Reading the Earth
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Summary

 

 

 

Western science… believed man could force nature to reveal its secrets; the Sioux simply petitioned nature for friendship (Sioux scholar and activist, Vine Deloria, Jr.).

The greatest impediment to knowing and apprehending truth since the European Enlightenment, is science’s delusion of being the only legitimate mode of rigorous and methodical inquiry.

Science has become normalised and synonymous with concepts such as truth and objectivity, yet western scientific method reflects only one knowledge system, which has gained celebrity and prominence not because it is more truthful but because of global power imbalances effected by colonialism.

In conversation with prominent Aboriginal, Māori and Pacific scholars, this discussion begins with the starting point that the validity of Indigenous scientific knowledge comes from hundreds and thousands of years of engaging physically and metaphysically with the earth, cosmos and ocean. Indigenous science is unequivocally spiritual, personal, visionary, pragmatic, rigorous and, consequently, has underpinned millennia of Indigenous prosperity and survivance.

Reading the Earth is presented with The University of Queensland

 

FEATURING

Vicente M. Diaz

Vicente Diaz

Speaker

Vicente Diaz

Prof. Vicente M. Diaz (Pohnpeian) chairs the Dept of American Indian Studies at University of Minnesota, where he also directs the Native Canoe Program. Diaz specializes in Indigenous canoe culture...

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Aileen Moreton-Robinson

Aileen Moreton-Robinson

Speaker

Aileen Moreton-Robinson

Distinguished Professor Aileen Moreton-Robinson is a Goenpul woman from Minjerribah (Stradbroke Island), Quandamooka First Nation (Moreton Bay) in Queensland, Australia. Professor Moreton-Robinson has researched and published in anthologies and journals...

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Rangi Matamua

Rangi Matamua

Speaker

Rangi Matamua

Professor Rangi Matamua, of Tūhoe travels throughout the country giving public lectures about Matariki and Māori Astronomy to a number of eager audiences. He is also a star gazer by...

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Bronwyn Fredericks

Bronwyn Fredericks

Moderator

Bronwyn Fredericks

Professor Bronwyn Fredericks has over 30 years of experience working in and with the tertiary sector, State and Federal Governments, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-based organisations. As Pro-Vice-Chancellor...

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SUPPORTING LEARNING RESOURCES

The One That Didn't Get Away

In this activity, students explore what happens to a beam of light when it passes through transparent materials, and how refraction can affect the appearance of objects.

Contains curriculum links to:
Years 5, 9
Physics, Technology, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Culture

1897 Aboriginal Basket

This little basket was made by a woman in 1897. Her name was Kalmakuta and she was from the Joondoburri people of Bribie Island – Pumicestone Passage area.

Epeli Hau’ofa’s “Our Sea of Islands” Essay in the Contemporary Pacific (1993)
Epeli Hau’ofa’s “Pasts to Remember” Essay in Invitation to Pacific Pasts, Rob Borofksy, ed. (University of Hawaii Press, 2001)
Video clip: “The Birchbark Canoe: Navigating a New World”

Video clip: On Canoe Relationalities

Cost

Free to stream on-demand now

Age Recommendation

Adults

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