Social media is important for business. Just ask Ihob. But, it can also be a great tool for creating a just and sustainable world by visualizing it through the eyes of indigenous people. To celebrate National Indigenous History Month (ahem, in Canada), I include two examples of social media working to spread awareness of indigenous peoples and land, in ways that our history classes may not have done for us.
Increasing awareness of native lands, website native-land.ca allows users to explore the United States map with colorful and interactive indigenous tribe borders rather than rigid state lines. Clicking on an area brings up links of the tribes believed to have lived there, and the tribal nation's website. This map is a collaborative effort that, yes, depends on oral histories and sometimes unreliable sources. Context is also important to note, as these lines would change over time as tribes grew, conjoined, and disbanded. But, this is an exceptional learning tool and starting place for many people (myself included) who may not have much knowledge of which tribes lived in the places they now call home.
Len Necefer, an avid mountain climber and member of the Navajo Nation noticed that the places he loved to visit didn't include much information about their indigenous history. So, he decided to do something about it by geotagging more than 40 mountains with their indigenous names. Now you can post a picture of your summit of Longs Peak on Instagram and tag it's original name, Neníisótoyóú’u.
“NativesOutdoors, "[Our organization is] actively working toward having the original indigenous place names of Colorado be recognized & included in the signage and publicly available descriptions of these places online.
When we are reminded that these places have been stewarded and managed successfully for thousands of years before us, we are given hope that we will be able to carry on this promise for generations to come.”
These are just two examples of how social media can help to foster knowledge and create sustainability in our digital world. Do you know of any organizations or projects looking to highlight Native history?
Read more about Natives Outdoors geotagging project at http://www.yesmagazine.org/issues/affordable-housing/posting-your-hike-on-instagram-now-you-can-tag-your-locations-indigenous-name-20180523 . All photos are from Native Outdoors beautiful Instagram account.