cultural and environmental actions on the land. From the view of the most valued food species, her lecture will tell the story of sakâwiyiniwak stewardship, reciprocity, environmental monitoring, and sovereignty.
Please follow the links to the readings:
Boreal Plants That Enchant by Janelle Marie Baker ( Department of Anthropology, Athabasca University, Canada)
The fern that makes you fat: access to traditional foods in the Canadian oil sands by Janelle Baker (Alberta, Canada)
