Spatial Identity

NENQAYNI means “People or Person of the Land” in the Tsilhqot’in language. This phrase and its meaning are inclusive, transcending differences in skin colour, sex, gender, and family background. Instead, it describes an individual's relationship to the natural world around them—the water, the land, and the animals. It represents an identity based on a natural phenomenon in the world: a Spatial Identity.

A spatial identity is a personal and communal connection to a specific place and the natural phenomena occurring there. For example, the Tsilhqot’in people have a shared identity that translates to “People of the Glacier Rock Rivers.” Societies with spatial identities may now be referred to by various terms, such as Indigenous, First Nations, Indian, or Aboriginal. A Spatial Identity is distinct from a Temporal Identity, which might describe individuals who define themselves by a city, nationality, or occupation, such as “New Yorker,” “Vancouverite,” “Canadian,” “lawyer,” “doctor,” or “scientist.” Temporal identities are based on constructed concepts rather than the tangible, sensory experiences of our natural world.

NENQAYNI is an Indigenous-founded and led not-for-profit organization. Our vision is to inspire, uplift, and engage with the last remaining spatially identified societies on the planet—those who carry cultures deeply connected to the world’s most pristine biospheres. This project includes international cultural exchange trips, on-the-land educational curriculum, and artistic ventures such as filmmaking, painting, and literature. Ultimately, our goal is to create a physical cultural centre and school that serves as a hub of decolonized health, wellness, knowledge-sharing, and cultural revitalization.