EXNS 2801 - Indigenous Peoples as Subjects/Objects

Course Description

This course provides foundational lessons about historical scientific relationships between Indigenous communities and colonial science fields in North America. Students will be introduced to key terms, nuances, and concepts to identify what decolonization means and how it can be pursued in science and research today. This class informs learners about impacts on Indigenous nations and non-humans from science practices, how they have taken place, and how to build ethical practices in varying contexts and advance Indigenous governance.

Who Should Take This Course?

Beginner level

Learner Outcomes

Identify the hierarchies implicit in colonial science, learn how science is used for the continuation of settler colonialism and to strengthen the authority of the state, and outline how this differs from relational ways of thinking.
Describe how Indigenous peoples have been victims of genocide based on the United Nations definition from the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
Relate colonization to historical trauma of Indigenous peoples and identify how this connects to public discourse.
Identify the ecological relationships among humans, plants, and space and how restitution, restoration and botanical decolonization can be pursued.
Identify the main bioethical considerations regarding research with Indigenous peoples.
Become familiar with biocolonialism and delve into examples to learn how it has taken place.
Describe the main principles of intercultural justice and consider how they would advance Indigenous governance and revise ethical guidelines.

Course / Module Outline

Science and Colonialism
Indigenous Peoples and Experimentation
Plants and Colonialism
DNA, Race, and Colonialism

Notes

Academic Lead:

Dr. Kim TallBear

Course creators and instructions:

Dr. Jessica Kolopenuk

Recommendations

Textbooks

All material is available online and no textbooks are required.

Record of Completion

Printable certificate; non-credit transcript; digital badge

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CONTACT US

Email nsonline@ualberta.ca with any questions.

Testimonials

"This course opened my eyes to conceptions of science and how it relates to Indigeneity ... it definitely forced me to rethink my relations to genetic information, microbes, and more." - Anonymous

Applies Towards the Following Programs

Indigenous Peoples and Technoscience Series : Courses in the Series