08/27/2026
Canadian Geographic is working on a new initiative entitled, The Languages of Water. With approximately 85 Indigenous languages spoken across Canada, you can imagine how many different words exist for water! This project aims to celebrate the richness of Indigenous languages while helping young people across Canada learn about cultural relationships Indigenous Peoples have with water. This initiative is part of The Water Literacy Project, a collaboration with Canadian Geographic, Canadian Museum of Nature and AquaAction.
We are interviewing Indigenous language speakers from across Turtle Island to record the word "water" in their language, along with a brief reflection on what water means to them, their community, or their culture. These recordings will become part of an interactive online map linked to Canadian Geographic Education's new Giant Floor Map titled Freshwater: Lifeblood of the Land. This new Freshwater GFM includes a teacher’s guide with lesson plans that will travel to schools and communities across Canada, allowing hundreds of thousands of students and visitors to hear Indigenous languages spoken by the people who carry them.
We are very happy to be working with Indigenous language expert Cameron Adams on this project. Cameron is dedicated to Indigenous Language Revitalization through education, technology, research and government strategy. He is a member of the Berens River First Nation with maternal roots to Norway House Cree Nation and speaks nēhinawēwin (Swampy Cree). If you know language speakers who might be interested in participating, please reach out!
Educators, be aware: we have opened bookings for the Giant Floor Map with lesson plans, so act quickly to reserve this unique map for your school - it is free!: https://cangeoeducation.ca/en/maps/freshwater-lifeblood-of-the-land/
kinanāskomitin, Wela’lin, Qujannamiik, Maarsi
Illustration by: Patrick Hunter
