Success Stories
Traditional Use and Cultural Heritage Databank
Region: Prince George region
British Columbia Regional Science & Technology Network Council: Innovation Resource Centre (IRC)
Growing concerns regarding endangered languages and the loss of indigenous culture and knowledge have been voiced throughout BC and across Canada. Younger generations have limited access to the means of learning, applying and maintaining cultural practices to their contemporary lives, while those who retain understandings of these practices are fewer in number than ever before. A First Nations community in northern British Columbia has initiated a joint project with Refined Logic, a data management corporation located in Prince George, to create a “Traditional Use and Cultural Heritage Databank”. The databank will address one of the community’s most pressing concerns: the deterioration of their cultural and linguistic heritage. Refined Logic offers a range of web-based tools for the management of information across multiple users, departments, offices and organizations; some of these services include .NET development, handheld development, internet-related consulting and database development, which has been particularly significant throughout their current collaborative project.
This project brings together traditional knowledge with modern technology to produce a databank that will archive and preserve a wide range of cultural components, from ancient stories to the languages they have been told in for generations, with the objective of preserving language and cultural heritage for future generations. No other project has attempted to use multimedia to capture stories, languages and oral histories; and thus this project will be significant in setting a precedent for other First Nations communities in BC, Canada and worldwide. Refined Logic, supported by the Innovation Resource Centre, has crafted the database to fit the needs of the First Nations community; by using multimedia, project participants are able to avoid barriers created by written histories. There is also greater flexibility in the recording process, which involves numerous interviews with community members, as well as linking histories to locations using GPS, GIS and geocoding software. Perhaps one of the keys to this project is that the medium becomes part of the message, as knowledge is maintained such that it is more accessible to future generations. The development of such a resource encourages First Nations youth to engage in their histories by accessing, contributing to and maintaining the databank; the databank also expands the borders of the community, allowing members who have relocated to access traditional culture and language over greater distances.
Potential applications for the techniques developed by Refined Logic are international in scope, as linguistic challenges are a concern for innumerable indigenous groups around the world. Another topic of concern which may benefit from preservation activities similar to those being carried out in Prince George is the loss of traditional knowledge relating to cultural practices, the environment and traditional medicine. Such projects give current and future generations, of both indigenous and non-indigenous people, access to information and knowledge that would otherwise be limited by both time and space, thus broadening the horizons of learning and knowledge and deepening our understandings of each other.
The “Traditional Use and Cultural Heritage Databank” has significant potential to transform the means of approaching the preservation of indigenous culture and languages. It not only helps maintain BC’s rich indigenous diversity, but can also serve as a stimulus for greater education and awareness both in and about the community. The final product may catalyze further research, books and films, and may generate greater interest in tourism in the area. Significantly, the databank also illustrates the potential value of partnerships between First Nations communities and the science and technology sector in preserving heritage for a changing world.
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