Unprecedented Partnerships and Systems Change Practices set to Transform Informal STEM Education in Canada
The Canadian Association of Science Centres (CASC) is thrilled to announce the launch of the Niigani Miinigowiziiwin (We Give These Gifts to the Future) Accelerator Program. This transformative, collective learning journey is created to help CASC members strengthen relationships with local Indigenous communities, and to weave Indigenous wisdom into their operations, outreach and education initiatives.
This first-of-its-kind program is designed and facilitated by world-renowned Indigenous Systems Scholar Dr. Melanie Goodchild, Vice President of Indigenous Knowledge, Scholarship and Research, and Senior Fellow of the Indigenous Knowledge Systems Lab at Shingwauk Kinoomaage Gamig, in partnership with the globally-recognized Presencing Institute and systems change leaders at Wolf Willow Institute.
“The Niigani Miinigowiziiwin Accelerator Program invites us into a deeper way of learning together that honours our relationships with land, community, and knowledge itself. By weaving Indigenous Knowledge Systems with systems thinking practices, this journey creates space for transformation that goes beyond inclusion to true reciprocity and shared understanding. I am honoured to support CASC members as they walk this path of connection, respect and collective learning,” says Dr. Melanie Goodchild.
The program is designed to help teams connect to the shared purpose of decolonizing STEM learning, clarify their intentions of weaving Indigenous knowledge into their work, and see and sense themselves as a part of the broader STEM education system. Drawing from various learning methods including asynchronous learning, embodied and in-person practices, and ceremony, the accelerator program aims to foster a deeper quality of relationship amongst all involved, and build strong relationships across the ecosystems of each individual organization, the CASC network, and the STEM education sector across Canada.
“The Niigani Miinigowiziiwin Accelerator Program represents an unprecedented opportunity for CASC members to deepen their relationships with local Indigenous communities and meaningfully integrate Indigenous Knowledge Systems into their work. By supporting collaborative learning, systems thinking, and long-term transformation, this program embodies our commitment to right relations and collective innovation across the informal science education sector. We are proud to launch an initiative that ‘gives these gifts to the future’ and helps shape a more inclusive, respectful, and connected science engagement community,” says Dr. Marianne Mader, CEO of CASC.
The first ever cohort of the Niigani Miinigowiziiwan (We Give These Gifts to the Future) Accelerator Program consists of 15 CASC Member organizations and 65 individual participants. Upon completion of the Accelerator Program, participants will be granted a micro credential from Shingwauk Kinoomaage Gamig. For a full list of cohort participants and to learn more about Niigani Miinigowiziiwan, visit the program website.
About The Canadian Association of Science Centres
The Canadian Association of Science Centres (CASC) is Canada’s largest membership-based network of science engagement organizations. Our membership includes Canada’s leading science centres, museums, aquariums, zoos, outreach organizations, and science and innovation hubs. Collectively, we reach more than 10 million people per year. As an association, CASC empowers a national network of science engagement organizations that cultivate a joy of learning by making science approachable, relevant, and accessible.
About Shingwauk Kinoomaage Gamig
SKG is an Anishinaabe-governed post-secondary institute founded on the original vision of Chief Shingwaukonse’ibin to create a “Teaching Wigwam” where learners walk in both worlds. As one of nine Indigenous Institutes recognized under Ontario’s Indigenous Institutes Act, SKG advances Anishinaabe aadziwin (worldview), Indigenous jurisdiction in education, and lifelong learning grounded in land, language, and community.
About Wolf Willow Institute
Born in a pandemic and fueled by a resolute sense of optimism and necessity, Wolf Willow Institute is a community of systems educators, practitioners, guides, activists and artists that exists to serve those dedicated to building a flourishing future for all. They do this by cultivating the systems leadership capacities needed to affect social change in a complex world through education, research and community-building.
About Presencing Institute
The Presencing Institute is a global action research organization advancing the field of awareness-based systems change by generating conceptual frameworks, innovation tools and change practices to help change-makers lead from the emerging future. The work of the institute is based on Theory U, an approach to systems transformation at the intersection of systems science, collective action, and consciousness. Working across sectors and geographies, the Presencing Institute is a global ecosystem of regional partners in Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe, and the Americas working toward deep systems innovation and transformation through capacity-building, innovation labs and research & knowledge creation.