Community Events – January 2019
Dec 23, 2018A Reading Circle for Reconciliation
Kelowna, BC
Starts January 8, 2019
From 2010 to 2015, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission listened to and documented the experiences of survivors, families, communities and anyone personally affected by the Indian Residential School Experience. In June 2015 they published their final report, which outlined 94 Calls to Actions for Canadians. Okanagan Regional Library will be hosting an opportunity for folks to continue the climb up Reconciliation Mountain. Please join us at a five session reading circle where we will read together the Executive Summary of the Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission: Honouring the Truth, Reconciling for the Future. Caroline MacKay, Debbie Hubbard and Nan Shearing will facilitate the Circle. The first session will be scheduled for Tuesday January 8. We will meet the second Tuesday of each month for a total of five months: February 12, March 12, April 9 and May 14. The sessions will run from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. Pre-registration prior to January 8 is required.
Soup & Bannock: Lunch & Learn Series
Nanaimo, BC
January 8, 2019
This event is open to Everyone. Registration is optional – tickets are not needed for event. This speaker’s series is held by Services for Aboriginal Students at Vancouver Island University and sponsored by various VIU departments. These talks are Tuesday over the lunch hour once a month in Shq’apthut – A Gathering Place and provide the opportunity for students, staff, faculty and community to expand their experience and awareness in current Indigenous topics and various aspects of Aboriginal Ways of Being and Knowing. Click on the link above for more information.
Lunch & Learn Series: Indigenous Women’s Health
Edmonton, AB
January 9, 2019 (12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.)
The Indigenous Health Lunch & Learn Series hosted by the Local Officers of Indigenous Health (Medical Students Association) and the Indigenous Health Initiatives Program in the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry is pleased to announce the first of three engaging and informative sessions to help build awareness and understanding of Indigenous peoples and Indigenous Peoples’ health. The first session will focus on issues specific to Indigenous women’s health and will be led by Dr Cassandra Felske-Durksen.
Dance Allsorts: Iskwêwak Osihtâwak | The Women are Making It
Vancouver, BC
January 13, 2019 (2 p.m. to 4 p.m.)
Iskwêwak Osihtâwak (Cree) is a mixed program featuring Indigenous dance practices shared by Salia Joseph, Jeanette Kotowich and Jessica McMann, with excerpts from Spirit and Tradition by the Dancers of Damelahamid. The dance performance starts at 2:00 p.m. followed by a free dance workshop at 3:15 p.m. Pay-what-you-can at the door: First come, first seated.
Community Dialogue: Conservation through an Indigenous Human Rights Lens
Thunder Bay, ON
January 14, 2019 (5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.)
Ontario Nature and the David Suzuki Foundation are hosting a Community Dialogue in Thunder Bay. Join environmental, Indigenous and grassroots activists to discuss how we can protect Mother Earth and its inhabitants in a way that respects Indigenous rights and responsibilities, and honours the interconnection of all life. Guest speakers include federal MP, Romeo Saganash (Critic for Reconciliation and Critic for Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency), and Grassy Narrows First Nations’ community elder and distinguished activist, Judy Da Silva. The event is free, but please register to help us plan for refreshments and seating.
Squamish Cultural Competency Training
Vancouver, BC
January 16, 2019 (9 a.m. to 12 p.m.)
Camp Fircom invites you to join us for a workshop on Squamish Cultural Competency led by Jackie Gonzales and Stewart Gonzales from the Ayas Men Men (Children & Family Services) of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) Nation. This workshop is an opportunity to learn more about the Squamish people, their history, their lands, and their truth. We’re inviting the other camps who are on Squamish lands to join us as we seek to be in right relationship with Indigenous peoples.
RISE Blanket Exercise
Edmonton, AB
January 19, 2019 (6 p.m. to 8 p.m.)
The Blanket Exercise is an interactive learning experience that teaches the Indigenous rights history we’re rarely taught. Join us on Monday, January 21 from 6-8 PM for this interactive workshop, organized by RISE – Reconciliation in Solidarity Edmonton, to help further your understanding of Indigenous issues.This workshop is free; space is limited. Donations to support the ongoing work of RISE will gladly be accepted.
The Honourable Senator Murray Sinclair with Shelagh Rogers
Victoria, BC
January 22, 2019 (7 p.m. to 9 p.m.)
Island Health is pleased to present the Honourable Senator Murray Sinclair for a speaking event on cultural safety, truth, and reconciliation in health care. A national leader in truth and reconciliation, Senator Sinclair will advise, inspire, and share his wisdom to help us understand what Truth and Reconciliation truly is, and to deepen our cultural safety and humility learning journey. Journalist and radio host Shelagh Rogers will join the Senator for this conversation, as will invited guests from the First Nations Health Authority, Songhees and Esquimalt First Nations, and Island Health. This event will be held in the He’Was Hall at the Songhees Wellness Centre. This is a free event but you must secure a free ticket as space is limited.
Indigenous Knowledges Wikimedia Workshop
Toronto, ON
January 28-29, 2019
This workshop is being convened to engage the professional community in discussions and practice-based initiatives to work on the ways that Wikimedia platforms will be used to support the work related to Indigenous knowledges and languages in Canada. The Wikimedia project platforms such as Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons are increasingly being used to enable grassroots initiatives to support language and cultural reclaimation around the world. The platforms are also being used to increase the visibility of marginalized communities and languages. The platforms are also being used to document traditional practices. Wikipedia is the fifth most visited website in the world. The platforms taken together impact the internet, playing a major role in Google search results. Increasing the visibility and accessibility of information about Indigenous peoples and culture show the world know we are here.
Indigenous Storyteller in Residence: Launch Event
Vancouver, BC
January 30, 2o19 (7 p.m. to 9 p.m.)
Celebrate and get to know the 2019 Indigenous Storyteller in Residence! Discover how the residency will support cross-cultural communication and honour storytelling in its many forms through exciting events, workshops and more. Additional details to be announced in January.
Pathways to Truth and Reconciliation: Creating Space for New Success with Jean Teillet
Morely, AB
January 31, 2019 (7 p.m.)
In our second season of the Truth and Reconciliation Speaker Series we will be exploring the “Pathways to Truth and Reconciliation”, asking speakers to share what they have learned about the Action of Reconciliation through their own journey, case studies and successes and barriers encountered along the way. We believe that the path to reconciliation must always be grounded in the truth before we advance to reconciliation and along the path, intent and implementation may differ. These are the stories we have invited our speakers to share with us this season.