TL;DR
Featuring Creation Grantees responses from James, Nadya, Mohamed and Tracie of The Métis Harvesting Collective.
Details
To highlight the work Creation Grantees are doing in their communities, the Creation Community Grants Team sends out Q&A forms so they can share their experiences creating and carrying out their projects. Today we are featuring responses from James Lavallée (respondent), Nadya Crossman-Serb, Mohamed Crossman-Serb and Tracie Léost from Métis Harvesting Collective – Métis Fish Harvesting Camp.
Community: Winnipeg, St. Laurent
Grant Type: Youth Empowerment Stream March 2023
Q : Tell us about your group and project!
A : Our team initiated a transformative project, organizing a 3-day fish camp for urban Métis youth from Winnipeg in the Métis community of St. Laurent. The camp aimed to connect youth with traditional harvesting skills, fostering a sense of community and cultural empowerment. Beyond the camp, the success led to the establishment of the Métis Harvesting Collective, providing a safe space for Red River Métis youth to further explore their culture through experiential learning in trapping and fishing camps. The Creation grant played a crucial role in making this project possible, enabling us to extend our impact and strengthen connections within the community.
“The formation of the Métis Harvesting Collective has provided a continuous platform for cultural exploration and community building, ensuring a positive and empowering impact on Red River Métis youth.”
Q : As the youth running the project, what impact do you hope it will have?
A : As the youth spearheading this initiative, our primary goal was to empower urban Métis youth with traditional harvesting skills and create a sense of community. The fish camp not only achieved this by imparting practical skills in net fishing and fish preparation but also left a lasting impact by fostering profound connections among participants. The formation of the Métis Harvesting Collective has provided a continuous platform for cultural exploration and community building, ensuring a positive and empowering impact on Red River Métis youth.
“The shared experiences of learning, connecting, and practicing traditional harvesting methods created a sense of kinship that goes beyond the practical skills acquired.”
Q: What is something you have learned?
A : Through this project, I learned that creating spaces for Métis youth to connect and learn traditional practices is essential. Flexibility in program planning, anticipating last-minute changes, and allowing others to shape the programming positively contribute to the project’s success.
“It brought a lot of really great people together with an important purpose: Access to harvesting knowledge can be difficult, especially for urban Métis youth like myself. It felt like we were building community and developing skills that will empower us to practice our traditional lifestyles.”
Q: What is your favourite moment from running your project?
A : My favorite moment was witnessing the diverse group of Métis youth coming together during the fish camp. The shared experiences of learning, connecting, and practicing traditional harvesting methods created a sense of kinship that goes beyond the practical skills acquired. The feelings shared of love, care, and vision for the future were remarkable.
“It was one of the most profound experiences connecting with other young Metis people. Learning how to box nets, set nets, pull nets, fillet fish all made the week a success. But connecting with others was the best part.”
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