Diversity & Inclusion Events

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[PAST EVENT] Steve DeRoy - Indigenizing the Map: Restorying and reconciling our homelands using GIS

November 15, 2023
3:30pm - 5pm
Location
Boswell Hall (formerly Morton Hall), Room 342
100 Ukrop Way
Williamsburg, VA 23185Map this location
Access & Features
  • Open to the public
  • Registration/RSVP
Steve DeRoy event flyer

“Mapping is critical to supporting Indigenous rights and interests, decolonizing place and space, and sharing Indigenous stories of the land. With GIS becoming more powerful and easier to use, it provides opportunities for widespread use among Indigenous communities.” - Steve DeRoy.

Join us for Indigenizing the Map: Restorying and reconciling our homelands using GIS, a talk by Steve DeRoy, Anaishinaabe/Saulteaux, part of the Institute for Integrative Conservation 2023-24 Conservation Speaker Series: "Histories and Hope".

In 2014, Steve DeRoy founded the Indigenous Mapping Workshop (IMW), with a vision to build a conference that aims to provide Indigenous peoples, Nations, and organizations with the tools and training to put the pen back in the hands of communities, so they have the power to develop culturally relevant maps of their lands and their stories.  Maps are frequently utilized by Indigenous Nations to communicate and defend Indigenous rights, titles and interests. The Indigenous Mapping Workshop is organized annually by The Firelight Group with strategic partners including Google, Esri Canada, NASA, the Canadian Space Agency, Mapbox, the First Nations University of Canada among others. In 2020, the IMW was rebranded as a part of the global Indigenous Mapping Collective. It is a virtual space for mappers and trainers to share knowledge and resources with each other and view IMW content on demand. There are now more than 2,000 members from across the globe. Participants have attended IMW from over 40 countries and across 6 continents, and counting. This presentation will demonstrate how Indigenous Nations are restorying their territories using mapping and GIS technologies.

About Steve DeRoy

Steve (he/him) is from the buffalo clan, is Anishinaabe/Saulteaux, and is from the Ebb and Flow First Nation and Lake Manitoba First Nation, both in Manitoba. 

He is the Co-Founder, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Director, and past President of The Firelight Group. Steve founded the annual Indigenous Mapping Workshop and Indigenous Mapping Collective.

Steve is an award-winning Anishinaabe professional and entrepreneur with expertise in mapping and geographic information sciences, business development, natural resources management, and project management. He has applied his expertise to lead Indigenous Knowledge Research for numerous Indigenous groups affected by large-scale energy developments.

Since 1998, Steve has mentored Indigenous practitioners, conducted risk assessments, built decision-support systems and monitoring tools, supported land claims, developed best practices, established consultation processes, facilitated community engagement and planning approaches, and supported negotiations between Indigenous communities, governments and industries. Steve is an international speaker and presents at numerous conferences, university lectures and events. Steve has supported both Google and Apple to ensure Indigenous lands are represented on their maps.

Steve is a board member of the Canadian Urban Institute, an advisory board member of the Institute for
Integrative Conservation at William & Mary, a moderator of the Open Forum on Participatory
Geographic Information Systems and Technologies, and a trainer of the Google Earth Outreach
Trainers Network

The Conservation Speaker Series is made possible through support and collaboration across W&M. The IIC thanks the many departments and units for their continued engagement in this series.

This event is co-sponsored by the University of Richmond Spatial Analysis Lab and co-hosted by the W&M Center for Geospatial Analysis and the Society for Conservation GIS. This event is part of a series of events at W&M and University of Richmond in celebration of World GIS Week.

Contact

https://www.wm.edu/offices/iic/