Indigenous Ingenuity

AANII, BOOZHOO, BIINDGE!

COME CELEBRATE THE EVER-EVOLVING WORLD OF INDIGENOUS INGENUITY!

indigenous ingenuity

Indigenous peoples from North America have long demonstrated a great sense of ingenuity, using nature as inspiration. The world we know today was in part fashioned by their innovations and approaches to science. Designed around an interactive quest, the exhibition invites visitors to experience the innovative processes that give rise to Indigenous knowledge by:

OBSERVING nature as a source of inspiration
LISTENING to bearers of knowledge
EXPERIMENTING with scientific principles
SHARING acquired knowledge by passing it on to others

This exhibition presents a clever and novel mix of science and culture intended to stir a sense of pride among First Nation, Inuit and Métis communities.

The accompanying exhibit Regalia: Native Pride is a photography exhibit that pays homage to tradition and modernity by featuring photos and testimonials of traditional Indigenous Pow Wow dancers dressed in their beautiful and intricate traditional regalia from eastern Canada.

regalia native pride photography exhibit

MAKING THE LINK BETWEEN ANCESTRAL KNOWLEDGE AND NEW TECHNOLOGIES

NOVEL THEMATIC APPROACH

The Indigenous Ingenuity exhibition stands as a milestone in the presentation of Indigenous culture across the land. It is one of the first times that First People’s ancestral values and knowledge have been broached through the lens of science and innovation. Traditional Indigenous knowledge and techniques are presented alongside modern science, as mutually complementary.

COLLABORATIVE GAMES

Through both technology quest and hands on experiences, visitors will discover the tools and skills required to accomplish tasks such as building an igloo from foam blocks, erect a tipi and recreate an inukshuk.

indigenous ingenuity collaborative games

INTERACTIVE BRACELET

Equipped with an RFID bracelet, visitors set out on a quest to collect 26 Indigenous innovations spread out across the exhibition’s 62 challenges. More specifically, visitor bracelets trigger mechanical, multimedia and hybrid interactive features.

REAL OBJECTS AND PROJECTION, VIRTUAL REALITY, AND INTERACTIVE MURALS

Throughout this original quest, you will discover many interactive hybrids. Visitors are invited to kneel before a horizontal screen for the ulu knife interactive. Their challenge is to scrape a virtual seal skin after choosing among three different tools at their disposal as real 3D objects. Visitors can then test their choice directly on the touch screen.

indigenous ingenuity real objects and projection

DAILY WORKSHOPS

The following workshops are available on a rotating schedule which is subject to change at any time.

KAADEN'GAN – BRAIDING AND TENSILE STRENGTH
Braiding / weaving not only provides cultural teachings within the Anishinaabe pedagogy and giikendaasowin (knowledge) system, but also provided a practical skill that could be used in various applications. From braiding corn in preparation to hang and dry; braiding of hair; braiding of weengush (Sweetgrass) for drying and smudging, to weaving rope to increase its strength; this technique has been perfected into today's modern rope and cable systems. Once you learn how to weave, race the teams around you to see who can achieve a perfect braid the fastest along with whose braid has the highest tensile strength.
POTTERY OF THE HURON-WENDAT
Explore the Huron-Wendats pottery making as a part of a global history that spans around 18,000 years! Try your hand at sculpting and take home your work to bake it!
AAGAM – SNOWSHOES
Come explore our Northern Forest on snowshoes and learn about a technology that spans thousands of years! Did you know that snowshoes have Indigenous innovation behind them? From the ‘Bear-paw’ of the Innu, to the ‘Beaver-tale’ of the cree, come and re-discover the snowshoe at Science North!

indigenous ingenuity daily workshops