Pages to Practice

The Challenge

When vision meets the ground

The Dënezhu Framework represents a profound vision for education grounded in Tr'ëhudè -the Dënezhu law of living in a good way. But deep listening at Robert Service School and within Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in Government revealed a complex landscape between vision and reality.

While support for co-governance and Dënezhu-centered education is strong, educators and leadership face real barriers:

Fear of getting it wrong. Non-Indigenous educators worry about cultural appropriation and disrespecting protocols, leading to paralysis rather than action.
Unclear co-governance mechanisms. While the concept has robust support, the practical structures for enacting it remain "blurry" to those on the ground.
Time as a critical barrier. Educators are already overburdened. Adding new content or practices feels impossible without fundamentally restructuring how the system works.
The values-action gap. The Western system is driven by speed, scheduling, and outcome measurement. Dënezhu ways unfold through presence, story, relationship, and the rhythms of the land.

The Response

From implementation to wayfinding

The strategic reframing of Pages to Practice pivots from a linear "implementation" mindset to a regenerative "wayfinding" approach. Implementation implies imposing new tasks upon an overburdened system. Wayfinding implies collaborative discovery of a path that aligns with the natural contours of community, culture, and land.

The work focuses on four interconnected areas:

Building the "Knowledge Garden." A searchable repository of pre-vetted, "grab-and-go" resources that reduce cognitive load and fear. Resources are organized into color-coded zones: Green (universal), Yellow (guided), Red (sacred/restricted), and Blue (unlearning tools).
Creating environments for unlearning. Embedding "unlearning" into daily routines - staff meetings, hiring panels, budget reviews - rather than treating decolonization as workshops.
Embedding co-governance in daily practice. Moving co-governance from committee rooms into hallways and classrooms through visible shared leadership and decision-making protocols.
Following seasonal rhythms. Replacing linear timelines with an Iterative Growth Model aligned with the Dënezhu seasonal round.

Guiding Principles

What grounds the wayfinding

The work is anchored in principles that ensure alignment with Dënezhu values while providing practical support:

Relational accountability over bureaucratic oversight. Success is measured by the health of relationships between school, TH government, TH citizens, and land.
Knowledge is living. Learning happens through doing and being, not only reading. The project provides "living practice" tools.
Cultural humility and brave spaces. Unlike "safe spaces" that prioritize comfort, "brave spaces" prioritize growth and endure the discomfort that arises when challenging deeply held biases.
Co-governance as lived reality. Co-governance must be personified through regular, visible presence of TH staff and knowledge holders.
Moving at the speed of trust. The work follows natural rhythms rather than artificial timelines.

What We're Learning

Emerging insights from deep listening

Through the "What We Heard" sessions and ongoing engagement, several key insights are shaping the work:

Co-governance needs visible presence. It cannot remain an abstract concept or quarterly meeting agenda item. TH Government staff, knowledge holders, and Elders need to be regularly present in the school as partners, not visitors.
Educators need cultural safety nets. The fear of "getting it wrong" is paralyzing. Pre-vetted resources with clear stamps of approval allow teachers to act with confidence while learning.
Unlearning requires structural support. Individual teachers cannot bear the entire emotional burden of decolonizing their practice.
Relationships precede content. The primary task is building respectful connections with land and community, from which content naturally flows.

Our Role

How we're contributing

Sustainable Impact Foundation works alongside Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in Government and Robert Service School to support the strategic reframing and tool development:

Strategic facilitation - Guiding the shift from implementation to wayfinding through deep listening and systems thinking
Tool design - Creating the comprehensive ecosystem of pedagogical resources, governance frameworks, and unlearning protocols
Vetting infrastructure - Establishing the color-coded knowledge zones and review processes
Capacity building - Supporting educator readiness through brave space creation and professional development design
Knowledge mobilization - Translating insights from the field into actionable guidance and documentation

We bring systems thinking frameworks to help partners understand how educational transformation is embedded in larger social, economic, and political dynamics.

Related Focus Areas