Heritage and Reconciliation with Dr. Kisha Supernant

On this episode, we are exploring the connection between heritage conservation and Reconciliation with Dr. Kisha Supernant.  Guest Bio Dr. Kisha Supernant (Métis/Papaschase/British) is the Director of the Institute of Prairie and Indigenous Archaeology and a Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Alberta. An award-winning teacher, researcher, and writer, her research interests include the relationship between cultural identities, landscapes, and the use of space, Métis archaeology, and heart-centered archaeological practice. Her research with Indigenous communities (including Métis and First Nations) in western Canada explores how archaeologists and communities can build collaborative research relationships and uphold Indigenous rights to cultural heritage. She leads the Exploring Métis Identity Through Archaeology (EMITA), a collaborative research project which takes a relational approach to exploring the material past of Métis communities, including her own family, in western Canada. Recently, she has been increasingly engaged in using technologies to locate and protect unmarked burials around residential schools at the request of Indigenous communities. She has published in peer-reviewed journals on GIS in archaeology, collaborative archaeological practice, Métis archaeology, and indigenous archaeology in the post-TRC era, as well as co-edited two books. She was recently named to Edmonton’s Top 40 under 40 by Avenue Magazine and elected to the Royal Society of Canada's College of New Scholars, Scientists, and Artists. She is also President of the Indigenous Heritage Circle.  Timestamps (00:00) Introduction (02:44) Kisha Supernant's introduction to archaeology (04:11) Practicing Indigenous archaeology (07:59) The Indigenous Heritage Circle (11:06) Ground Penetrating Radar and Unmarked Graves (17:52) The importance of community in archaeology (24:29) Heart-centered archaeology (29:48) UNDRIP and how the heritage sector needs to change (42:01) Making the link between Indigenous heritage and the broader heritage community References and further reading:   Supernant, Kisha, Jane Eva Baxter, Natasha Lyons, and Sonya Atalay. 2020. Archaeologies of the Heart. Cham, Switzerland: Springer. https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-36350-5 "Resources for Indigenous Communities Considering Investigating Unmarked Graves." Canadian Archaeological Association. ⁠https://canadianarchaeology.com/caa/resources-indigenous-communities-considering-investigating-unmarked-graves ⁠ The Indigenous Heritage Circle Website: ⁠https://indigenousheritage.ca/ ⁠ "The Indigenous Archaeologist Tracking Down the Missing Residential Children", New York Times, 2021; https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/30/world/canada/indigenous-archaeologist-graves-school-children.html "Archeologist Kisha Supernant is at the forefront of the search for unmarked graves", The Globe and Mail, 2022; https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-archeologist-kisha-supernant-is-at-the-forefront-of-the-search-for/ "Canada's unmarked graves: How residential schools carried out "cultural genocide" against indigenous children", 60 Minutes with Anderson Cooper, 2022; https://www.cbsnews.com/news/canada-residential-schools-unmarked-graves-indigenous-children-60-minutes-2022-06-05/ "Fighting 'denialists' for the truth about unmarked graves and residential schooling", CBC, 2022; https://www.cbc.ca/news/opinion/opinion-residential-schools-unmarked-graves-denialism-1.6474429