Winner of the CSN Prize - Best PhD Dissertation in Canadian Studies

Dr. Claire Thomson’s “Digging Roots and Remembering Relatives” (History PhD, University of Alberta) is a compelling examination of the “kinscapes and landscapes” of the Lakota people of Lakȟóta Tȟamákȟočhe (Lakota Country) from 1881 to 1940. Using photographs, archival materials, and interviews, Dr. Thomson provides an alternative approach to the history of the Lakota people during a pivotal time period, centring Wood Mountain Lakota. With close attention to the Lakota language, Dr. Thomson shows the central role that women played in ensuring cultural continuities in the face of settler colonial pressures. Powerfully written, this dissertation reveals the enduring role of relationship in Lakȟóta Tȟamákȟočhe and its "network of allies and relations, both human and non-human." Dr. Thomson's dissertation offers fresh insight as well on borderland studies, challenging traditional understandings of space, place, kin, memory, and relationship.

Honorable Mention

Dr. Laura Poulin’s timely dissertation "Rural Older Adult Transitions in Care” (Canadian Studies PhD, Trent University) builds on the author’s expert knowledge of the field of care for older adults, using Haliburton County as a case study. Deploying a rigorous methodology, Poulin argues for a holistic and sensitive understanding of how older adults use and require care as they age. She shows clearly how policies presupposing “urban centrism” do not fit the needs of aging rural residents.

The CSN warmly thanks the committee members for this prize.