Annie Martel

Title: Graduate Student
Room: MESC Annex
Building: 4CM Centennial Hall
Email: martel-a30@webmail.uwinnipeg.ca

Degree: Master of Arts
Thesis: Métis Knowledge, Climate Change Risk Assessment, and Adaptation Planning in Michif Communities in Southeastern Manitoba
Supervisor: Ian Mauro & Ryan Bullock
Entry: Fall 2022

Research Interests:
My research interests include Indigenous knowledges, climate change, risk assessment, and climate change adaptation. My current proposed research focuses on characterizing Métis knowledge across both English and French-speaking Michif communities in Southeastern Manitoba (including my own community) to better understand the risks and opportunities to respond to climate change in a holistic and culturally appropriate manner. The project will help understand the linkages between colonization, land-use, and capacity to respond to climate impacts while also developing climate adaptation planning approaches based on Métis knowledge. I want to comprehensively bring Métis knowledge into the discourse around climate change while increasing Indigenous-led cultural and environmental security and sustainability across Turtle Island. I am grateful to be back in my community and back on my homelands after being away for several years, and I am looking forward to learning more and reclaiming my own community’s history and knowledge!

Biography:
Taanshi! My name is Annie Martel (she/her/elle), I am a Red River Métis woman. I am from a small Métis community, traditionally known as the Rat River Settlement, now known as St-Pierre-Jolys. I recently completed my Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies from Mount Allison University, where I also took minors in Indigenous Environmental Science and Geography. I chose the MESC program due to its interdisciplinary and comprehensive approach to solving complex issues that face our society, such as climate change. This smaller program fosters great connections with my peers and professors who all come from different backgrounds and worldviews. I am also lucky to be partnered with the Prairie Climate Centre team and their vast expertise and knowledge in climate change adaptation.