History and the Land

June 17 Story: History and the Land

An indigenous person’s sense of identity, culture, and self is often very closely tied to the land.  Organizations like the Confederacy of Mainland Mi’kmaq (CMM), which exist to help indigenous peoples and nations to gather, generate, and transfer their cultural knowledge, often create programs and experiences which bring their people back to the land.  CMM, a PWRDF partner, has been working for much of the last decade on building and expanding the Mi’kmawey Debert Cultural Centre.

One of the programs that is offered through the cultural centre is a beautiful 4.4km long interpretive trail.  Interpretive signs along the trail tell history of the sites and of the Mi’kmaq people.  This has allowed the Mi’kmawey Debert Elders’ Advisory Council to tell the 11,000 year history of their people in their own words.  The trail, along with other initiatives, is being used to help members of the Mi’kmaq nation to re-discover their history, and to take pride in their vibrant culture.

A $75 donation to PWRDF can help to gather stories from Mi’kmaq elders to produce educational and resource materials for use at the Centre.