About CIRKL

C-Centre & Circle

The Circle is an ancient symbol of unity and continuity. We sit around the council fire. We dance in a circle. We live our Lives within the Great Circle of Life. A Circle is also about equality, as we gather to share our teachings, strengthen our resolve and share our gifts in order to bring peace and unity to our world. 

I-Indigenous 

Ongweonwe is one word that describes the Original People of this Land, meaning the Real People, People made real by Creation, just as there are real plants, real trees, real birds and real animals. Anishinaabe is another way to express this distinctiveness. As the First Peoples of this land we inherited countless generations of knowledge and belief about being in relationship to place. Our identity is tied to such places as is our ancestral memories. 

R-Relationships

Indigenous cultures are about relationships. With the Earth and the celestial bodies. With all that grows on the Mother Earth. With each other. The qualities of those relationships are shaped by our cultural experiences. We also have historic relationships with the Newcomers, defined through treaty like the Two Row Wampum. 

K-Knowledge

Gaining knowledge and wisdom Indigenously comes in variety of ways. Hands-on, on the land learning is the traditional way, combined with mentoring and story telling. Each person is born with an inner gift, a special talent, a special character. Learning is the gift of time to discover, explore and develop those gifts while also learning to appreciate and work with the gifts that other carry.  

L-Learning

Indigenous intelligence, philosophy and vision is driven by our time-tested and true experiences that verify the meaning of natural phenomenon. Our knowledge is encoded in our relationships, in our stories, in our ceremonies and in our oral history. From this collective knowledge comes great wisdom and hopes for the future.