Meet the team in Alberta working to keep dozens of Indigenous languages alive

A team at the University of Alberta is working on a curriculum and other resources to help revitalize Indigenous languages not just on its campus, but also in communities trying to do the same thing. 

Pam McCoy Jones leads the Supporting Indigenous Language Revitalization (SIRL) project. 

"We're building our team and building the teams within the other faculties, as well, to be able to do this work," McCoy Jones told CTV News on Thursday. "This is really focused on relationship building and following the lead of what communities want and and need at different points in time."

Thursday marked National Indigenous Languages Day, which Canada recognizes on March 31. The observance began in 1993 to honour the strength and endurance of Indigenous languages, which have been impacted by intergenerational trauma and colonialism, and the passing of elder speakers. 

The 2016 census found 15.6 per cent of Indigneous people could conduct a conversation in an Indigenous language, down from 21.4 per cent in 2006. 

"Today we are celebrating and we are honouring those ancestors who have kept their languages alive for this long," said a member of McCoy Jones' team, student Danni Okemaw. 

Okemaw grew up in Manitoba listening to the different languages of her parents, but not always understanding the conversation. 

"My mom has 14 brothers and sisters. On one side there, all fluent in the Anishinaabe language. And then on my father's side, they're all fluent in the Cree language," she told CTV News Edmonton. 

"They would often speak it in front of us, but not really directly teach us."

But even that exposure is more than some others get. 

"For my family experience, residential schools had a significant impact on the loss of languages," McCoy Jones, a member of Batchewana First Nation, said. 

Pam McCoy Jones leads the Supporting Indigenous Language Revitalization (SIRL) project at the University of Alberta.

Her team's goal over five years is to increase the number of Indigenous speakers. 

"We have a long way to go, but I think this is a good step." 

In addition to curriculum development, the SIRL program also offers an Indigenous language club, where Okemaw teaches Anishinaabe. 

She was hesitant at first to act as an educator. 

"There's a narrative that we have to be completely fluent to teach and this club just showed me that people are willing to listen to what I know, and I may not be completely fluent yet, but I'm definitely making my way there," Okemaw said. 

"I'm really appreciative of everybody who listens to me."

On Thursday, the federal government renewed its commitment to reconciliation and supporting Indigenous peoples in reclaiming and strengthening their languages. 

"Indigenous languages embody Indigenous cultures and histories," read the statement printed in eight Indigneous languages, including Cree, Inuktitut and Ojibway. 

"The Government of Canada understands that we have a role in protecting and supporting Indigenous Languages."

The 2016 census also found that, despite levels of mother tongue speakers declining, the number of Indigenous people who could speak an Indigenous language increased by 3.1 per cent to a total of about 260,500 people. 

With files from CTV News Edmonton's Amanda Anderson