History and resiliency of Rotinonhsión:ni (Haudenosaunee) Confederacy

On Thursday, February 20th , staff and faculty gathered for a session focused on the new learning modules on the History of resiliency and continuance of the Rotinonhsión:ni (Haudenosaunee) Confederacy. These educational modules were co-developed by Kanien’kehá:ka educators Donna Kahérakwas Goodleaf, director of the Office of Decolonizing & Indigenizing Curriculum and Pedagogy (ODICP) at the CTL and Kanentokon Hemlock, local Kanien'kehá:ka educator who researched and wrote the content of the modules. Together they worked closely with eConcordia to produce these modules, with additional contributions from CTL and IITS teams. 

The purpose of the gathering was to officially launch the modules to the Concordia community and facilitate a discussion with faculty, staff and students on how they might be integrated into the classroom. The ODICP had run a survey in 2024 with the Concordia community, and there was a strong desire from students from various disciplines to learn more about the importance of decolonizing and Indigenizing curriculum to be better residents on this land. 

• Read: Concordia NOW article on how and why the modules were developed
• Watch: Kahérakwas Donna Goodleaf talks about what it means to decolonize curriculum and pedagogy

Integrating into courses

These modules serve to ground faculty, staff and students on the local Kanien'kehá:ka history and knowledge, and can also be used as instructional materials within an existing course. For example, the themes of knowledge sharing, oral storytelling, and building practices of respect and trust may be of interest to Communication, Education, and Applied Human Sciences. Furthermore, the relationship between humans and the natural world is pertinent to disciplines ranging from Studio Arts to Engineering. These learning goals contribute to students developing a balanced worldview that integrates both Indigenous and Western ways of knowing.

Overview of the modules

• Module 1 focuses on several key teachings of the Rotinonhsión:ni (Haudenosaunee) Confederacy, including:  
  • The Rotinonhsión:ni Creation Story
  •  The Kaianere’kó:wa (Great Law of Peace) and founding of the Confederacy
  • Rotinonhsión:ni food systems and ecological knowledge
• Module 2 provides a brief history of the Rotinonhsión:ni in the colonial era and this covers: 
  • Interactions between the Rotinonhsión:ni and Europeans
  • Treaties between the Rotinonhsión:ni and Europeans
  • Rotinonhsión:ni Influences on the Western World
• Module 3 highlights the efforts to colonize the Rotinonhsión:ni people, including: 
  • Key policies of oppression 
  • Residential and boarding schools
  • Contemporary acts of self-determination
• Module 4 looks to the resiliency and perseverance of the Rotinonhsión:ni, focusing on:  
  • Language revitalization amongst the Kanien’kehá:ka
  • Indigenous research methodologies & decolonizing educational practices
  • Continuing as sovereign nations and peoples

Each module concludes with a list of Kanien'kéha terminology, which is the ancestral language of the Mohawk people. The modules are highly interactive and multimodal– weaving video and audio from Donna Goodleaf and Kanentokon Hemlock, as well as photos, illustrations, transcripts, and links to further reading.  

Next steps

Concordia community members who are interested in integrating some or all the modules into their courses are encouraged to first review the modules and reflect on which areas would be linked to their discipline. The modules can be accessed through these links depending on your role at Concordia (sign-in needed):

• Faculty and staff

• Students

Faculty and staff can reach out to the Office of Decolonizing & Indigenizing Curriculum and Pedagogy to initiate a conversation on integrating the modules into their courses. Additional sessions are being planned where faculty and staff can engage in this discussion in a group setting.