Travelling exhibit finishes 4,500 kilometre journey at the U of S

SASKATOON – A collaborative mixed-media art exhibit telling the story of Indigenous peoples living in river deltas in Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Alberta and the Northwest Territories will be on display in the Gordon Oakes Red Bear Student Centre at the University of Saskatchewan until Friday, August 4, 2017.

The exhibit—featuring canoes, video screens, art work, traditional craft and photos contributed by community members—was created as part of the Delta Dialogue Network. This U of S-led network brings together researchers, communities and decision-makers to understand and address water issues in three Canadian river deltas. Changes seen by residents in the delta include effects from upstream development on water levels and wildlife populations.

Aiming to engage and educate people about the importance and challenges faced by deltas and delta communities, the display showcases messages compiled during conversations that researchers had with delta residents during a three-day workshop held in 2016 at the U of S. The message from communities was namely “bring back nature’s flows, restore the rivers rhythms”. The display then toured through the delta communities involved this past winter.

Media are invited to tour the display until August 4. Interviews with researchers involved in the project can be arranged.

The Delta Days Exhibit by the numbers:

  • 3 inland river deltas represented: Slave River Delta, Peace-Athabasca Delta, Saskatchewan River Delta.
  • 60 community members travelled to Saskatoon for U of S Delta Days 2016.
  • 5 communities were visited by the exhibit: Cumberland House, Sask.; Fort Chipewyan, Alta.; Fort Smith, N.W.T.; Fort Resolution, N.W.T.; Yellowknife, N.W.T.
  • 4,526: Number of kilometres the display travelled throughout northern and western Canada.
  • 10 partners and collaborators: Peace-Athabasca Delta Ecological Monitoring Program, Slave River and Delta Partnership, Government of Northwest Territories, Charlebois Community School, Parks Canada, Ducks Unlimited, Aurora Research Institute, Opaskwayak Cree Nation, School of Environment and Sustainability and the Department of Art and Art History at the University of Saskatchewan.


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For more information, contact:
Meagan Hinther
Communications and Development Specialist
School of Environment and Sustainability
University of Saskatchewan
306-966-1019
meagan.hinther@usask.ca