Making connections: Library and Archives Canada teams up with Carleton University to commemorate 15 years of Project Naming

Media Advisory

To mark the 15th anniversary of Project Naming, Library and Archives Canada (LAC), in collaboration with Carleton University, will host a gathering of community members, Aboriginal leaders and scholars for this remarkable initiative.

This free public event will be the first major community and scholarly gathering to discuss the contribution of Project Naming to Canada’s Aboriginal history. The majority of individuals from the North depicted in LAC’s photographic collections are nameless. Over the last 15 years, LAC has worked with Aboriginal communities to identify names and places in these images to rightfully preserve their history for present and future generations.

This gathering will also provide an opportunity for Inuit elders and youth from across Nunavut and elsewhere to celebrate the project’s achievements and to look to the future. Another component of this event will be the recording of stories and recollections from Inuit contributors to be included in a book about the history of the project being edited by Professor Carol Payne of Carleton University for McGill-Queen’s University Press.

Dates:

  • March 1 to 3, 2017—Library and Archives Canada, Pellan Room, 395 Wellington Street, Ottawa
  • March 2, 2017—afternoon session at Carleton University Art Gallery

Time: 9 am – 4 pm

Event details

Agenda [PDF 258 KB]

For more information, please contact:

Media Relations

Library and Archives Canada

819-994-4589

BAC.Media.LAC@canada.ca

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About Project Naming

Before Project Naming began in 2002, the Aboriginal peoples depicted in the majority of federal archival photographs were nameless. Project Naming provides a virtual space enabling First Nations, Métis Nation and Inuit communities to access Canada's historic photo collections and engage in the identification of people and locations, thereby reconnecting with their history to share memories and stories rekindled by the photographs.

The project also aims to inspire and empower Aboriginal youth with a renewed understanding and access to their past.

Since Project Naming began, many individuals have reunited with their families and loved ones, and have sometimes found themselves in the photographs.

In December 2015, Johnny Kasudluak and his mother, Martha Kasudluak, discovered several photographs of Martha and other family members from Inukjuak, Quebec. They sent this photo of Martha with three photographs of her as a young woman.

In September 2014, Ashevak Geetah (left) and her daughter, Eva Geetah (right) reconnected with their father and grandfather, Eetooloopak, after seeing his photo, which was taken in Iqaluit, Nunavut in March 1956.

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