EDMUND METATAWABIN TO RECEIVE AN HONORARY DOCTORATE
PRESS RELEASE - for immediate release February 5, 2015
EDMUND METATAWABIN TO RECEIVE AN HONORARY DOCTORATE
BY THE UNIVERSITY OF SUDBURY IN MOOSE FACTORY
SUDBURY – During the Great Moon Gathering Conference (http://www.greatmoongathering.com/ ), representatives of the University of Sudbury will travel to Moose Factory to confer an honorary doctorate to Edmund Metatawabin, an individual who has demonstrated exemplary leadership in his community. The event will take place on Thursday, February 12th, 2015, at 6:00 p.m., at the Emergency Preparedness and Response Center (EPR), Moose Cree First Nation, Moose Factory.
Edmund Metatawabin, who’s name means “ten sunrises”, is a respected elder not only in the Mushkegowuk territory, but across the country. While studying for his Master’s degree in Environmental Studies at York University, Mr. Metatawabin was asked to return home to assume the responsibilities of Chief for his community of Fort Albany First Nation. He served in that capacity for eight years.
Mr. Metatawabin is a Cree writer, who has published several books to date: “Harvesting: Cree Hunting and Gathering Techniques”; “Hanaway”: a tale of resistance and survival; and “Up Ghost River: A Chief’s Journey through the Turbulent Waters of Native History” (a book which was nominated for the Governor General’s Award for English-language non-fiction in 2014).
An activist for aboriginal rights, he works tirelessly to right the wrongs of abuse suffered by aboriginal children in residential schools. He is also an educator in traditional knowledge. Every summer, he takes aboriginal youth on a 300 km raft journey so that they may connect to the land of their ancestors (http://www.thegreeninterview.com/bio/edmund-metatawabin).
Today, he lives in a self-made log house off the reserve boundary which he refers to as “my grandfather’s land”. He owns a local sawmill and works as a consultant, speaker and researcher.
The University of Sudbury is indeed very pleased, and honored, to be granted this opportunity to acknowledge Mr. Metatawabin’s contributions to society.
About the University of Sudbury
As Northern Ontario’s longest-standing postsecondary institution and a member of the Laurentian University Federation, the University of Sudbury remains committed to a focus on a liberal arts education by providing programs in journalism (French only), folklore (French only), religious studies, philosophy and Indigenous studies. Detailed information about the University’s programs can be found at www.usudbury.ca.
For more information, please contact:
Sarah Noel
Communication Officer, University of Sudbury
se_noel@usudbury.ca
