​Bruce County Museum introduces new educational tool for exploring Great Lakes watershed

The Bruce County Museum and Cultural Centre and its partners are launching the Biinaagami Giant Floor Map, a new augmented-reality storytelling tool designed to educate people of all ages on the importance of water in the Great Lakes region.

Created by Canadian Geographic, the design of the eight-metre-by-six-metre map is meant to spark curiosity, responsibility, and care for the land and water that sustain the local communities. The experience uses augmented-reality to share Indigenous knowledge and guides users along the path of an Anishinaabe Water Walker — a ceremonial walker who journeys along lakes and rivers to honour water as a living, sacred relative and to call attention to its protection.

Map explorers will hear original languages and place names connected to the water, examine land use along waterways across the region and consider whose land those waters flow through. Users can locate places they know and discover new ones that inspire future exploration.

“Water almost completely surrounds the Saugeen Ojibway Nation territory," says Bluewater District School Board Indigenous advisor Rebecca Chegahno. "Lakes, rivers, and shorelines are a major part of daily life for the people who live here. Water is more than something we use — it is life.

“Water connects people, animals, plants, and the land. It is essential for every form of life. Through the Biinaagami Water Map, students will learn about their relationship with water, which will help all of us to understand how to care for it today, so that future generations will continue to have access to fresh, clean water.”

The launch of the map will be celebrated Wednesday, March 25, at the James Mason Community Centre in Saugeen First Nation. Grades 7 and 8 students from the Bluewater District School Board, Bruce-Grey Catholic District School Board and Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation Board of Education are joining the festivities. Their classes will move through activity stations led by the museum and the Saugeen Ojibway Nation Coastal Waters Monitoring Program.

“At the Coastal Waters Monitoring Program, we assess the health of the nearshore environment by looking at fish communities, water quality, temperature and habitat,” says manager Katrina Keeshig. “However, impacts are not limited to the lake eco-system — many originate far from those habitats, across the landscape. Our activity will have students travel along tributaries and discuss potential impacts from land uses. Students will be empowered to select solutions and through our game, see how their choices impact water quality, the eco-system, and aquatic organisms.”

Students will also learn about turtle lifecycles and teachings within Saukiing Anishinaabekiing, as well as practical ways to support their protection.

“The Biinaagami Map curriculum is an important tool supporting teachers and students to know and understand the importance of water to Indigenous communities,” says Natalka Pucan, Indigenous education consultant at the Bruce-Grey Catholic District School Board. “These lessons support the Grades 7 and 8 history and geography curriculum, allowing teachers to integrate Indigenous perspectives, ways of knowing and doing, into their classrooms. Having opportunities to learn in an interactive setting ensures support for different ways of learning.”

Following the launch, the map will become a bookable resource for teachers within the museum’s on-line education centre at brucemuseum.ca/education-centre.

Later this year, museum staff will work with Saugeen Ojibway Nation Knowledge Keepers, the two local school boards, and the Saugeen Ojibway Nation environment office to create specific territory experiences with content and learning resources that enhance a localized experience.

Funding for this project was made available through Ontario Power Generation (OPG)’s Power for Change Project, supporting the areas and people where OPG operates. The empowerment grant supports reconciliation efforts in the community.