Location
Piapot First Nation, Treaty 4, Saskatchewan
Students are responsible for their own transportation to and from the field site (Piapot First Nation, Treaty 4, Saskatchewan). Students must pay the additional $2000 field course fees (to be confirmed; non-refundable), which includes meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner), teepee accommodation (shared occupancy), equipment rental, and cultural activities.
Students will be camping on the Piapot First Nation. Teepees, cots, and heaters will be provided. Students are responsible for bringing a sleeping bag and pillow.
Work at the field site will be outside for the majority of the day – rain or shine. The work is not physically taxing, but there is a lot of walking during the day. Students will not have to carry any heavy equipment.
The purpose of this field school is to provide an introduction to the sub-surface equipment and techniques used in identifying and differentiating sub-surface features (example: remains of structures, graves). We believe this is the first field school of its kind in Canada with the mission to train university students alongside First Nation community members and to better understand the full context and effects of the Indian Residential Schools (IRS) on Canada’s First Nations. It is important to note that this field school is not conducting a search for unmarked graves, nor taking place at a former residential school. The field school provides training in search methods and equipment use, building capacity for local engagement in future searches. Local and U.S. experts* in sub-surface technologies will attend and collaborate with the University of Winnipeg Department of Anthropology archaeologists to provide this holistic course. Participants will learn from esteemed community Elders and Knowledge Keepers, visit IRS sites, and be trained by archaeologists in a respectful manner all within the Piapot Nation.
*Experts and affiliations are from the University of Akron, Ohio (Department of Anthropology), S4 Mobile Laboratories, Ohio, and KNT IRS Consulting Ltd (Indigenous owned) located on the Piapot Nation.