Wikwemot
Wikwemot
Wikwemot: an Educational Basket
The Anicinabe word “wikwemot” means “bark basket”. It has been used since immemorial times by the Anicinabek to carry food, water and other essential items across the territory, its lakes, forests and rivers.
The WIKWEMOT educational basket is a tool for collecting, preserving and transmitting Anicinabe culture, by transposing educational activities to be carried out in the classroom or at home, into a digital universe accessible to all.
Background: moratorium on moose hunting in Parc De La Vérendrye
For Anicinabek people, moose represent much more than game, and hunting is more than just a subsistence activity. The moose is at the heart of a constellation of cultural and artistic practices – including handicrafts – that define our culture. The survival of this animal in the Quebec ecosystem is intimately linked to the survival of the Anicinabe culture.
Anicinabek communities are currently going through a period of uncertainty linked to the declining moose population in their traditional territories. This threatens both the short-term practice of subsistence hunting and the long-term preservation of ancestral knowledge.
A number of anicinabek groups have been working for several years to document the moose and raise awareness among their members and non-native communities of the fragile balance of the ecosystem. In 2021, a moratorium on moose sport hunting in Réserve faunique De La Vérendrye began, suspending sport hunting permits while valid scientific analyses were obtained, and negotiations held with the Anicinabek communities living in the area. The communities actively campaigned for this moratorium, and even today, the need to raise awareness is great.
By fostering a better understanding of Anicinabek culture and its importance in Quebec culture, we hope that the WIKWEMOT educational kit can help raise awareness of this issue on a national scale and create new advocates for the survival of this symbolic animal.
Video Game
WIKWEMOT AR
WIKWEMOT – AR is an augmented reality (AR) video game about the ancestral knowledge of the Anicinabek (Algonquin) communities surrounding the moose’s leg. With the help and guidance of Grace Ratt, cultural bearer from the community of Kitiganik (Barriere Lake), learn how her ancestors used moose legs. You’ll learn how to butcher a moose leg, to make a variety of tools and handicrafts: rattle, nabwan, sinew threads for sewing, tools for tanning the hide, a bag made from the hide, and more. No part of the paw is thrown away. Divided into different chapters, the video game teaches you how to go from a complete moose leg to several practical craft items.
Educational activities
Here are various educational activities for teachers to do with their classes, to learn a little more about moose and gain a better appreciation of this animal. From video games to how to make a moose call out of bark, to learning the anatomy of each part of the moose’s body in Anicinabe, there’s something for every level and taste. The activities were developed by teachers, educators and cultural ambassadors from 4 different communities. In each activity, we have respected the dialect of the community: the way of writing certain words in Anicinabe can therefore be different from one exercise to another.
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