*6.1. Category 1: Indigenous Cultural Identity*

With the first research question, I sought to discover philosophical principles concerning the environment and interconnectedness in relation to sustainability in various Indigenous post-secondary education settings. Findings 1 and 2 identified that spiritual beliefs orienting Indigenous knowledge systems form the basis of how sustainability is understood, including in Indigenous education settings. These findings are significant because they reflect an Indigenous ontology concerning sustainability that is expressed through cultures, languages, and identities. That is, through learning Indigenous knowledges, one creates an Indigenous interpretation of sustainability. With a deeper understanding of Indigenous knowledges, gained through culture and language, there can be a deeper understanding of sustainability. The conception of Indigenous cultural identity within the research showed seven underlying principles including:

## 6.1.1. Spiritual Beliefs

Individuals should be able to develop at their own pace, and cultural camps, landbased courses, and a variety of activities taught by Elders or other cultural knowledge holders can ensure that this happens.

#### 6.1.2. Holistic Thinking

Living and practicing mental, physical, spiritual, and emotional aspects of Indigenous knowledges reinforce and sustain cultures so they can be passed on intergenerationally.

#### 6.1.3. Language

Since immersion is recognized as the best method to successfully acquire language [22], land-based language programming would seem to be pedagogically critical since it links land, language, and cultural knowledge.
