Last month, we were deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Dr. Rosalyn Ing, who passed peacefully amongst family on July 23, 2020.

An Elder of the Opaskwayak Cree Nation, UBC Alumni and Coordinator of the First Nations Health Careers from 1994-2003, Dr. Ing was a tireless supporter of Indigenous health, justice and education. She was also an integral part of the fabric of Indigenous scholarship and research at UBC.

Dr. Ing earned all three of her post-secondary degrees here: a Bachelor of Social Work degree in 1988, Masters of Education in 1994, and PhD in Educational Studies in 2003. A residential school survivor herself, Dr. Ing's post-graduate research explored the inter-generational trauma experienced by residential school students.

On the Blog: Meet John Bass

In this recent article on the IRSI Blog, we feature the career and work of UBC SALA Associate Professor John Bass. Bass has spent the past three decades working on design collaborations that support reconciliation by addressing contentious landscapes issues.

Most recently, he worked to help design housing for the Heiltsuk Nation in the Tiny Homes Project and he is currently collaborating with Yuneŝit'in on the Wild Fire Housing initiative.

In the article, Bass describes a number of collaborations with Indigenous community partners and shares lessons learned along the way. Read it now!

Thank you to Alison!

Last month, we said farewell to Alison Krahn, IRSI’s Education & Training Officer, whose term ended on July 28. Over the last year, Alison conducted an environmental scan of research-related education and training opportunities are being offered at UBC, and hosted a number of dialogues with Indigenous faculty and staff. She has also worked extensively in collaboration with other IRSI team members to develop curricula for an educational workshop series, entitled Pre-Engagement (1 & 2). These trainings are framed through Jo-Ann Archibald's Principles of Indigenous Storywork, and will continue to be developed by the IRSI team over the coming months. Please join us in thanking Ali for all she has contributed to IRSI, and to wish her all the best in her future endeavors!

Indigenous Strategic Plan

UBC's draft Indigenous Strategic Plan (2020) was endorsed by the Board of Governors on July 27th. The Indigenous Strategic planning team was led by Dr. Sheryl Lightfoot, Senior Advisor to the President on Indigenous Affairs and Dr. Margaret Moss, Director of the First Nations House of Learning. The renewed plan is the result of extensive engagements with students, faculty, staff, alumni and community partners and builds upon and continues the work of the 2009 Aboriginal Strategic Plan.

The 2020 Plan identifies three top goals: moving research forward, Indigenizing curricula and recruiting Indigenous people. IRSI will explore what this means for Indigenous research in a future blog post.

Learn more about the process behind the renewal and access the Draft 2020 plan.

Honour of One Virtual Sourcebook Launch

On June 21, 2020, this past Indigenous Peoples Day, the First Nations House of Learning released The Honour of One is the Honour of All virtual sourcebook, celebrating Indigenous honorary degree recipients from UBC Vancouver. Along with the images and texts about the recipients, the sourcebook provides links to information about each recipient and many profiles include online videos.

To read more about the online book release or to read through The Honour of One is the Honour of All, visit the Indigenous Portal here.

New Indigitization Website

The Indigitization program launched its newly redesigned website on July 27th, 2020. The new site and Indigitization toolkit can be found here.

A collaboration between Indigenous communities and organizations in BC, the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre, the Museum of Anthropology, Northern BC Archives (UNBC), X̱wi7x̱wa Library, and the Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology (CTLT), Indignitization facilitates capacity building in Indigenous information management and supports community needs regarding the conservation, digitization, and management of Indigenous Knowledges.

Virtual Feast

Ongoing until August 31, 2020

Virtual Feast is a new Indigenous-led online platform to highlight and support the online streaming of contemporary Indigenous performances in the Summer of COVID-19. Virtual Feast provides a single point of reference and discovery for audiences tuned into the burgeoning BC Indigenous music scene. BC Indigenous arts presenters include: 2 Rivers Remix Society, Savage Production Society, Full Circle: First Nations’ Performance, and the Vine Arts Festival – with streaming platform support from the First Peoples’ Cultural Council.

Learn More

CTLT Indigenous Initiatives Virtual Coffee Drop-in

August 18, 2020

Do you have questions about how to thoughtfully integrate Indigenous content and representation into your course work? Curious about how to offer meaningful land acknowledgements in online meetings or events at UBC? Indigenous Initiatives’ Virtual Coffee Drop-ins are great place to explore these topics, connect with others on the same learning path, or just get to know the team. The Virtual Coffee Drop-ins are open to anyone who would like support in these areas and would like to stay connected.

Register

Webinar: Leading Diversity and Inclusion (Rebecca Paluch, PhD)

August 19, 2020

Diversity and inclusion (D&I) at work is more important now than ever before. Recent global issues are creating renewed emphasis and heightened importance on the ways in which organizations manage diversity and inclusion in their workforce. Attendees will gain a deeper understanding of the ways in which organizational practices and policies have either weakened or supported D&I efforts as well as explore how the COVID-19 pandemic may have exacerbated the problems for certain groups of employees.

Register

Kent Monkman’s Shame and Prejudice — "A Story of Resilience"

Ongoing until January 3, 2021

A Story of Resilience takes you on a journey through the past 150 years of Canada. It is a journey that reclaims and reinserts Indigenous voices into the collective memory of our country, challenging and shattering colonial ideas of our history. Monkman is a Canadian artist of Cree ancestry who works with a variety of media, including painting, film/video, performance, and installation. This exhibition runs from August 6, 2020 until January 3, 2021 at the Museum of Anthropology. 

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Movie Night and Q&A: "Remembering Inninimowin" (Director Jules Arita Koostachin)

August 27, 2020

Join the Language Sciences Movie Night for a virtual screening of Remembering Inninimowin, followed by an online Q&A with director Jules Arita Koostachin.

Remembering Inninimowin is a two-year long documentary film project on the personal journey of a Cree woman, Jules Arita Koostachin, as she starts to remember her first language, Inninimowin (Cree). Remembering Inninimowin is Jules' first feature documentary, produced while she was in graduate school.

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Indigenous Youth Virtual Summit – "Developing Tools for Success"
 

October 6 - 8, 2020

In developing the Inaugural NATOA Indigenous Youth Summit, NATOA considered barriers that Indigenous youth and gender diverse people may face. During the 3 days, youth will develop tools needed to overcome these challenges and have confidence in themselves. Topics include starting a business, financial literacy, taxes on and off reserve, promotion of life/suicide prevention, goal setting, social media literacy, and leadership.

Register