Two Edgewater students have scored among five winners of a national Indigenous art contest, for creative projects using tea leaves and an array of other medicinal plants paramount to their cultures.
The Traditional Knowledge & Medicine Contest, funded through the FORED BC Society’s Aboriginal Heritage, Education & Dialogue program, allows Indigenous children ages five to 18 to submit projects celebrating their "rich cultural and heritage traditions."
Submissions can be made as tangible art, or in photo or video format, with successful entrants each earning $150.
Grade 5 student Ethan Oaks of the Shuswap Band and Grade 3 Métis student Nova Smith both attend Edgewater Elementary School, and have separately been recognized by FORED BC for their very personal poster submissions that pay homage to their Indigenous ancestors and the natural resources they relied on.
"For my project, I used Labrador tea leaves and clay," Oaks shared in a release. "Labrador tea is an important plant to Indigenous Peoples. Drinking it as a tea helps you heal from sickness. Knowledge holders from the Shuswap Band shared tea with me made of Labrador tea ... my ancestors have used this plant for centuries."
As well, Smith's project was inspired by a range of natural remedies valued in her culture.
"I picked these plants because they are used for traditional medicines by the Métis," she explained. "Métis Peoples used bitterroot for sore throats, and they chewed on it. Echinacea (coneflower) was used to treat colds. Fireweed helps wounds from getting infected. Sage is used on the scalp to take care of hair. Wild rose has been used by the Métis to make jelly and flavour food. These plants are important to my culture."
Other winners of this year's contest are Anna Londono and Inez Marie of Red Pheasant First Nations on central Vancouver Island, and Cree student Emillia Hope Bird of Winnipeg.
"Centuries of Indigenous traditional knowledge are shared annually through this FORED BC youth contest, showing us the deep connection to lands and resources relied on for food, medicine and culture,” said Bart Zych, chair of FORED BC. “Every year we receive so many compelling entries, we'd love to give them all a prize."
Learn more at foredbc.org.
