Aaniin, pals!
This week’s Learning Together is for our artists, scientists, makers, and everyone else who loves seeing a really cool idea come to life!
This week I want to highlight an incredible initiative in New Brunswick called Wabanaki in Motion, a mobile STEAM-learning program designed to bring hands-on learning directly to Indigenous youth in schools and communities.
STEAM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math. This program brings all of these things together in a fully equipped mobile makerspace that travels to communities across New Brunswick.
You can watch the CBC story here:
You can learn more about Wabanaki in Motion here:
What really interested me about this amazing project is that it was designed alongside Indigenous youth.
Youth were invited to imagine what their ideal learning space would look like, including the layout, colour, and themes of the activities offered inside. Their ideas helped shape the mobile unit and the program.
From storytelling to circuitry, the space brings together technology, creativity, culture, and learning in a way that reflect the experiences of the young people it is designed to serve.
Personally, when I am provided with a project at EFry that is intended for our Indigenous clients, residents, and communities, it is important for me to ask whether we are also creating opportunities for Indigenous people to be involved in designing, shaping, and leading those programs. This is especially true as we start creating roles for Indigenous staff within the agency.
By involving youth in the design of the project, it recognizes the value of their ideas, creativity, experiences, and knowledge.
And how cool is this mobile makerspace?!
It brings learning directly into communities and creates opportunities for young people to explore things like technology, engineering, art, and science in a space that was created with them in mind.
This highlights that Indigenous youth are not just the future, but that they are the innovators, artists, creators, leaders, and problem-solvers today.
As always, thanks for taking a moment to learn with me!
