Belinda kakiyosēw Daniels is a

nēhiyaw Cree (also known as Cree– Montagnais–Naskapi) is a dialect continuum of Algonquian languages spoken by approximately 117,000 people across Canada, from the Northwest Territories to Alberta to Labrador. If considered one language, it is the ...

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

educator and language activist known for efforts to teach and revitalize

nēhiyawēwin Cree (also known as Cree– Montagnais–Naskapi) is a dialect continuum of Algonquian languages spoken by approximately 117,000 people across Canada, from the Northwest Territories to Alberta to Labrador. If considered one language, it is th ...

Early life and education

Daniels is a member of

Sturgeon Lake First Nation, SK Sturgeon is the common name for the 27 species of fish belonging to the family Acipenseridae. The earliest sturgeon fossils date to the Late Cretaceous, and are descended from other, earlier acipenseriform fish, which date back to the Early ...

and was raised by her grandparents. She grew up hearing nēhiyawēwin Cree spoken but was not encouraged to speak the language. Her grandparents were forced to attend residential schools and didn't want her to experience the same type of punishment and ridicule they had for speaking an Indigenous language. Daniels was inspired to learn nēhiyawēwin Cree while working as an administrative assistance at a high school where others spoke the language. Daniels completed an interdisciplinary PhD at the University of Saskatchewan in 2021. Her thesis ē-kakwē nēhiyaw pimātisiyān ōta nīkihk – The Lifelong Journey Home was supervised by Debbie Pushor.

Career

Daniels teaches at the

University of Victoria The University of Victoria (UVic or Victoria) is a public research university located in the municipalities of Oak Bay and Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. The university traces its roots to Victoria College, the first post-secondary instit ...

in the department of Indigenous education. She previously taught for nine years at Mount Royal Collegiate in

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

, and at two universities, University of Alberta for their CILLDI program known as the Canadian Indigenous Language and Literacy Development Institute and at University of Saskatchewan, the non-credit Languages Department. In 2003 Daniels started a Cree summer camp where attendees came to learn and practice speaking the language. The idea for the camp came out of Daniels' Master of Education Project and out of raising her own family, and half heartedly, the frustration with the absence of a Cree language immersion program in the province. The nēhiyawak Summer Language Program runs in different parts of Saskatchewan each year and by 2017 had expanded to 27 people (11 speakers and 16 participants) from a total of 5 people when the camp first launched. In 2020 she explained why she views the relearning of an Indigenous languages is important to the CBC: "When we reclaim our language, we reclaim who we are and we reinstate that we belong here. So, language is practicing sovereignty." Since, 2017 the summer annual nēhiyawak language experience camp has grown, the numbers of participants are between 25-50, depending on space, and nLE now has a children's camp. nLE now offers online classes and face-to-face programming, like MAP. Master apprentice/mentee program and practice speaking and listening classes.

Awards

* Outstanding Canadian Aboriginal Educator Award (2015) * U of S’s Graduate Aboriginal Research Excellence Award (2015) * Global Teacher Prize - Top 50 Finalist (2016) * Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations’ Strength of Our Women Award in Education (2016) * Lieutenant Governor Heritage Saskatchewan Award for Community Development, Regina. SK (2018) * Nominated for Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations’ Strength of Our Women Award in Language and Culture (2021)

Select publications

* * * * For more about language camps or bringing language in the home see: https://nehiyawak.org

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Daniels, Belinda Cree people University of Saskatchewan alumni Living people Year of birth missing (living people)