Past Projects
Below is a list of previous Co-Lab community-engaged work. Navigate by year or by community partner to learn more about each project. We are in the process of updating this section, so the list may be incomplete or missing specific project details.
Can you help?
The Co-Lab opened under the name the Collaboratorium in 2015. Due to COVID-19, the Co-Lab had to close for a couple years. In 2021, the Co-Lab reopened, rebranded, and began working with community partners again. The Co-Lab is now looking to put together a full profile of previous projects from the years 2015 to 2019.
And you can help! Have you worked with the Co-Lab/Collaboratorium before? Do you notice something missing? Are you a community partner who can provide an update on where your project is now and how it is going? If so, please let us know!
2022-2023
Project Title: Our History is Our Foundation: Honouring Ilarion Ukrainian Residents
The goal of this project is to work with Ilarion Residence Retirement Home to document, record, and celebrate the lived experiences of Ilarion’s Ukrainian residents. This oral history project with Ilarion’s Ukrainian residents was done to talk about and document their lived experiences, to explore their personal history, to gain insight into who they are and where they come from, and to record stories of joy and of lessons learned.
The oral history interveiws were used to make two documentries: "Stories from Ilarion" and "Stories of Being Ukrainian." The research team also put together promotional videos for Ilarion, final written report, and short, profile videos of each participant. These files are in the process of being donated to the Ukrainian Museum of History and will soon be accessable to the public through the museum archives.
Community Partner: Board of Directors, Ilarion Residence Retirement Home
Student Researchers: Jessy Lee Saas (2022-2023), Sara Pilon (2023), and Zoey Smith (2022).
2019
Project Title: The Gladue Database Project
This five year project (2015-2019) focused on creating a database of resources to help "assist Indigenous peoples, their legal counsel, and others working within the justice system with information that aids in the protection of Gladue Rights/Principles."
In 2019, the project focused on update the historiography of the database, adding additional oral interviews from the Gabriel Dumont institute and Saskatchewan Provincial Archives, etc., and adding sources around history of forced sterilization of Indigenous women in Saskatchewan. In this year, community profiles where also added to the database. And finally, a story of settler colonialism on a community level was also created in hopes of turning this into actual oral history work in those communities down the road.
Community Partner: Legal Aid Saskatchewan
Student Researcher: Morgan Ryan-Roe
While the Gladue Database started with the Co-Lab, it is now a stand-alone project that continues to engage with communities, histories, and other projects.
Check out the project: https://gladue.usask.ca/
Project Title: Mennonite Historical Society of Saskatchewan Knowledge Preservation
The primary project focus was interviewing members of the Mennonite community for the purposes of knowledge preservation. The student researcher also scanned a number of periodicals of the Historical Society, all of which are on the database created and maintained by the University of Saskatchewan. As well, there were around 25 final interviews all of which were transcribing for the Mennonite Historical Society. These interviews took place in Saskatoon, Rosthern, and Hague. The value in this project was to engage with more people as they share the stories that make them unique and that tie them to the wider Mennonite community.
Community Partner: Mennonite Historical Society of Saskatchewan
Student Researcher: Harris Ford
Project Title: Mistawasis Nêhiyawak History Project
The focus of this three year project (2017-2019) is to create a robust database for Mistawasis First Nation. Mistawasis is one of the few Presbyterian communities in Saskatchewan and a large percentage of Mistawasis students attended the Regina Indian Industrial School. This database includes primary sources around the community, records about the community in Presbyterian missionary reports, sources about Chief Mistawasis, and oral histories from members of the community.
Community Partner: Mistawasis First Nation
Student Researcher: Marisa Macgregor
Project Title: Prince Albert Model Forest Project
The focus of this project is to develop a Traditional Ecological Knowledge Protocol.
Community Partner: Prince Albert Grand Council
Student Researcher: Aidan Wickenhauser
Project Title: SHFS Online Collection Project
The goal of this project is to improve accessibility of the SHFS's online digital collection, visually repatriate Indigenous photos from SHFS collections, and complete an interest-based public history activity/project.
Community Partner: Saskatchewan History and Folklore Society
Student Researcher: Jade McDougall
Project Title: George Gibbs Diary Project
This project revolves around transcribing George Gibbs's diaries (1857-18758 Lower Fraser Valley), noting place names/people/events in the diary and expand and explain these items with in-depth research in footnotes. The diary was cross-reference the diary with other historical sources from the time such as California papers, Government notes, Swindle newspaper sources, the Gardner diary, and the Kennerly Diary. The goal is to have the transcriptions prepped to turn into a book that will be supplemented with oral histories from the Stó:lō community.
Community Partners: Stó:lō Nation and [?] unsure - possible Dr. Keith Carlson
Student Researcher: Sierra Kyliuk
Project Title: North American Indigenous Games
This project created an online database on Team Saskatchewan and the North American Indigenous Games by going through all archival sources since 1990 about the games and digitizing VHS tapes of the games.
Community Partners: Team Saskatchewan Steering Committee, SaskSport, and Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame
Student Researchers: David Rogers (MA), Thea Pearce, and Kayla Peters
2018
Project Title: Mennonite Historical Society of Saskatchewan Knowledge Preservation
The primary focus was to begin interviewing members of the Mennonite community for the purposes of knowledge preservation. The first two months of the project focused on learning about the Mennonite religion. The student researcher also scanned a number of periodicals of the Historical Society, all of which are on the database created and maintained by the University of Saskatchewan. The main portion of the project conducting and transcribing eleven interviews. These interviews took place in Saskatoon, Rosthern, and Hague.
Community Partner: Mennonite Historical Society of Saskatchewan
Student Researchers: Harris Ford
Project Title: Saskatchewan History and Folklore Society Project
description pending
Community Partner: Saskatchewan History and Folklore Society
Student Researchers: Taytyn Welcher
Project Title: Community Participation in Woodland Caribou Research and Recovery in Northern Saskatchewan
description pending
Community Partner: Prince Albert Model Forests
Student Researchers: Eden Friesen
Project Title: Mistawasis Nehiyawak and the USask Coommunity-Engaged History Collaboratorium Reseach Project
description pending
Community Partner: Mistawasis First Nation
Student Researchers: Erin Grant
Project Title: Flying Dust First Nation History Project
description pending
Community Partner: Flying Dust First Nation
Student Researchers: Alexandra Forand, and Darsi Kahpeaysewat
2017
description pending Community Partner: Matsqui First Nation Student Researcher: Jenna Casey and Anyssa Plan,
Project Title: Flying Dust First Naiton History Project
description pending
Project Title: Prince Albert Model Forests
description pending
Project Title: The Gladue Database Project
description pending
2016
Project Title: The Gladue Database Project
description pending
Project Title: Flying Dust First Naiton History Project
description pending
Community Partner: Flying Dust First Nation
Student Researchers: Karissa Piche, Charlene Graham, and Jenna Casey
Project Title:
description pending
Community Partner: Beardys and Okamasis First Nation
Student Researcher: Rhonda Lindsey
Project Title:
description pending
Community Partner: Saskatchewan History & Folklore Society
Student Researchers: Aimee Ferre, Skylar Brassard, and Danielle Bird
Project Title:
description pending
Community Partner: Whitecap Dakota First Nation
Student Researcher: Mika Rathwell
Project Title: Adrian Paton Arcola History Project
description pending
Community Partner: Adrian Paton of Arcola, Saskatchewan
Student Researcher: Katelyn Findlay
Project Title: Prince Albert Model Forest
description pending
Community Partner: Prince Albert Grand Council
Student Researcher: Zach Carreiro
description pending
Project Title: Xwelitem Project
description pending
Community Partner: Stó:lō Nation
Student Researcher: Anthony Meyer
Project Title: Saskatoon Heritage Research Project
description pending
Community Partner: Saskatoon Heritage
Student Researchers: Jenna Casey and Steven Langlois
Project Title: Community Profiles
description pending
Community Partner: Maureen Reed
Student Researcher: Zach Carreiro
2015
Project Title: Gladue Database Project
The goal of this multi-year progect is to provide Saskatchewan Legal Aid with high quality and academically sound information pertaining to the history of Aboriginal people in Saskatchewan relevant to Gladue Rights that can be used to assist defence counsel in composing Gladue reports for specific individuals and to assist the judiciary when sentencing or setting bail for Aboriginal people.
In the first phase, taking place in May to August of 2015, three students will research the historical racism and marginalization that has affected Aboriginal people in the province of Saskatchewan in order to provide important historical context for helping define people’s Gladue rights. In particular, the research will be designed to examine and document history within the following thematic areas: politics, education, medical, social, and economic.
Community Partner: Legal Aid Saskatchewan
Student Researchers: Sam Derksen, Hannah Cooley, Kristen Merke
Project Title: Memories of Recent Prairie Immigration
The purpose of this project is to preserve the stories and memories of recent immigration to Saskatchewan and the prairies. It is hoped that these experiences will be recorded to add to academic and public understandings of newcomer experiences. A connection has been developed with a community garden where 60 individuals, most of which are new-comers, are involved. The stories and memories are collected through oral interviews with members of the garden. The expected final output is a final report interpreting the findings of the research.
Community Partner: Saskatchewan History and Folklore Society
Student Researcher: Genesis Hevia Orio
Project Title:
description pending
Community Partner: Whitecap Dakota First Nation
Student Researcher: Kasey Sakowski