National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Learnings and Action Statement

Oct 6

September 30th marked the first ever National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, a day to remember and reflect on the over 150,000 Indigenous children who were stolen from their families to attend residential schools set up by the Canadian government and run by the Church.

Our staff spend the day educating ourselves on these sites of abuse, forced-assimilation, and the traumatic legacy they left behind.

We are committed to keep learning together as a team through an ongoing series our Design and Content Manager, Meghan Callon, is leading based on her learnings about Indigenous history on Turtle Island.

"I am no expert, but my hope is that by teaching my coworkers about what I have learned about the history of Indigenous peoples in Canada, we can all become better allies and better residents of Turtle Island."
- Meghan Callon

We are also committed to keep listening, learning, and amplifying the voices and stories of Indigenous People and water stewards across our platforms. Check out Great Lakes Guide and Fraser Riverkeeper to learn more about Indigenous history, culture, watermarks, and languages.

FRK’s Communications Specialist, Melanie Stirling, is currently working with and reaching out to various First Nations institutions, organizations, and schools, seeking advice, support, and knowledge to be shared across our platforms to help engage others with Traditional Knowledge of the Musqueam, Tsleil-Waututh, and Squamish Nations.

We are working to update our pages on Swim Guide to acknowledge and honour First Nations perspectives and Traditional Knowledge regarding the place names of Metro Vancouver locations and the Indigenous history created on this land. We are also working to implement them into our water monitoring and protection programs, as well as acknowledging traditional place names and territories in Swim Guide and Great Lakes Guide’s social media posts featuring beaches, parks, and waterbodies across Turtle Island.

There is so much more work to be done and further reflection on how we can better support and stand with Indigenous Peoples and communities on Turtle Island.

We are committed to continuing the journey towards reconciliation and becoming better allies. We recognize that our work to create a swimmable, drinkable, fishable future for everyone is not complete unless we actively and continuously work to support and fight for the well-being and rights of Indigenous Peoples and communities.

Today, we want to share what we’ve learned with you, and provide some resources that you can use to continue learning about Canada’s destructive colonial history and take action to stand with Indigenous People and communities on the journey towards reconciliation.

Recommended Learning Resources:

For science related resources on connecting western science and traditional ecological knowledge: Reconciling Ways of Knowing, Video: Restoration and Reciprocity

Robin Wall Kimmerer’s talk at the University of Toronto on how settlers need to rethink their relationship to the land and how Indigenous philosophy can help guide us in terms of restoration

Jon Johnson’s Urban Explorations: Environmental Histories of the Toronto Region book on Indigenous history in Toronto

Housing is a fundamental human right, but there is a disproportionately high rate of Indigenous homelessness. This website succinctly outlines the issues.

The Creation Story of Turtle Island

The history and story behind Orange Shirt Day

CBC Beyond 94 which shows the progress and updates on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's 94 Calls to Action

Residential School Survivor Stories

National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation: Publications