Blog Post: Meet Ainsley, Summer Camp Program Instructor!

Aanii!

Hello! My name is Ainsley Dunn (she/her), and I am of mixed Anishinaabe and European ancestry. I am from Saugeen First Nation, located on the beautiful Great Lakes, but I live in Nogojiwanong/Peterborough! I am excited to join TRACKS as a Summer Camp Instructor. I am a first-year teacher candidate in the Indigenous Bachelor of Education Program (Teacher's College) at Trent University! My studies at Trent as an undergrad focused on Indigenous Education and Environmental Sciences, which are both very important topics to me! Being of mixed ancestry, I get to weave two different types of being, learning, and knowledge into my practice as a future educator. Two-eyed seeing, termed by Elder Albert Marshall, is a perspective I hold within my studies, work and life. It is of utmost value to blend knowledge systems together to help better understand our impacts on Mother Earth. 

 Being at Trent has inspired my love of mixing environmental and Indigenous knowledge within all ages and levels in the classroom. I love to connect to my culture through crafting; when I’m not at school or working, I love sewing projects, porcupine quilling, needle felting, and painting. I also love nature, and interacting/being around all animals, especially cats/dogs and helping save local wildlife like our Mishiikenh (turtles) that try to cross the road🐢😀. Another way I love to connect to my culture is by being on the land and learning about plants as a teacher/medicine. My love of plants and exploring different gifts of plants are based on attending in-depth classes at TRENT and learning from local Indigenous plant knowledge holders through amazing programming! This summer at TRACKS, I am super excited to build friendships with coworkers, help run some awesome camps, and enhance my knowledge of integrating both Indigenous ways of being and Western science! 🌿🐾🐿

Miigwetch.