Aiyana Twigg
Aiyana Kⱡawat̓inak Paⱡki· Sa’tahtaki Twigg is a Ktunaxa citizen and registered member of Kainai, raised in yaq̓it ʔa·knuqⱡiʔit (Tobacco Plains) on Ktunaxa territory. She is an Indigenous youth activist, language researcher, and scholar passionate about creating inclusive digital spaces for Indigenous languages and empowering youth to actively participate in language revitalization efforts. Aiyana holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of British Columbia in First Nations and Endangered Languages and Anthropology. She is currently pursuing a Master of Education in Indigenous Language Revitalization at the University of Victoria. Her work focuses on decolonizing linguistics and addressing Westernized frameworks that hinder Indigenous languages’ connection to culture. Aiyana’s initiatives combine technology, media, and land-based learning. She authored the ‘Safeguarding Your Language Through Documentation’ toolkit in partnership with the Canadian Commission for UNESCO and SILR. Aiyana advocates and supports Indigenous language revitalization efforts across Turtle Island and globally through her volunteer work with the Canadian Commission for UNESCO and the UNESCO International Decade of Indigenous Languages
Making Space for Youth: Listening, Trusting, and Reimagining Language Revitalization
Indigenous language revitalization initiatives frequently name youth as essential to the future of our languages, yet many programs struggle to engage them meaningfully in the present. In this keynote, Aiyana Sa’tahtaki Twigg, a Ktunaxa and Blackfoot youth, language learner, language advocate, and researcher, reflects on her personal journey into language revitalization and the lessons learned from working alongside Indigenous youth across communities. Rather than asking why youth are disengaged, she reframes the question: how are language spaces being designed, and who do they truly make room for? Drawing from lived experience and youth-centered practices, she explores barriers that quietly push young people away, including fear of mistakes, rigid fluency expectations, and limited leadership opportunities. Aiyana highlights what truly inspires youth - belonging, identity, joy, relevance, creativity, and trust - and invites educators, communities, and institutions to move beyond “engagement” toward celebrating youth as language holders, creators, and leaders, now, not someday.