Recording traditional knowledge, folklore, and memories of land and sea.

I have been a practicing oral historian since 2017 and am currently the Oral Historian with Know History, Canada’s largest historical research firm. I have expertise in traditional knowledge and land use studies, mapping interviews, and fieldwork in rural and remote areas.

My personal work focuses on social history and its overlap with the natural world, and I have a particular interest in Scottish environmental history.

Presentation Partners

Projects:

Lyndsie Bourgon Oral History

Traditional Knowledge and Land Use

I am privileged to help develop, manage, and execute traditional knowledge and land use studies across Canada. As part of a team at Know History, we help record and preserve stories, memories, and intergenerational knowledge shared with us by Elders and knowledge keepers.

2017-present

The Timber Wars

Oral history interviews about working class perspectives of the Pacific Northwest Timber Wars. Interviews took place in former logging communities, and had a particular focus on family history, community history, and deindustrialization. Eventually, these contributed to my book Tree Thieves.

2019-2021

Old-growth in the Amazon

Oral history and folklore interviews about forest conservation, community history, traditional knowledge, and timber poaching in the Peruvian Amazon. This work was supported by the National Geographic Society.

2018

Tkʼemlúps te Secwépemc Ck’úl’ten Te M-sq’7est.s

Led interviews about harvesting, culture, family history, and land rights. This project was community-run by Tkʼemlúps te Secwépemc, and created an archive of intergenerational knowledge now stored at the Secwépemc Museum and Heritage Park.

2017-2019

Britain’s Last Whalers

For my Master’s dissertation at the University of St Andrews, I interviewed two dozen former whalers who witnessed the final days of Britain’s whaling industry in Antarctica. These interviews took place in Shetland, Fife, and the Highlands of Scotland.

2017

To talk more about oral history and potential projects, feel free to contact me at:

lyndsiebourgon (at) gmail (dot) com