Kwusen is hiring for the position of Indigenous Rights Research Assistant. As an Indigenous Rights Research Assistant at Kwusen, you will work with our team to support Indigenous communities conducting research and documentation of Indigenous Rights, Title, and land use. As part of a company that works exclusively with Indigenous Nations, you will contribute to Indigenous data sovereignty and support Nations conducting Rights-based research across B.C. and Alberta.

In November 2023, Towagh had the pleasure of presenting at the CASCA/AAA conference in Toronto as part of a panel on the repatriation work being conducted by Gitxaała Nation, Nisga’a Nation, and Haida Nation.

Kwusen’s Indigenous Rights Research Manager Alissa Cartwright presented on the Kitsumkalum Cumulative Effects Study at the Indigenous Centre for Cumulative Effects (ICCE) 2023 Conference in Ottawa this May.

Wolastoqey Nation in New Brunswick launched a GeoKeeper program as a tool for reporting harassment, racism and discrimination. The program provides a customised reporting form that can be filled in and sent to WNNB, as well as reference map layers so that land users can check land designation.

In November 2022, Towagh Behr presented at the American Anthropological Association (AAA)’s Annual Meeting in Seattle, WA. His presentation, “Achieving Indigenous Data Sovereignty,” illustrated how community-managed systems like the CKK, with data owned, accessible, and protected by the community, support Indigenous data sovereignty.

The Kwusen team is excited to see the important work of the Indigenous monitors in the Peace-Athabasca Delta highlighted on the national level in a CBC article. We’ve had the privilege of working with the Athabasca Chipewyan and Mikisew Cree First Nations on their Community-based Monitoring programs through GeoKeeper for over 7 years.

Citing the Tsawout First Nation’s Aboriginal interests, the Government of BC recently rejected a major residential development plan for ȽEL,TOS (James Island) which is located off the Saanich Peninsula (near Victoria). Kwusen’s research informed the province’s decision to reject the development.

Kwusen collaborated with the Simpcw First Nation to conduct the second delivery of an upper-level anthropology class at the University of Victoria in spring 2022. Topics included archival power, intellectual property rights, and repatriation.

Kwusen is excited that DƏNE YI'INJETL - The Scattering of Man is airing this weekend at the DOXA Film Festival. The film tells the Tsay Keh Dene’s story of the flooding of their territory from BC Hydro’s construction of the W.A.C. Bennett Dam in 1968.

This marks the launch of NationsConnect in the Yukon, now ready for industry and government users in the Yukon to sign up and send consultation and engagement requests to Nations using the portal.

From his research work with Indigenous communities, Towagh Behr, Kwusen Director of Research & Operations, saw the opportunity for emerging technologies to help address issues surrounding research and data management when he started software development work back in 2009. Kwusen developed the Community KnowledgeKeeper (CKK) to facilitate access to, and protection of, Indigenous research data through a community-controlled digital platform.

Brian’s quick work locating these sites for the Wildfire Service may have saved them from being rolled over by heavy equipment in the fight against one of the largest forest fires in BC this year.

In the spring of 2019, Towagh Behr and Alissa Cartwright had the opportunity to work with the Ahousaht First Nation to repatriate important language recordings and oral history interviews from the Royal BC Museum (RBCM).

In March of 2021, Towagh Behr led a presentation to the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) entitled “Traditional Land Use Studies: Context, Methods, and Role in Environmental Assessments.” It was an interesting opportunity to share Kwusen’s understanding of Indigenous Rights in relation to the Environmental Assessment (EA) process.

The Kwusen team congratulates Fort McKay First Nation on their achievement of a significant victory last week. After nearly two decades of research, legal action, and advocacy, Fort McKay has achieved protection for a key part of their territory, the Moose Lake area.

Kwusen is excited to provide some details on the development of our completely revamped version of the community-based field monitoring and data collection app.

Over the past decade, extensive digitization has made archival documents more accessible and user-friendly than ever. The sheer volume of available resources, however, can be overwhelming.

Kwusen is celebrating our 10th Anniversary! As we near the end of 2020, we at Kwusen are reflecting on the company’s growth, relationships fostered, and milestones achieved over a decade of working with and for Indigenous communities throughout Canada.

Towagh Behr, assisted by Alissa Cartwright, recently taught an upper-level Anthropology class at the University of Victoria called “Applied and Community-Based Anthropology.” The class consisted of seventeen students from varying areas of study, including environmental science, political science, anthropology, and history.