HIHTK Episode 015: “Cultural Education and Giving Back”-Diana Frost
Summary: <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Diana Frost’s mission is to share First Nations culture and spirituality. The goal is to foster reconciliation and help indigenous and non-indigenous to better understand and appreciate each other.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Other ways to enjoy this Podcast<br> <br> <br> <a title="Listen on iTunes" href="https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/honey-im-homeschooling-the-kids/id1272423047" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"></a><br> <a title="Listen on Google Play" href="https://play.google.com/music/listen?t=Honey!_I%27m_Homeschooling_The_Kids&pcampaignid=MKT-na-all-co-pr-mu-pod-16&u=0&view=/ps/I2zvkou6ephyzybp2fc6f2ea3lm" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"></a><br> <a title="Listen on Stitcher" href="http://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=147912&refid=stpr" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"></a><br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Indigenous Art In Education<br> <br> There aren’t a lot of Indigenous culture resources available for students. Diana says it’s important to get kids excited about indigenous art and language. Exposure to art, stories, and history leads to appreciation, naturally.<br> <br> Who is Diana Frost?<br> <br> Diana Frost is from Sherbrooke, Quebec. She is Metis. Her background, beliefs and life are diverse.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Diana’s parents raised her in the Bahai faith. She was born in Quebec, but she later relocated to Gabon, Africa. Her micro-biologist father moved there to set up a research station. So, Diana spent her teen years in Gabon. <br> <br> <br> <br> When she returned to Canada for University she studied chemical engineering. She worked as a water engineer for over 20 years in South America. Diana started to question her work every time she boarded a plane. She asked herself why travel so far to help other people when Indigenous people in Canada need help?<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Diana’s mother and uncles grew up in residential schools. Her mother was 8 years old when the government took her from her parents. Diana’s uncles went with the priests and her mother went with the nuns. They never returned back home. The goal of the government sponsored <a href="http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/residential-schools/">residential schools</a> was to assimilate indigenous culture into Euro-Canadian culture. Because of this many indigenous peoples have since lost their culture and language. Due to this upbringing, Diana’s mother felt being First Nations was something shameful. To this day the ripple effects of the residential school affect them. The connection with her mother is not easy. Her uncle has suffered with mental illness since he left the school. Her other uncle became a member of the <a href="http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/front-de-liberation-du-quebec/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">FLQ</a>–a militant part of the Quebec sovereignty movement.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> When Diana was a young girl her mother told her that she is First Nations but did not know which nation she belonged to. Through genealogy study Diana found out that her ancestry is Algonquin. She felt a need to look for others but had a hard time meeting other indigenous people until she moved to Alberta.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Reconciliation and Understanding Project<br> <br> Diana has been on a journey to reconnect with her roots and support <a href="http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/truth-and-reconciliation-commission/">reconciliation</a>. This has brought her to her current business project–<a href="https://www.colouringitforward.com/">Colouring It Forward</a>. She said the idea came to her in a dream. Diana wants more material about the wonderful parts of indigenous life.
