Beyond Conservation:
Before you get started

Most Canadians did not learn about the history of colonialism and residential schools as part of their education. Due in part to the way non-Indigenous society has interpreted and taught history, many Canadians suffer from some form of negative bias towards Indigenous Peoples, their cultures, and their ways of being. Training can help expose these biases, correct misunderstandings or false assumptions, teach you how to act in a culturally sensitive way, and increase your awareness of the context of your relationships with Indigenous Peoples and communities. Accept that this will likely involve a certain amount of  “un-learning” or “re-learning.” 

Photo by Erin Neave

There are a number of organizations that offer opportunities to increase and improve your awareness and understanding of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit cultures and histories. Your organization might provide opportunities internally. Ideally, this type of training will be Indigenous-led and specific to the region/people with whom you hope to collaborate. Below are some opportunities to support your ongoing learning.

• Indigenous Corporate Training Inc, an Indigenous-owned company, provides a wealth of training topics including, Working Effectively with Indigenous Peoples, Indigenous Consultation and Engagement, Indigenous Employment: Recruitment and Retention, and many more.
• The First Nations Information Governance Centre offers a self-guided course that takes learners through seven modules designed to introduce the fundamental concepts of OCAP®, information governance, and First Nations data sovereignty.
• The IISAAK OLAM Foundation is an Indigenous organization that offers custom training sessions about treaty relationships, truth and reconciliation, allyship, Indigenous protected and conserved areas (IPCAs), ethical space, and other topics of interest. They also offer retreats.
• Vancouver Island University offers the advanced IPCA Planning Certificate Program annually.
• First People’s Group is a certified Indigenous business that offers awareness training both online and in person, featuring senior First Nations, Métis, and Inuit presenters as well as a Traditional Teacher.
• Through Coursera, the University of Alberta offers Indigenous Canada, a 12-lesson Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) from the Faculty of Native Studies that explores Indigenous histories and contemporary issues in Canada.
• NVision Insight Inc. offers Indigenous Cultural Competency training.

Take unconscious bias training to tune into social stereotypes you might have about certain groups of people. Acknowledging your unconscious bias can reduce its impact.

• The Canadian Race Relations Foundation has developed an exclusive, free online program that has brought together a “faculty” of subject-matter experts to create a curriculum and a set of reading materials. Education and Training – Learning about Racism (crrf-fcrr.ca)
• The Canadian School of Public Service offers Unconscious Bias training to federal public servants: Reflecting on Cultural Bias: Indigenous Perspectives (csps-efpc.gc.ca)
• The Canadian Diversity Initiative also offer unconscious bias training: Online Diversity & Inclusion Courses – The Canadian Diversity Initiative (candiversity.com)

Photo by Ryan Wilkes

There are many past examples of Indigenous and non-Indigenous groups collaborating, some more positively than others. It is worth investigating the challenges and successes that those with experience can share, so we can learn from their mistakes and triumphs.

• The authors of Pulling Together: a Guide for Indigenization of Post-Secondary Institutions share some examples of mistakes they have made and learned from in their interactions with Indigenous Peoples
• Indigenous Corporate Training Inc. provides free e-books on working effectively with Indigenous Peoples:
  • 23 Tips on What Not to Say or Do when Working Effectively with Indigenous Peoples
  • 27 Tips on What to Say and Do when Working Effectively with Indigenous Peoples
• Check out Working with Indigenous People 101 from the Canadian Environmental Law Association.
• Watch Conservation through Reconciliation Partnership’s webinar, Building Ethical Partnerships for Indigenous-led Conservation, where Indigenous and non-Indigenous partners share stories and examples of how they built, strengthened, or renewed ethical relationships and partnerships for conservation.
• Have conversations with friends or colleagues who can share lessons learned from their experiences.

Photo by Torngat Secretariat

Going directly to the source is an excellent way to learn about the experiences and perspectives of various Indigenous Peoples and groups. Numerous opportunities exist for you to gain exposure to Indigenous voices in Canada. Here we provide just a few ideas.

• CRP’s Virtual Campfire Series focuses on Indigenous-led Conservation.
• The Reconciling Ways of Knowing; Indigenous Knowledge and Science brings together Indigenous Knowledge and science for the benefit of our shared natural world.
• CRP’s Indigenous-led Conservation Reading List and the Decolonizing Conservation Reading List compiled by Sara Cannon have excellent resources to offer.
• Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN) has many fiction and non-fiction shows by and for Indigenous Peoples.
• Listen to Unreserved, a CBC radio space for Indigenous community, culture, and conversation.
• IPCA Knowledge Basket has a vast library of resources that support Indigenous nations and their allies in pursuing Indigenous-led conservation, including a webinar and podcast series about Indigenous Knowledge Systems.
• University of Waterloo provides a list of Indigenous news and media sources
• MEDIA INDIGENA is a weekly Indigenous current affairs podcast.
• Indigenous Writes, a book by Métis author Chelsea Vowel, explores the Indigenous experience from the time of contact to the present, through five categories: Terminology of Relationships; Culture and Identity; Myth-Busting; State Violence; and Land, Learning, Law, and Treaties.

Photo by Kristin Clark

Colonization continues to affect the daily lives of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit across many generations. Indigenous Peoples are working hard to recover and heal from acts of genocide inflicted by the government and church, but continue to live with (intergenerational) trauma from the residential schools and other colonial policies and programs. Generations of discrimination have caused higher rates of poverty, food insecurity, suicide, and ill health. Recognize that colonialism is not a thing of the past by extending empathy, patience, and understanding towards those with whom you work.

• Despite the promotion of equality and equity, power dynamics still exist. Get familiar with the position of privilege you likely hold and bring this understanding to your relationships.
  • The National Collaborating Centre on Indigenous Health provides a factsheet on Indigenous Experiences with Racism and Its Impacts.
  • Amnesty International provides 10 Ways to Be a Genuine Ally to Indigenous Communities.
  • The Indigenous Leadership Initiative provides guidance on How to Be an Ally of Indigenous-led Conservation.
  • Mikana provides an Indigenous Ally Toolkit.

• Acknowledge the history of colonialism and residential schools and the resulting marginalization of Indigenous Peoples. Become familiar with how colonialism played out across Canada (what was the same, how it differed), understand intergenerational impacts, be aware of your role in ongoing colonialism and commit to doing things differently.
  • Check out the Decolonial Toolbox, which offers the general public an Educational Pathway to understand historical and contemporary Indigenous realities.
  • Learn about Colonialism and its Impacts.
  • Make a Personal Pledge of Reconciliation.
  • Check out On Canada Project’s Settler’s Take Action initiative and look at their Settlers Take Action guide.
  • Learn about the history of colonialism in research by reading Ian Mosby’s article, Administering Colonial Science: Nutrition Research and Human Biomedical Experimentation in Aboriginal Communities and Residential Schools, 1942-1952.
  • Another article outlining the history of colonial research (in the United States) is “Indigenist” Collaborative Research Efforts in Native American Communities.

• For government employees, work in Ethical Space by building nation-to-nation, government-to-government, and Inuit-to-Crown relationships. (Find more information on Ethical Space here.)
  • The federal Department of Justice has published Principles Respecting the Government of Canada’s Relationship with Indigenous Peoples.
  • The federal government and provincial government of British Columbia also have a Recognition and Reconciliation of Rights Policy for treaty negotiations in British Columbia.
  • Learn about Indigenous self-government in Canada.

Continue to Building Relationships for Collaboration – Part 1