About

Every July, people from the Tłįchǫ region in Canada’s Northwest Territories gather to celebrate the Tłįchǫ Annual Gathering. Part of this annual tradition is the Trails of Our Ancestors Program, a canoe journey that retraces the traditional travel routes to Behchokò, Whatì, Gamètì and Wekweètì, across the sacred lands and waterways of the Tłı̨chǫ. Indigenous youth travel with Elders on the ancestral canoe paths and trails that intersect the Tłı̨chǫ lands. The canoe trips are methods of teaching, as indigenous history is embedded in the landscape and in place names, and is interpreted by their Elders who have first-hand experience of life on the land.

The Trails of Our Ancestors program is a way to keep this history alive, but as we navigate this new global pandemic, this tradition is at risk of being discontinued in its current format. As the way we live and connect online is rapidly changing (a change accelerated by the global pandemic), See the Trails of Our Ancestors is the next step in the evolution of this vital program, a digital recreation of the annual canoe trip.

This project is a collaboration between Tłı̨chǫ Elders, on the land experts, filmmakers and computer mapping experts, and interactive web designers. The project will truly be a living legacy project without limits for years to come.