June 22, 2021
June 21 marks National Indigenous Peoples Day in Canada. This is a day for all Canadians to recognize and celebrate the unique heritage, diverse cultures and outstanding contributions of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples.
As connection to the land is so important to Indigenous peoples, the Yulu team decided to take National Indigenous Peoples Day to explore our local environment (Coast Salish territory) with a short hike, and to practice sharing land acknowledgements and discuss why they are important, together at the peak.
Below are some of the resources our team found insightful in preparing for this exercise – we encourage you to take some time to review, share with others and discuss.
- This one-hour online course, from the First Nations University of Canada, on Understanding Indigenous Perspectives in Canada, (being offered free of charge until July 15)
- Indigenous Allyship: an overview – Wilfred Laurier University
- Indigenous Ally Tookit – MUACSN
- UBC Indigenous Peoples Language Guide 2019
- 23 Tips on What Not to Say or Do – Indigenous Corporate Training
- Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada: Calls to Action
- UN Declaration of Rights of Indigenous Peoples
Some other actions we are taking from here to continue showing solidarity for Indigenous communities are below. We’d love to hear your other ideas!
- Show financial support for many of the worthy organizations supporting Indigenous communities. The Yulu team chose to support the Vancouver Aboriginal Friendly Centre Society this National Indigenous Peoples Day – an organization based not far from Yulu’s HQ that is dedicated to providing social economic programs and services to empower and support urban Aboriginal communities.
- Demonstrate your ongoing commitment to learning about the history of the Indigenous peoples by beefing up your library of resources and Indigenous-authored works (hello, Audible Indigenous Writers’ Circle!). Our team will be conducting a “Walking Book Club” challenge – taking some time out of our weeks to walk and listen to the Indigenous works in our Audible library so we can discuss them together.
- Support Indigenous-owned brands. Some of our favourites include Nk’Mip Cellars, North America’s first Indigenous Winery, and Sḵwálwen Botanicals, an Indigenous skincare line incorporating respectfully harvested botanicals and oils.
