Four months ago, at the Inaugural Indigenomics Institute conference (24-26 June 2019) in Vancouver, BC, Canada, Buffy Sainte-Marie (middle in photo below) gave a phenomenal keynote speech at the River Rock Casino. I had the great privilege to meet Buffy, but most importantly, listen to her keynote. After nearly five decades of music, activism and global Indigenous leadership, Buffy’s voice resounded with reminders of the long legacies of Indigenous ethics that have shaped Indigenous success, resistance and insistence on good, ethical leadership for humanity to survive. Buffy’s groundbreaking leadership includes being one of the first women to breastfeed on public television in an episode of Sesame Street in 1977 found here.
As a Research Advisor to the Indigenomics Institute, I gave a keynote at the Indigenomics Research Forum, encouraging us collectively to pay attention to the philosophies, sources of knowledge and theories to inform how we approach Indigenous economics and business development. In Buffy’s words: “Hopefully it won’t be based on making the same mistakes in the same old way…with feathers on it”.
CEO, and Founder of the Indigenomics Institute, Carol-Anne Hilton (pictured on the right in the photo below) says that Indigenomics is a platform for modern Indigenous, constructive and generative economic design.
To listen to Buffy’s full keynote, click to watch on Youtube here:
Buffy Sainte-Marie Inaugural Indigenomics Conference keynote
Buffy’s Highlights:
“Don’t be like that! Grow a pair!”
“Cook it up yourself, and be prepared to serve them!”
“Milton Freidman doesn’t know what he’s missing…”
The Province coverage of the gala:
Inaugural Indigenomics Indigenous Economic Council:
K.I.N. Knowledge in Indigenous Networks 