$52M Yukon University science building to emphasize Indigenous knowledge
New facility will be place ‘for different people from different disciplines to come together’
Yukon University’s new $52-million science building will be a space where Western science can blend with Indigenous world views, school officials say.
Work on the new facility is now underway. A ground-breaking ceremony was held at the Whitehorse campus on Friday.
“Our current science labs where students are learning reflect a 1988 approach to science,” said Shelagh Rowles, the school’s provost and vice president academic. “This is a huge opportunity to be able to catch up.”
The new, 2,567-square-metre facility will include several “state-of-the-art” labs, and indoor and outdoor learning spaces. It’s expected to be complete by the fall of 2027.
The Polaris Project, as it’s now called, will also include a knowledge-sharing room and a room for ceremonies. That’s something that doesn’t currently exist at the university, Rowles said.
“There’s no space for elders and cultural exchange and traditional ceremony in the current academic wing. This actually embeds that right in the centre of the building,” she said.
Rowles said the North is facing serious issues right now, including climate change, threats to Arctic security, and environmental protection. She hopes the new facility will be a valuable resource to tackle some of those issues.
“This building is a way for different people from different disciplines to come together, to really understand better how we navigate that in the context of the North,” Rowles said.
Sean Smith, chief of the Kwanlin Dün First Nation in Whitehorse, said he’s pleased to see that Indigenous traditional knowledge will be an essential element in the new facility.
“I think it’s very powerful because it really broadens our perspective, understanding and awareness and knowledge systems,” he said.
Smith also believes that combining disciplines and world views may yield new ideas and approaches to issues like climate change and biodiversity.
“I know that there’s some real solutions that are very possible,” he said.
The bulk of funding for the new facility — more than $31 million — is from the federal government. The Yukon government has also committed $12 to $ 14 million toward the construction. The university is also undertaking a fundraising campaign to help cover the rest.
With files from Tori Fitzpatrick
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