Mi’kmaw Moons: A Two-Eyed Seeing Project

Cathy (Acadia First Nation) and Dave (Royal Astronomical Society of Canada) have spent nearly 10 years learning about the full Moons of the Mi’kmaq using two eyes: indigenous culture and Western astronomy. The full Moon names relate to the natural phenomena of the time of year while the cycles derive from the orbital motion of the Earth and Moon. Their knowledge-seeking journey culminated in the best-selling book Mi’kmaw Moons: Through the Seasons (Formac 2022). In this presentation, you will hear some Holly and Auntie stories, learn some Mi’kmaw words, and see how astronomy usually gives us 12 full Moons a year, but sometimes 13.

Starting in July and running until the end of August, MTRI will be hosting weekly seminars on Thursday evenings from 7 – 8 p.m. These seminars will be hybrid so you can join online or stop into our field station at 9 Mt Merritt Rd, Kempt to join us and grab some snacks and light refreshments. Our seminars will feature speakers on a range of conservation, indigenous knowledge and wildlife topics including bats, the Terranaut Club, forest fires in Nova Scotia, mushrooms, Mi’kmaw Moons and climate change; just to name a few. To watch our seminars online you can register via Zoom or watch our Facebook livestream.