Nikibii Dawadinna Giigwag

Nikibii Dawadinna Giigwag An employment, mentorship, and pathway to postsecondary program for Indigenous youth. Designed by Elders, professional mentors, and educators.

Weaving together cultural teachings with landscape architecture and environmental conservation.

Nikibii Dawadinna Giigwag is honored to be the recipient of our 5th grant from the City of Toronto Urban Forestry . Sinc...
10/20/2025

Nikibii Dawadinna Giigwag is honored to be the recipient of our 5th grant from the City of Toronto Urban Forestry . Since 2019, this has supported the leadership of Indigenous youth in ecological restoration across Toronto.

This past weekend, the NDG youth planted, with the help of volunteers, 300 native trees and shrubs along the Highland Creek on the campus. With 30 native fruit and nut bearing trees and shrubs that have a myriad of medicinal benefits, this restoration planting will contribute to the UTSC’s Edible Campus aspiration and provide sustenance for the next generations as well as our animal kin. NDG is grateful to the UTSC facilities and grounds team, and in particular Mark Neilson for our long standing collaboration. Together we have planted over 1,000 trees and shrubs at UTSC.

We are also grateful to all the volunteers who joined us, with a special thanks to all the young earth workers. We ended our work day honoring ziibiins where we watched salmon spawn, a beautiful circle of life. Chi Miigwetch for the opportunity to reconnect with the soil, plants, creek, salmon and a beautiful community of land stewards.

NDG family reunited! We are so blessed to have youth from the first years of our program join us for our annual Fall equ...
09/29/2025

NDG family reunited! We are so blessed to have youth from the first years of our program join us for our annual Fall equinox planting . So many good memories shared by the sacred fire 🔥

Chi Miigwetch for Elder Whabagoon for being there for each and every one of us all these years and inspiring us to be the best version of ourselves. Chi Miigwetch to the youth for always returning - it means so much!

As always, our deepest gratitude to Allison Best and her team for supporting youth-led land stewardship and facilitating a safe space for community gatherings. A big thanks to all the community volunteers for helping us plant 100 trees and shrubs and supporting our ongoing efforts to restore biodiversity and connect people to nature.

This is our 7th year, 10th community event, and 1,000 trees and shrubs planted at Downsview thanks to

Alysha and D’Khai worked on bending Wiinizik / Yellow birch, pointing Northeast towards Pennetangueshine / Beausoleil Fi...
09/07/2025

Alysha and D’Khai worked on bending Wiinizik / Yellow birch, pointing Northeast towards Pennetangueshine / Beausoleil First Nation. Penetangueshine is where the third Council Fire sits with the Beaver dodem watching over the fire. They reminded us of the wisdom of the beaver 🦫 to use our gifts.

Sealion and Miles worked with the Gaagaagiwanshiki / Eastern Hemlock, bend them toward Kebechekong / Humber River, reminding us of the importance of these riverways and portage routes to the territory as a whole for over 10,000 years. In her speech about the tree support, Sealion said: “First Nations used the canoe to live sustainably. To not pollute. We also drew a turtle, representing Turtle Island and the river. We added Grandfather Sun, who teaches us about vitality and the essence of life.”

Jordy has been documenting this process for a documentary film that is sponsored through a grant he received by . We are grateful for and Vid Ingelevics for including us in the documentation of the transformation of the Portlands into Biidaasige Park.

Our thoughts, prayers and deep gratitude to Elder Gary Sault 🌱🦅🔥

A HISTORIC DAY for the NDG Indigenous youth who co-led a tree bending ceremony at the Biidaasige Park with and . This ...
08/30/2025

A HISTORIC DAY for the NDG Indigenous youth who co-led a tree bending ceremony at the Biidaasige Park with and .

This tree bending ceremony was the culmination of 2 years worth of research and collaboration with many partners and mentors. Our first 5 of 25 trees were bent over a period of 2 days.

Over the next 4 years, NDG youth will bend 5 trees each year and continue to steward the trees bent the prior year(s). We are currently working with on an agreement to take care of the bent trees surroundings, and ensure that Elders and FN community members are supported by City staff to reclaim this ancient and traditional practice.

We are grateful for the teachings shared with us by Elder Gary Sault, and Jonathan Ferrier at the onset of our research process last summer.

We are grateful for the following individuals who gathered with us at this ceremony: MCFN - Craig King, City of Toronto Indigenous Affairs Office - Fred Martin, .to - Shannon Baker, Pina Mallozzi, Chris Glasiek, Krista Verner, and Kyle Gatchalian, .inc - Herb Sweeney, - Doug Bennet and Alok Sharma , - Nick Willett and Vid Ingelevics, - Terence Radford and Izzy Mink, - Erik Skouris and - Dustin Wilson.





This is our fourth year collaborating with the Culinaria Research Centre at UTSC. Thanks to Kitchen coordinator, Kelsey ...
08/24/2025

This is our fourth year collaborating with the Culinaria Research Centre at UTSC. Thanks to Kitchen coordinator, Kelsey Kilgore, we invited Six Nations Chef Taylor Parker to join us for our foraging in the valley and share his culinary philosophy and techniques with the NDG youth. We were also joined by long-time mentor and forager Jon Herda who also shared valuable knowledge of plants’ medicinal benefits. Jon found a giant Pheasant Tail mushroom which is very potent. We foraged many introduced, invasive and native plants that infuse flavor and good medicine into our dishes.

Chef Parker gifted us with beautiful moose that was hunted by his cousin. We learned that moose has next to zero fat and sustain themselves on a diet of twigs. Chef and his helper Phill taught us how to make tartar. We incorporated wild ginger and chive flowers that we foraged on our walk. We then learned how to cold smoke meat using birch bark and cedar, then seasoned and seared the moose steaks.

Monarda fistulosa was used to flavor potato ‘raganata’. And the pheasant mushroom was made into an ice cream to accompany the moose steak! Our minds were blown by the creativity in flavors and temperature combinations.

Kelsey ordered Turbot from Inuit owned and operated First Fish, which Chef pan fried beautifully with cedar buds for peppery pops of flavor and crunch. What a feast. We are absolutely grateful to Kelsey, Jon, Taylor and Phill for the memorable experience.

We completed our Marker Tree supports in preparation for our bending ceremony at Biidaasige Park. Each of the five suppo...
08/24/2025

We completed our Marker Tree supports in preparation for our bending ceremony at Biidaasige Park. Each of the five supports tells the story of the tree species and the place and history of land relations that the tree is pointing to. The drawings incorporate teachings we received all summer from our Elder, mentors, and from the land. Our own stories and relations are woven througout as we build new relations and responsibilities to take care of each bent tree for years to come. With the help of our mentors, our hand drawings were scanned then laser cut onto thin-ply wood that we cycled from the freecycling material library at the Daniels Faculty. The laser cut pieces were attached to the Black Locust and American Beech wood that we harvested from the Hart House Farm and gifted by Zac Mollica, respectively.

Each one of us also created a personal offerings to the bent trees. This medallion is woven from Red Pine needles we gathered and dried this summer. Chi miigwetch to our mentor Katherine Gorelik for teaching us to weave with plants. Using Sumac, she dyed the twine used to tie the medallions to the trees.

Thanks to Elder Whabagoon and colleagues at the City of Toronto StreetARToronto, we had a special tour of the Water Is L...
08/23/2025

Thanks to Elder Whabagoon and colleagues at the City of Toronto StreetARToronto, we had a special tour of the Water Is Life Mural with artist, Keitha Keeshig-Tobias Biizindam. Located on the Coxwell Underpass just south of Hanson Street, this large-scale mural is was commissioned by StreetART. The imagery celebrates all life’s connection to water and is inspired by Josephine Mandamin’s Water Walk. The prominent phrase “WATER IS LIFE” is displayed in 42 languages, honoring the vital role of water in sustaining life, culture, and communities.  

Keitha Keeshig-Tobias Biizindam (Anishinaabe from Neyaashiinigamiing Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation and Delaware Nation at Moraviantown) is a contemporary Indigenous artist based in Toronto, whose name means “she who listens and learns and uses what she hears.” She works across media—murals, paintings, jewelry, textiles, and beadwork—bringing ancestral knowledge to life with beauty and grace, blending science, history, current affairs, empathy, and elegance into her style she terms “N8V-Nouveau”. Keitha has painted more than 18 murals across the city. Highlights include Anishnaabe Kwe’s Dream-Catcher at Ontario Place, as well as on the Lansdowne Underpass south of Dundas Street, which incorporate Ojibwe affirmations, syllabics, and molecular formulas of Indigenous scientific discoveries; and Wind o’ Change at the Indigenous Centre of Innovation and Entrepreneurs.

Our fourth day this summer at the Hart House Farm on the Niagara Escarpment among the hills of Caledon was action packed...
08/20/2025

Our fourth day this summer at the Hart House Farm on the Niagara Escarpment among the hills of Caledon was action packed. We woke up early to bird song and delicious pancakes prepared by the amazing Calista. We headed out to the field to start digging the solid ground with ice picks and a sledge hammer to get the dried buckthorn posts in the ground before the volunteers arrived. Our intent this time was to extend and refill the living hedge so that it continues to function as a barrier to the tipi from the westerly winds. Everyone worked tremendously hard on yet another brutally hot summer day. Once the volunteers arrived from downtown, Elder Whabagoon asked us to gather in ceremony. Then everyone went to task removing seeds and roots and stacking dried branches in the living hedge.

As always, we are extremely grateful to Steve Warn for his generous and open minded spirit and to the HH staff - Dave Kim, Calista Barber, Danielle Dinunzio, and Emily Peltier - for taking care of us and bringing such good allies to the NDG youth.

Another epic day at the Hart House Farm. This time we were joined by our dear friend and mentor, Erik Skouris of . It w...
08/20/2025

Another epic day at the Hart House Farm. This time we were joined by our dear friend and mentor, Erik Skouris of . It was brutally hot so we changed our plans and headed straight to cool off in the quarry ponds. Such bliss. When we returned to the farm house, the youth prepped a delicious chili and cornbread for dinner. As the sun was setting we headed out to the field to meet Steve aka Sa’be to test out a new toy, a giant auger, to drill holes for our living hedge posts. The ground was hard as cement given the dry spell and we were getting no where. Everyone took a turn digging, pulling down on the auger to no avail. Alas, it was a gorgeous sunset. We ended the day with a mad game of volleyball and Joseph absolutely killed it. We crashed in our bunnies after some over-baked savory and sweet smores. So grateful to Steve and the HH crew!

NDG is working with Evergreen Brickworks, thanks to to restore the degraded planter circles in the parking lot. We lear...
08/17/2025

NDG is working with Evergreen Brickworks, thanks to to restore the degraded planter circles in the parking lot. We learned that the plantings are confined to a steel planter and mounded up with soil due to the contamination of the former industrial quarry site. Given that structure and surrounding parking lot, the shrub and herbaceous layer in these planting circles have not been thriving. Surprisingly the trees are doing well.

Phase I of our shrub planting project is to restore the soil. We seeded with daikon radish which forms meaty roots and in turn decompose and add organic matter along with water and microorganism. In phase II next spring, NDG will return to co-lead a community planting event with 100 shrubs to revive the understudy layer and native biodiversity of this area.

Chi Miigwetch to Olivia Dziwak, urban ecology and greenspace specialist and Luke Simpson, coordinator of land-based and community programs for their mentorship. We learned so much and looking forward to our continued collaboration.

Super grateful for for sharing his wisdom and spending the entire afternoon with us for the second time this summer. ...
08/16/2025

Super grateful for for sharing his wisdom and spending the entire afternoon with us for the second time this summer. His teachings and generosity are boundless and we all felt so inspired and supported. Chi Miigwetch, Que for being such a great mentor to the NDG youth.

NDG youth have been fabricating the marker tree groin pieces to support the bent trees. We harvested Black Locust (Robin...
08/12/2025

NDG youth have been fabricating the marker tree groin pieces to support the bent trees. We harvested Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) from the Hart House Farm this spring and let the wood dry in studio. Black Locust is an introduced European species which is invasive. This is part of NDG’s ongoing efforts with invasive species management - we remove and repurpose. This beautiful hard wood has a gorgeous yellowish tint. We are also repurposing felled American Beech. Using the wood shop we cut the wood in half and planed it, then the youth used hand tools courtesy of to remove the bark. Chi Miigwetch Zac for your guidance and generosity.

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University Of Toronto
Toronto, ON

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Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm

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