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“I Don’t Come from Anywhere”: Exploring the Role of the Geoweb and Volunteered Geographic Information in Rediscovering a Sense of Place in a Dispersed Aboriginal Community

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Abstract

This chapter explores the role of participatory mapping, the geoweb, and volunteered geographic information in rediscovering a sense of place within a physically dispersed Aboriginal community, the Tlowitsis Nation from Northern Vancouver Island. Centered on a community-based research project, this chapter examines how the participatory geoweb might be used by Tlowitsis members to better understand and reconnect with their land-related knowledge, as well as examine the ways in which these technologies serve to re-present place-based memories and facilitate dialogue amongst community members located in different geographic settings.

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Acknowledgments

This chapter could not have been written without both the commitment to research and the financial support of the Tlowitsis Treaty Office, in particular the Chief Negotiator Ken Smith and Treaty researcher Zach Romano. Furthermore, it reflects the views of many Tlowitsis members who have been, and continue to be, overwhelmingly gracious in sharing their time, experiences, and involvement. The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada funds the geoweb project described in this chapter. Geolive has been developed using funding from the GEOIDE network Project 41.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Community, Culture and Global Studies, University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, BC, Canada

    Jon Corbett

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  1. Jon Corbett
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Correspondence to Jon Corbett .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. Geography, Ohio State University, N. Oval Mall 154, Columbus, 43210, Ohio, USA

    Daniel Sui

  2. Dept. Geography, University of Washington, Seattle, 98195-3550, Washington, USA

    Sarah Elwood

  3. College of Letters & Science, Dept. Geography, University of California, Santa Barbara, Ellison Hall, Santa Barbara, 93106-4060, California, USA

    Michael Goodchild

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Corbett, J. (2013). “I Don’t Come from Anywhere”: Exploring the Role of the Geoweb and Volunteered Geographic Information in Rediscovering a Sense of Place in a Dispersed Aboriginal Community. In: Sui, D., Elwood, S., Goodchild, M. (eds) Crowdsourcing Geographic Knowledge. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4587-2_13

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