St. Peter’s, CB – If you were a Mi’kmaw teenager, what could be better than to spend a week this summer on the Bras d’Or Lakes?

How about reconnecting with nature, learning all about natural resources and traditional Mi’kmaw values and practices?

For the next week that is exactly what is happening at Nikani Awtiken, a summer camp for Mi’kmaw youth taking place at Camp Rankin near St. Peter’s over the next eight days, August 7–14.

Twenty-eight teenagers from across Nova Scotia have signed on to take workshops and field trips led by resource experts and Mi’kmaw Elders, who will provide training in a wide range of skills including forest management, native species and medicinal plant identification, beach scenes, fire and boating safety, team building, leadership skills, first aid, professional work ethics and traditional Mi’kmaw knowledge.

If you aren’t tired out just hearing about some of the things that these youth will be doing, throw in nightly campfires, a day of eel spearing, a sweat lodge and a hike in the Cape Breton Highlands’ Skyline Trail! Did we mention the feast and BBQ?

Nadine LeFort is Education & Outreach Coordinator at Mi’kmaq Education Learning Centre (MELC) and over the past few months she has been arranging the camp activities, recruiting the participants, hiring staff and attending to the many, many details involved in a project of this scope.

“Nikani Awtiken, ...