The University of Victoria is hosting 40 people from across Canada to share ideas on maintaining and revitalizing Indigenous languages.

Ideas generated at the Indigenous Language Forum will be taken back to communities and used to help nurture language, culture and identity.

"This project is a six year project," said Onowa McIvor, UVic Associate Professor of Indigenous Education. "The first ever national project focused on language revitalization in Canada that is Indigenous-led, Indigenous-governed."

When asked what language revitalization means to indigenous communities, McIvor said it's about preserving culture.

"It’s a renewal of spirit, both personal and for the community. We have evidence of better health physically, spiritually and mentally for communities.".

She said another benefit is advancement of economic and development opportunities for the regions and the people who live in them.

The goal is to bring together people who hold varied positions in communities, organizations, and government agencies that are involved or contribute to the strengthening and maintenance of Indigenous languages in Canada.

“It is part of our culture, because you cannot separate language and culture,” said Saa Pitsiulak, Inukitut Language Program Officer with Nunavut's Department of Culture and Heritage. "In our region there are many fluent speakers, even young children but we have seen a trend where young children and youth are speaking English more."

Pitsiulak said she's hopeful she'll get more ideas from this conference and learn from others what they are doing in their communities to rejuvenate and restore traditional language.

The event is taking place at The First Peoples' House on the UVic campus. On Monday morning at the conference, each participant wrote on a sticky note the name of their community, language, or any other meaningful phrase and placed it on a map of Canada.

The activity was meant to bring to life a 3D, virtual sharing spirit of NILLA , the NETOLNEW Indigenous Language Learning Atlas.

The event is registered with the UNESCO and is happening simultaneously with the official launch of the 2019 International Global Year of Indigenous Languages happening in Paris, France.

The event at UVic will last for two days. For more information, check out NILLA's website.