Lakehead University is piloting a new land-based learning experience that invites people on campus to walk, listen and reflect on the deep cultural and historical significance of the land now home to its Thunder Bay campus.
The Etuaptmumk bimoseng, or Two-Eyed Seeing Walk, is a 90-minute guided experience that blends Indigenous and Western knowledge systems. It’s led by Joe Duncan, Indigenous content curriculum specialist, and Rachel Portinga, acting sustainability coordinator with the Office of Sustainability at the university.
“This walk brings Lakehead’s land acknowledgment to life in a new way,” Duncan said. “We are sharing about the deep cultural and historical significance of this land, including the presence and activities of Indigenous peoples dating back over 9,000 years.”
More than 60 people have taken part in the walk so far, including faculty, staff and students from across the university.
The walk begins at Lake Tamblyn before moving along the McIntyre River and ending at the campus sweat lodge. Along the route, participants stop at several of the 14 archaeological sites identified on the land, including quarry sites of Jasper taconite and areas with abundant copper.
Participants examine artifacts such as Jasper taconite arrowheads, copper nuggets, antler tools and a copper knife.
Duncan says the walk helps people understand how deeply Indigenous peoples lived with and learned from the land.
“It tells the history of the Indigenous people that occupied this area going back to 9,000 years ago, and that we try and connect it from a two-eyed-seeing perspective, both Western and Indigenous points of view, and intertwine those connections with each other during the tour,” he said.
He says the walk shows how people “occupied and lived and survived in this very area beside Lakehead University,” and connects that history to the impacts of colonization and the path forward.
Two-Eyed Seeing is a guiding principle that combines the strengths of Indigenous and Western ways of knowing.
“When you’re on the tour, we talk about the traditional medicines, what they carry and how Indigenous people use them, but also combine that with the Western science aspect that complements each other,” he said.
Participants learn to identify local medicines such as giizhik (cedar), while also hearing about scientific research that affirms the plant’s detoxification and anti-inflammatory benefits.
The tour also engages with colonial history, including the 1849 commissioners’ report that shaped the Robinson-Superior Treaty, the introduction of the Indian Act in 1873 and the residential school system.
Portinga says the structure of the walk helps people understand the contrast between thousands of years of thriving Indigenous presence and the disruptions brought by colonial policies.
“We know all of this history, we know where we’re at now, how can we continue to actually engage in reconciliation and make this right?” she said.
The walk builds on work started six years ago in the Office of Sustainability. Over time, the project grew as Duncan, Portinga and sustainability intern Carolina Camacho added research, archaeological detail and more hands-on learning.
Duncan also consulted with retired anthropology professor Scott Hamilton, whose work helped refine the historical narrative.
“As an Indigenous person, I’m walking away, like, why don’t people know this?” Duncan said. “People need to know this.”
Duncan says the first walk took place in September, and feedback has been “overwhelmingly positive.”
“So far, I think there’s been 60 plus participants on this tour, and the amount of feedback we’re getting has been remarkable,” he said. “This is needed. And this is part of decolonization, about reconciliation. It’s about education. It’s about sharing knowledge, two knowledge systems that are equal as one.”
Interest in the walk has grown quickly. Duncan says, that “right now we have 170 students registered in March to take on this tour when it hopefully starts again.”
Camacho says the team plans to expand the walk beyond the pilot phase.
“For the future, we’re hoping to expand this,” she said. “We want to enrich it, we want to compile feedback, and the idea is to establish a fixed ongoing process.”
She says the long-term plan includes digital and printed materials for participants, improving accessibility and developing a “train-the-trainer” program that encourages more Indigenous students to lead future walks.
For Duncan, the heart of the project is simple.
“Not all classrooms have four walls,” he said. “When we connect to the land and are listening and talking from the heart, that’s learning.”
