In Episode 8 Tommy and Lawrence chat with the venerable James Delorme, VP of Community Development at Salish Elements. James is one of our most fun yet most insightful guests. He brings a wealth of knowledge and insight into helping us understand what is meant by an Indigenous lens on all things technology, collaboration, innovation, and co-operation. James also helps us think through what is at stake and what is meant by decolonization, and one of it's remedies: Indigenization.

Thank you all for your patience during our prolonged absence. Tommy took some time to prioritize family and health, but we're back and more grateful than ever to be resuming our journey together. James is a wonderful fit for resuming our exploration of Digital Indigeneity so sit back, relax, and enjoy!

Gila’kasla!

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A very special thanks to Compulsion Soundlabs for sharing their musical talent, which you are hearing as the intro and outro music in this series!

In Episode 7 we speak to Melissa Giles-Hardy, owner, President, and CEO of ORIGIN - a company that design, develops, and delivers technology experiences to drive employment while also protecting and promoting culture for Indigenous peoples across Turtle Island.

It's no surprise that Melissa is recipient of multiple awards, including the 2021 RBC Innovative Company of the Year award, the Indigenomics Top 10 Business's To Watch in Canada, the 2019 Northern Ontario, Influential Women's Entrepreneur of the Year Award, and the Confederation College President's Award in 2019 - as well as a nominee for the 2019 Ontario Premier Award.

As you can see, Melissa is not only a passionate innovator. She is also a passionate community member who is motivated to use technology, specifically Virtual Reality, to do many amazing things: to provide Indigenous youth in remote communities opportunities to learn about new jobs, to train Indigenous peoples to do new jobs or upskill in certain areas, and to also record, preserve, and create interactive VR-based media content that protects and promotes Indigenous cultural practices, learnings, and lessons. For example, using a VR headset to interact with Elders providing the viewer a language lesson.

This is one of our favourite episodes. It is full of incredibly powerful insights and advice. We're honoured to have Melissa on the show.

Gila’kasla!

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A very special thanks to Compulsion Soundlabs for sharing their musical talent, which you are hearing as the intro and outro music in this series!

In Episode 6 we speak to Matthew Norris, Senior Policy Analyst at the British Columbia Assembly of First Nations, and President of the Urban Native Youth Association. As a former candidate for Vancouver city council and a PhD student in UBC's Department of Political Science, Matthew has and continues to be exposed to numerous important intersecting Indigenous developments and issues. Between Matthew's grassroots community work and advocacy along with his academic studies on United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), Matthew has much to contribute toward the emerging discussion around Indigenous digital identity and Indigenous digital space.

We decide to explore Indigenous digital space and community in particular, and we are guided by some great questions Matthew raises throughout: how might be Indigenous digital communities be made? What are the pitfalls and divides, and how can we avoid them? When these spaces are constructed, what algorithms guide us through them and what content are prioritized? What does it mean to have a voice in this arrangement, and how do we subsequently think about, with, and through accountability?

Gila’kasla!

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A very special thanks to Compulsion Soundlabs for sharing their musical talent, which you are hearing as the intro and outro music in this series!

In Episode 5 of One Feather Two Pens we speak with the award winning actor, director, producer, writer, and storyteller, Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers. Member of the Kinai First Nation as well as Sámi from Norway, Elle-Máijá joins us to discuss her Rogers Audience Award winning documentary, Kímmapiiyipitssini: The Meaning of Empathy. The powerful film is an intimate and reflexive portrait of her community and the impact of substance abuse and opioid epidemic. Elle-Máijá is a remarkable wisdom and self-awareness facilitates a truly insightful conversation about representation, authenticity, and narrative sovereignty in Indigenous media. Join us as we explore what it means to truth, history, paternal politics, unlearning bias, and of the challenges and opportunities that emerge when navigating voice, privilege, and power. Elle-Máijá also raises important questions for Canadians seeking to assist and collaborate with First Nations peoples, such as: Who is the right person to tell a story? What does it mean to represent Indigenous life? And what happens when non-Indigenous narrators take up space without being aware of doing so?

Gila’kasla!

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A very special thanks to Compulsion Soundlabs for sharing their musical talent, which you are hearing as the intro and outro music in this series!

In our latest episode on One Feather, Two Pens we have the privilege and honor to chat with Mary Teegee and Matt Smiley, the Directors of For Love on Netflix. As an Indigenous woman and non-Indigenous man, Mary and Matt have worked closely together since before their powerful piece Highway of Tears. The two reflect on their journeys, learnings, and discoveries together, which leads to a fascinating and important set of realizations and offerings about the promise of Indigenous media.

Gila’kasla!

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A very special thanks to Compulsion Soundlabs for sharing their musical talent, which you are hearing as the intro and outro music in this series!

We are very excited to have Josh Nilson, Co-Founder of East Side Games, recent winner of the BC Tech Association's Person of the Year Award (and a Producer of one of Tommy's all time favourite games, Company of Heroes!), to talk about the value and importance of reconciliation through the inclusion of Indigenous peoples in the tech sector.

Josh shares his fascinating professional journey, beginning in the world of culinary arts and then successfully transitioning into video game development where he produced some of the most popular Apps around, including The Office, Star Trek Upper Decks, Ru Paul's Drag Race, Trailer Park Boys and more. Josh reflects on the importance of learning, and especially on what's at stake for Canadian businesses to start thinking seriously about what Indigeneity does and does not mean and include.

Gila’kasla!

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A very special thanks to Compulsion Soundlabs for sharing their musical talent, which you are hearing as the intro and outro music in this series!

In our second episode of this new special series, we are honoured to be joined by Chief Dr. Robert Joseph, OC, OBC. Dr. Joseph is a hereditary Chief of the Gwawaenuk First Nation, is Ambassador for Reconciliation Canada where he has guided the Canadian Federal government through their residential school response. Dr. Joseph is a survivor of St. Michael’s Residential School.

Dr. Joseph guides Tommy, Al, and Lawrence through the importance of creating safe space to converse and listen deeply in order for reconciliation to move forward. Dr. Joseph believes that technology, and platforms like podcasting, can be vehicles for moving reconciliation forward - specifically by giving opportunities for unheard voices and experiences from Indigenous peoples. This episode is full of practical advice to any listener, particularly for Indigenous and Canadian entrepreneurs who are looking to innovate and collaborate in this digital space.

Gila’kasla!

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A very special thanks to Compulsion Soundlabs for sharing their musical talent, which you are hearing as the intro and outro music in this series!

Once upon a time on What's That Noise?! we asked: wouldn't it be wonderful to launch a special series with their new friend and former guest, Lawrence Lewis? That time has arrived! Al, Tommy, and Lawrence are so very pleased to present One Feather Two Pens, a special series that interviews Indigenous thought and technology leaders about functioning and co-existing with Indigenous peoples in this digital space.

We kick off the series in episode 1 by laying the terrain for what this new series is about, what it's goals are, and what it hopes to contribute by means of creating a safe, inclusive dialogue for sharing the stories and lessons of Indigenous people across Canada who are carving out and navigating Indigenous digital sovereignty.

What does it mean for Canadians and Indigenous peoples to work together online? What values and principles should be prioritized? What does reconciliation mean and look like on the Internet? What does success look like here, exactly - and how will we even know that we've been successful?

Stay tuned for more episodes, releasing on the 15th of every month!

Gila’kasla!

Follow us on Twitter: Wtncast

Follow your co-hosts: Tommy | Al | Lawrence

A very special thanks to Compulsion Soundlabs for sharing their musical talent, which you are hearing as the intro and outro music in this series!