Kinspeak is a research consultancy based in Edmonton. We help Métis and Indigenous communities record their stories, trace their families and map their ties to the land.
Kinspeak works with Métis and Indigenous communities and organizations to record oral histories, research family lines and document how people have lived on and used the land over generations.
Our team brings together experience in history, genealogy, linguistics, interviewing and mapping. We keep our work plain and practical: careful records, clear reports, and research that stays in the community's hands.
We follow the OCAP® principles of ownership, control, access and possession. Communities own their information and decide how it is collected, used, shared and kept. We also follow each community's own research protocols.
We listen with patience and respect. People choose what they share and tell it in their own way.
We work hard to get names, dates and places right, and we handle every recording and document with care. Sensitive information, such as sacred sites or confidential stories, is kept in confidence and stays with the community.
Much of our work happens in the North, close to the places people talk about.
Sunset over Great Slave Lake, near Fort Resolution, NWT
Each project is planned together with the people it serves.
Recorded conversations with Elders and community members about their lives, families and history, kept for future generations.
Family history research that brings together archival records and what families remember, written up in clear, readable reports.
Studies that record how a community has used, travelled and cared for the land, prepared for and controlled by the community.
Interviews where the places people talk about are marked on a digital map (GIS) as they speak, so stories and locations stay together.
Accurate, readable written transcripts of recorded interviews.
Research designed with the community from the start, following OCAP® principles at every step.
The community is involved at every step, and everything we gather goes back to them.
We talk through what you hope to learn, who should be involved and your timeline.
We plan the questions, the people to invite and how the information will be kept and shared.
We meet participants beforehand to explain the project and answer their questions.
We record each interview and mark places on a map as people speak.
Recordings are written up as accurate, readable transcripts.
Participants can review their transcripts and maps before anything is finalized.
Reports, maps, recordings and data go back to the community, which owns them.
Founder and Project Director
Andrea, who is Métis, founded Kinspeak and leads its oral history and genealogy work. She was previously a research contractor with the Métis Heritage Association of the NWT, holds a BA in History from the University of Alberta, and is a long-time resident of the Northwest Territories.
Lead Researcher and GIS Specialist
maaz@kinspeak.ca
maazahmadshaikh.github.io
Maaz holds a PhD in Linguistics from the University of Alberta (2026). His work focuses on community-based documentation of endangered languages and knowledge, including recording, transcription, archiving and GIS mapping. At Kinspeak, he maps places and land use as interviews happen and looks after recordings, transcripts and data.
Interviewer and Participant Coordinator
Gillian was born in Aklavik and raised in Inuvik. She conducts interviews and coordinates scheduling with participants.
In loving memory
1926–2026
We remember Pi with gratitude and affection, and hold his family in our thoughts.
To ask about a project or any of our services, send us an email. It helps to tell us about your community or organization, the kind of project you have in mind and your timeline.
Cloud formations on the road to Fort Smith, NWT
