I am interested in land and territoriality of Indigenous peoples in British Columbia and Canada. This extends to an interest in the importance of hunting and the challenges of accessing hunting and fishing locations. I investigate these interest through the oral traditions – old and new stories of life on the land. I conduct my work with an eye to understanding the cultural values encoded in stories particularly where sustenance activities are concerned.
My current writing projects include:
The Historical and Contemporary Alienation of Splatsin Indigenes from the Shuswap and Eagle Rivers (I am currently preparing a SSHRC proposal to investigate the processes and effects of alienation from these waterways and the land in the north Okanagan and southern Shuswap regions of south-central British Columbia.)
‘Why Can’t You Just Move the Camps?’: The Limitations of the Word ‘Camp’ as a Description for an Aboriginal Practice
Harry Chingee: His Story of a Life Lived As a Hunter, Trapper, Logger and Headman (Life history research with a McLeod Lake Sekani hunter and headman)
My current research projects include:
An ethnographic investigation of Tahltan camping
A review of public comments on newspaper websites and chat boards related to Tahltan blockades against moose hunting
A Study of Splatsin (Secwepemc/Shuswap) Boundary Descriptions in the Ethnohistorical Literature
A Study of the Relationship Between Applied and Academic Anthropology in the Context of Consultation in British Columbia