Tribal canoe journeys on North America’s Northwest Coast: Well-being, ancestral knowledge and techniques, Indigenous resistance and cultural resurgence.

This thesis explores the cultural and political significance of the Tribal Canoe Journeys (TCJ) among Indigenous communities of North America’s Northwest Coast, focusing on the Coast Salish, Nuu-chah-nulth, and Kwakwaka’wakw. By examining contemporary practices surrounding canoe-making and participation in canoe journeys, the research investigates how canoes bridge ancestral knowledge and modern cultural resurgence, embodying Indigenous resistance against colonial legacies. Using a decolonial framework that integrated Critical Indigenous Theory, the study analyzes canoes’ material and symbolic construction and their practical roles in Indigenous resurgence. Engaging directly with Indigenous knowledge holders and TCJ participants, ethnographic fieldwork, in-depth interviews, and multimedia documentation from the 2023 TCJ were used as methods, aiming for Indigenous perspectives to remain central to the analysis. A thematic analysis identified the themes of cultural revitalization and resurgence; intergenerational transmission of knowledge; personal transformation and healing; community, cultural integrity, and environment; leadership, empowerment and political and social activism. These themes emphasize TCJ’s role in Indigenous cultural revitalization, enabling participants to reconnect with their ancestral knowledge and practices. It also contributes to personal and collective healing and creating transformative experiences. The research further analyzes the TCJ as a dynamic space of cultural hybridity, where tradition is maintained while embracing modern elements. The findings suggest that the TCJ is a celebration of Indigenous identity and an active form of resistance against colonial structures. This research contributes to understanding the TCJ as a living practice that defies static notions of culture and continues to promote Indigenous sovereignty, cultural identity, and political activism. Ultimately, it argues that canoes, both as objects and metaphors, are central to the resurgence of Indigenous cultural practices and to ongoing decolonial movements