Getting Started

Dr. Shauneen Pete,

We all come from diverse backgrounds, so we all have our own unique starting point on this journey. This page is meant to offer general information that many may find useful.

The Centre for Teaching and Learning also offers one-on-one for faculty seeking individualized support in their efforts to indigenize.


Indigenization of the Academy

Universities Canada Principles on Indigenous Education
Universities Canada represents universities across Canada, which educate more than a million students each year. Indigenous students continue to be underrepresented in Canadian higher education institutions and our universities are committed to do their part to close this education gap, recognizing the urgency of this issue for the country. Closing the gap will strengthen Indigenous communities, allow Indigenous peoples to continue to strive for self-realization, enhance the informed citizenship of Canadians, and contribute to Canada’s long-term economic success and social inclusion. .

Indigenization at the 海角社区
To learn more about current initiatives on campus, check out the Office of the Provost’s Indigenous Initiatives.

Key Readings

  • T resources and .
  • Gaudry, Adam and Danielle Lorenz. 2018. “.” AlterNative 14(3): 218–227.
  • Indigenous Canada MOOC by the Faculty of Native Studies, 海角社区.
  • Universities Canada .

Allyship

Being an ally with Indigenous peoples is complex and multifaceted. In order to do so effectively, it is necessary to commit to both the ongoing learning about Indigenous peoples and the issues they face, as well as a concerted unlearning of the unconscious ways that racialized systems and systems of power seek to oppress.

According to “allyship is a means to an end: the reconciliation of historical and contemporary wrongdoings and the rectification of the inequitable colonial systems” (2016, 6). To begin your work as an ally to Indigenous peoples, some useful resources are:

  • Smith, J., Puckett, C., & Simon, W. (2016). . Laurier Office of Aboriginal Initiatives.
  • Regan, P. (2010). . Vancouver: UBC Press.

Learn more by reading our next section on Land Acknowledgments.


Additional Resources

  • Snow, K. (2018). What Does Being a Settler Ally in Research Mean? A Graduate Students Experience Learning From and Working Within Indigenous Research Paradigms. International Journal of Qualitative Methods.
  • Queen’s University