2026 David Neufeld Memorial Lecture: Crystal Gail Fraser and Jess Dunkin

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David Neufeld was a historian who championed many things, including Northern history, environmental history, public history, and Indigenous history and heritage. He spent his career as a Parks Canada historian learning from the people and the land of the Yukon Territory, pushing for inclusion and two-eyed seeing, and mentoring young and early career researchers who shared his passions. The passing of David in late 2020 brought to light just how many people, both within and outside the academic world, David has influenced, supported, and mentored throughout his life.

Smiling man in a motor boat on a river between rock cliffs. A bridge is seen in the background.
David on the River. Photo by Jon Luedee.

To honour David’s legacy, the Neufeld Memorial Lecture will take place annually, in a virtual format, and will feature the work of early career researchers, public historians, and Indigenous historians and heritage workers. In keeping with his spirit, this event will remain free and open to the public, and housed for future viewing.

The Neufeld Memorial Lecture organizing committee is pleased to announce that the 2026 lecture will feature Drs. Crystal Gail Fraser and Jess Dunkin speaking about the How I Survived podcast in partnership with the NWT Recreation and Parks Association.

The lecture is March 27th, 2026th at 12pm EST (10am MT/Yukon time).

Register Here

How I Survived is a research project and podcast about recreation at residential and day schools in the Canadian North. Guided by an advisory committee of Survivors and intergenerational Survivors, How I Survived was initiated by the NWT Recreation and Parks Association and Dr. Crystal Gail Fraser in response to a recognized need for more education about northern residential and day schooling generally and the place of recreation within this system specifically. How I Survived was also envisioned as a way to further truth and reconciliation in this country, and engage with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action. Together, the project and podcast are gathering, preserving, and sharing Survivor stories, and celebrating the strength, resilience, spirit, and creativity of former students.

Crystal Gail Fraser
Jess Dunkin

Dr. Crystal Gail Fraser is a historian and Indigenous studies scholar at the University of Alberta whose work centres Indigenous histories of colonial schooling, oral history, archives, and community-driven research in the Canadian North. She is the author of By Strength, We Are Still Here: Indigenous Peoples and Indian Residential Schooling in Inuvik, Northwest Territories and co-author of Talk Treaty to Me: Understanding the Basics of Treaties and Land in Canada. Her scholarship and public engagement were recently recognized with a Governor General’s History Award. She leads Survivor-centred, community-engaged projects that support public education, Indigenous methodologies, and truth-telling grounded in Indigenous knowledge systems.

Jess Dunkin (she/her) is a settler historian and writer, who has lived in Sǫǫ́mbak’è in Treaty 8 since 2015. Jess was a full-time staff member at the NWT Recreation and Parks Association from 2015-20. She continues to work with the NWTRPA as the project manager of “How I Survived.” She also coordinates the Petroleum Histories Project on behalf of the Sahtú Renewable Resources Board and works for the Łutsël K’é Dene First Nation’s Thaıdene Nëné Department. Jess is a research associate at Aurora College, an adjunct professor in the School of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation at the University of Alberta, and author of Canoe and Canvas (2019).

You can also read the “Land, Memory, and Schooling: Environmental Histories of Colonial Education” series edited by Drs. Fraser and Dunkin.

If you are a Survivor or intergenerational Survivor of residential or day school and need help, there’s a free 24-hour support line. Call 1-800-925-4419. You can find information about other supports here. Please take care.

The David Neufeld Memorial Lecture Organizing Committee includes Erin Neufeld, Karen Routledge, Heather Green, Glenn Iceton, and Jonathan Luedee. Inquiries about the Neufeld Lecture can be made to Karen Routledge at routledge@gmail.com or Heather Green at heather.green@smu.ca. You can view past Neufeld Lectures here.

The Neufeld Lecture Committee would like to thank the History Departments at Saint Mary’s University and the University of New Brunswick Saint John for financial support for the 2026 lecture.

Feature Image: Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in Elder Percy Henry and David. Photo courtesy of D. Neufeld.

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Heather Green

Heather Green is an assistant professor in the Department of History at Saint Mary's University. She is interested in the intersections of environmental and Indigenous histories, histories of Indigenous and Settler Relations, and mining history, particularly in the Canadian North. You can connect with her on twitter @heathergreen21.

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