Wiigwaasi-Jiimaan
Overview: Wiigwaasi- jiimaan (birch bark canoe – Ojibwe language)
In 2021, the Center for Native American & Indigenous Research (CNAIR) at ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø hosted elder and master canoe maker Wayne Valliere (Lac du Flambeau Ojibwe) who, with community members, harvested materials and built a traditional Wiigwaasi-jiimaan (birchbark canoe). This vessel, central to Anishinaabe identity and history, was launched into the waters of Lake Michigan upon completion and is now housed at the Segal Visitors Center as a living land acknowledgment.
The jiimaan represents ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø’s commitment to honoring the Council of Three Fires tribes and other Native Nations with historical ties to the area since time immemorial. The jiimaan serves as an instructional tool to inspire ongoing learning, relationship-building with Indigenous communities and meaningful action aligned with the University’s “Jiimaan Journey: Native American & Indigenous Strategic Plan.”
Living Land Acknowledgment
The Wiigwaasi-jiimaan is held in ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø’s Segal Visitors Center as a living acknowledgment that ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø sits on the traditional homelands of the people of the Council of Three Fires, the Ojibwe, Potawatomi, and Odawa, as well as the Menominee, Miami and Ho-Chunk nations.
In an interview with Native News Online, Pamala Silas, the Associate Director of ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø Outreach and Engagement stated, “It is our hope that this canoe is more than just an object to the community and it inspires teaching and learning from an Indigenous perspective.”
An Instructional Tool for Reflection
Coupled with the notable, educational work ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø has been doing around Land Acknowledgment practices, the birch bark canoe creates an affirming, instructive, multi-disciplinary introductory experience for ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø visitors and the campus community.
By integrating the Wiigwaasi-jiimaan into campus, ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø fosters a deeper understanding of Indigenous contributions to the land it occupies and the history of the Anishinaabe people. It serves as a reminder that land acknowledgments must be (active/lived), encouraging continuous leaning, relationship-building with Native communities and meaningful institutional action.
Learn more about the canoe and how a class made it into coursework for journalism . You will find a 3D view of the jiimaan, a photo timeline of its creation and interviews with artist Wayne Valliere