The Canadian Light Source (CLS) at the University of Saskatchewan is launching The Bison Project, a research experience built with a reconciliation action framework for high school, adult basic education and undergraduate students.
The Bison Project integrates Traditional Knowledge and western science in a transformative research experience for First Nation, Métis, and Inuit students. The project seeks to reclaim and preserve the central and momentous historical contributions of First Nations, Métis and Inuit women towards saving bison from extinction through a holistic learning approach encompassing knowledge exchange and project-based learning.
This will include mail-in sample analysis of bison hair and grazing soil using CLS beamlines and multi-year projects with student-determined research. Students will participate in land-based sample gathering, research timeline development, and CLS beamline experiments exploring elemental mapping of bison hair and grazing soil.
The Bison Project will generate a collection of cultural expression resources to keep traditional knowledge alive through oral tradition.
Read more on the CLS website
Image: Adult bison and calves at Nachusa Grasslands.
Credit: The Nature Conservancy