Signal Fire - Screening

Signal Fire is a 30-minute documentary that presents a story to help illuminate why and how the relationship between research and Indigenous communities must change. Using imagery and interviews across Canada including Indigenous communities, research sites and universities, Signal Fire features the perspectives of the authors and their colleagues — Indigenous and non-Indigenous — who are igniting change and lighting the way for others looking to make a difference.

Lawrence Ignace is a PhD candidate with School of Environmental Studies at the University of Victoria. As an Anishinaabe, he grew up in Ignace, Ontario and is a member of Lac Des Mille Lacs First Nation. He is the son of Ruby Ignace and the great, great, great grandson of Ignace Montour the guide for which the town is named after by Sir Sandford Fleming. His connection to these lands and waters spans generations yet grew up in a world shaped by cumulative effects both social and ecological, as his community was forcefully moved due to construction of a dam, faced intergenerational impacts of residential schools, lateral racism and saw increased access to traditional use areas by mining and forestry companies. These experiences have shaped his work. Over his career he has worked for the federal, provincial, and territorial governments including Ontario Streams, Assembly of First Nations, Carcross/Tagish First Nation and Arctic Institute for Community-Based Research. His work has taken around the world representing Canada at the World Summit on Sustainable Development, World Intellectual Property Organization, Convention on Biological Diversity and Commission on Environmental Cooperation. He moved to the Yukon over 14 years ago and his work now focuses on the intersection of differing ways of knowing within cumulative effects and natural resource management.