Recognition

” Kodiak Herbal Métis Health & Culture provided two traditional medicine workshops for the Grande
Prairie Regional College students, staff and faculty. These teachings were provided via ZOOM which
shows Kalyn’s resiliency and adaptability. Facilitator Kalyn Kodiak was very knowledgeable about the
medicines. She was patient and answered any questions she received. Kalyn was very easy to work with
and met all deadlines. I highly recommend Kodiak Herbal! As a Métis woman, I am proud that I was
able to receive a teaching from her. “

” Kalyn Kodiak led a full-day native plant walk and exploration of Metis lifeways for our group of
teenagers during the summer of 2021. We had an amazing time with her! At the time, some of our
group members were still getting to know each other and were typically very quiet and shy around new people. Kalyn put everyone at ease right away. She gave people the opportunity to introduce themselves and share about their backgrounds in their own language, which was an impactful way of honouring our participants who have immigrated to Canada or who speak additional languages at home. It really made them feel they belonged.

Kalyn comes across as very warm and personable, and our participants were eager to ask her questions and learn from her. Kalyn was also amazing at adapting to the interests of our participants. She learned that our
participants enjoyed competitions after seeing how enthusiastic they were at being the first to complete the plant and Metis knowledge bingo card she had handed out at the beginning of the session. She then adapted other activities to include an element of friendly competition, like creating a quiz that involved identifying plants correctly and remembering their uses. Since Kalyn met them where they were at, our youth stayed engaged in learning throughout the whole session.

We highly recommend programming with Kalyn Kodiak and Kodiak Herbal, and we can’t wait to do
more with her in the future!“

” On September 18th, I had the utmost pleasure of taking part in Kalyn Kodiak’s nature walk. Her
knowledge as a Metis herbalist was astounding and I learned so much about Metis culture and the land
on which I live within just a few acres! The afternoon I spent with her really broadened my
understanding of Indigenous ways of knowing and really strengthened my relationship with nature and
Mother Earth. I cannot wait to book another walk with her in the spring!“

” I had the pleasure of working with Kalyn in the spring of 2021 when she led three separate excursions
to the Weaselhead Natural Area with three groups of online learners that I was teaching through
Connect Charter School. Her wisdom and expertise in identifying, explaining the use of, and including
students in the discovery of native plants in this area was incredible.

I would highly recommend having Kalyn work with your students. She was able to bring in curricular outcomes and reinforce the importance of working with plants, using them for medicine and healing alongside showing respect and care for the land. “

” I am glad to have participated in a plant walk with Kalyn and my students in grades 4, 5, 6 and 7. She
was professional, quick to respond, and adapted to the different curriculum requirements of the
younger and older students. Students were encouraged to participate with Kalyn, each other, and with
their environment in new ways, and they were excited to share their learning after the experience.

The foundations of Metis culture, plant knowledge, and place-based learning in Kalyn’s sessions connected
nicely to Science, ELA, and Social Studies outcomes. I would highly recommend her to other teachers! “

” Kalyn Kodiak was invited to join our school’s Professional Growth Day activity at Nosehill Park in Calgary. We met at Nosehill Park for a hike to the Medicine Wheel. It was a cold, windy day but Kalyn was very prepared for the weather. We had arranged to have Kalyn there for her background in Clinical Herbology.

As we walked along the paths to the Medicine Wheel Kalyn shared with our group of 25 teachers many facts about the various plants that we encountered. Kalyn was able to engage with our staff and educate them about many plants. She spoke clearly and loudly enough for all to hear on a windy day. Her knowledge about the various plants seemed endless and our staff asked many questions that she was happy to answer.

She told stories about the plants, shared interesting facts and even showed a few examples of how to use balsam buds for first aid treatment. She was pleasant and happy to talk with individuals about their plant questions as we walked. Kalyn was able to transform a walk in Nosehill Park into an educational experience where we all learned interesting facts about the natural plants in the area. “

” I had the opportunity to have Kalyn Kodiak lead a plant walk as part of a section on land-based
learning we do in the education program at Ambrose University. Kalyn led the group on fantastic
interactive journey through Weaselhead Park as students smelled, touched, and tasted plants while
considering the health and spiritual benefits of each.

Not only did she engage students in conversation about the flora of the area, but she also intertwined her narrative with stories from her Metis heritage creating an engaging and thoughtful experience for the students on multiple levels.

As we had several other guests doing land-based learning activities in the course, I surveyed students about the value of each of the different activities. Students unanimously gave Kalyn an extremely strong recommendation, as do I. “

” I recently participated in a Medicine Walk through the Weaselhead Natural Area with Kalyn Kodiak
and a group of pre-service teachers from the Werklund School of Education. Kalyn generously shared a
wealth of knowledge with the group.

I was delighted by the variety of her approach and the invitations to engage all senses in the experience. She encouraged us to get close – to see and feel the textures, to smell and taste plants. In doing, we were brought to notice the diversity of life in a small area that I will never walk through the same way again.

Throughout the session, Kalyn included familial stories that deepened understandings of distinct Métis culture, history, and lifeways, and positioned the group within the broad homeland of the Métis people. In addition, she centered use of the Michif language in ways that led the beginning teachers to make connections between culture, language, and place, and this supported their learning in a broader Indigenous Education course.

In the time of truth and reconciliation initiatives, and urgent ecological crisis, I believe slowing down with Kalyn to learn the stories of the life that surrounds us is the kind of experience needed to heal and strengthen
relationships. I recommend this transformative experience to students and teachers at all levels. “