| Description | This presentation emerges from a collaborative research project that is developing a series of picture book apps to support the grassroots cultural resurgence of the Rocky Cree people of northern Manitoba, Canada. Drawing on Anishinaabe digital game scholar Elizabeth LaPensée's claim that Indigenous games can serve as acts of survivance, "merging survival with endurance in a way that recognizes Indigenous peoples as thriving rather than merely surviving" (2017), the team seeks to decolonize technological tools and tropes and to explore the ways in which the gamification of education can support the goals of decolonization and reconciliation. The presentation recounts the challenges of developing game elements that honour the specificity of Rocky Cree worldviews and utilize what La Pensée calls culturally appropriate mechanics, including "slowing down, listening, making choices, revisiting paths, and interpreting the journey," focusing specifically on two games: Packing the Canoes and Gathering a Bundle. |
