'Heart-centered' archaeological practice
Renowned archaeologist and anthropologist Dr. Kisha Supernant, PhD, will appear Nov. 1 at the Faculty of Arts’ Distinguished Speaker Series in Ross Glen Hall on the MRU campus.
The Distinguished Speaker Series is actually an award Faculty of Arts faculty members collaborate to present each year, explains Dr. Mary-Lee Mulholland, PhD, chair and professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology. The recipient is nominated and then adjudicated by a committee. It is a flagship event for arts, and recipients represent the values of transformative education, societal benefit, social change, and the spirit of reconciliation.
Supernant (Métis/Papaschase/British) is the director of the Institute of Prairie and Indigenous Archaeology and a professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Alberta. An award-winning teacher, researcher, and writer, her research with Indigenous communities (including Métis and First Nations) in western Canada explores how archaeologists and communities can build collaborative research relationships and uphold Indigenous rights to cultural heritage.
“For all of the Faculty of Arts, what we're really passionate about is Dr. Supernant’s public-facing research. Key to us are those researchers and scholars who are able to translate their work meaningfully to the public to show the importance of our discipline and how it can work to better society and work towards social change,” Mulholland says. “And in our discipline right now in Canada, there's nobody who does it better than Dr. Supernant, while also posing some really important ethical questions about research for whom, when and how.”
Mulholland describes Supernant as “innovative” in her scientific methodologies as well as her synergistic approach to research. Supernant is helping to mold a new form of archaeological research by integrating Indigenous ways of knowing and “heart-centered” practices into archaeological processes, from excavation to lab work to interpretation. Through using technology such as geographic information systems (GIS) and remote sensing, Supernant is supporting Indigenous communities that are working to affirm their rights to tell their own histories and care for their own cultural heritage.
Recently, Supernant has been increasingly engaged in using technologies to locate and protect unmarked burials around residential schools at the request of Indigenous communities throughout Canada.
Dr. Maxime Lamoureux-St-Hilaire, PhD, describes himself as a “settler scholar” and is an assistant professor of anthropology. He says, “Dr. Supernant is undeniably one of the most prominent archaeologists in Canada. Her work is unique in being both incredibly relevant on the national scene and really innovative in its archaeological methods and theory. Her collaborations with Indigenous communities to identify the location of unmarked burials associated with residential schools is crucial as Canada reckons with this painful and tragic aspect of our shared history.”
In advance of her arrival to MRU on Nov. 1, we were able to ask Dr. Supernant a few questions.
What is "heart-centered archaeological practice?"
Heart-centered archaeological practice acknowledges that we bring all aspects of ourselves — our identities, experiences, and emotions — into the classroom, the field, and our research. This approach invites us to start from the heart rather than exclusively from the mind, prioritizing care, emotion, relation, and rigour as guiding principles. As Natasha Lyons [PhD, Ursus Heritage Consulting] and I discuss in our introduction to Archaeologies of the Heart, these "four chambers" shape a practice that is more respectful, relational, and inclusive. By focusing on care and emotion, we create safer spaces for diverse perspectives and interpretations, allowing for a fuller, more nuanced, and more respectful understanding of the past. In this way, heart-centered practice also reorients how we engage with one another in the present, fostering meaningful relationships within archaeological work and beyond. This method does not abandon rigour, but reimagines it as part of a balanced approach that considers the emotional and relational dimensions of archaeological practice, ensuring that our work remains both intellectually and ethically grounded.
Often when we think of archaeology we think of digging with tiny shovels and little chisels, however you are using technology such as non-intrusive ground penetrating radar in your work. How is technology assisting with the advancement of your field?
Archaeology has traditionally been an extractive practice, involving the excavation of cultural materials — sometimes belongings of Indigenous ancestors — which are often removed from their context and placed in institutions, distancing them from the communities to whom they belong. Technologies like remote sensing allow us to explore and map landscapes without disturbing the ground as much, enabling a less invasive, more targeted approach. Tools such as LiDAR and ground-penetrating radar provide insights into the layout of sites, guiding targeted excavations only when necessary and allowing us to ask questions about the landscape in different ways. This shift supports a more ethical and collaborative practice, where the needs and interests of Indigenous communities are centered.
In this time of reconciliation, how do you imagine researchers working with Indigenous communities?
In this time of reconciliation, I envision a future where research involving Indigenous lands, peoples, histories, and knowledges is always community-driven or community-led. This means shifting research questions from individual scholars to those that emerge from relationships built with communities, engaging in respectful, collaborative, and ethical ways. This approach should be a goal for all researchers, even for those who may not work directly with Indigenous peoples, as they still have a responsibility to educate themselves about Indigenous histories and their own role in reconciliation. Living and working in Canada means that reconciliation is part of our shared responsibility — as citizens, researchers, and human beings.
Supernant's expertise in using archaeological technology to search for unmarked graves around residential schools has earned her recognition both nationally and internationally, including being featured in prominent venues such as 60 Minutes with Anderson Cooper, New York Times International Feature, New York Times Investigative Documentary, BBC World News, VICE News Documentary, Global National News, among others. She has published in peer-reviewed journals on GIS in archaeology, collaborative archaeological practice, Métis archaeology, and Indigenous archaeology in the post-TRC era, as well as co-edited two books. She also has a long history of knowledge mobilization beyond traditional academic venues.
Her many accomplishments include being the first Indigenous scholar to be awarded the Faculty of Arts Research Award and the Martha Piper Research Prize at the University of Alberta, being named in Edmonton's “Top 40 under 40” by Avenue Magazine, and being a keynote speaker at many venues. She is also the Chair of the Canadian Archaeological Association’s Working Group on Unmarked Graves, which won a 2024 Governor General’s Innovation Award, and was a member of the National Advisory Committee on Missing Children and Unmarked Burials. She also is president of the Indigenous Heritage Circle. In recognition of her exceptional achievements, Supernant was inducted into the Royal Society of Canada's College of News Scholars, Artists, and Scientists in 2021 and received the Dorothy Killam Fellowship in 2023.