Many Indigenous creation stories highlight the role of women in shaping Indigenous life, societies and cultures. This is the reason why we wanted to address the theme of governance through a Haudenosaunee creation story, that of .
For the Haudenosaunee, the earth was created through the interaction of the elements of sky and water. Various Iroquoian-speaking peoples tell significantly different versions of this creation story, which begins with the fall of the Sky Woman.
This Indigenous narrative provides a better understanding of the different elements of Indigenous women's participation in governance.
We broke down these elements into four main questions:
This story is also interspersed with excerpts from interviews with women leaders in the Mohawk (Kanien:keha'ka), Eeyou, Wendat, and Mi'gmaq Nations, who were generous enough to share their experiences and their vision on governance.
This tool is meant to be a resource for all Indigenous women who want to gain a better understanding of governance and who want to be more involved. It also facilitates the formulation of certain arguments and demands on issues that particularly affect them, and identifies the structures to which these demands can be presented. Finally, it includes a variety of external resource materials, resource guides and practical exercises to support Indigenous women's participation at all levels of governance.