The first week in November is Treaties Recognition Week in Ontario. The week was established in 2016 to honour and educate Ontarians on the importance of treaties involving Indigenous Peoples.
As the University of Guelph acknowledges Treaties Recognition Week, we offer our gratitude to the lands on which our campuses are located and to the Indigenous Peoples who have resided on these lands for generations. We recognize that our educational and research activities occur on treaty lands across Turtle Island, and we understand the need to ensure that we honour and respect these treaty lands and relationships.
Remaining committed to a path toward reconciliation and decolonization, we stand in solidarity with Indigenous nations as they advocate for the recognition, protection and implementation of their inherent constitutional and treaty rights. We affirm the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action appealing for enhanced treaty education. In order to address the lasting effects of colonization, we recognize the need to examine our own institutional structures, policies and practices, as well as our responsibility in educating people on treaties, treaty rights and relationships and the ongoing dispossession of Indigenous Peoples from their treaty lands and territories. The University believes it is essential that Canadian society is aware that “we are all treaty people” with responsibilities to honour treaty obligations and to protect our shared land and resources for future generations.
For more information about Indigenous Initiatives at the University of Guelph, visit Instagram: @uofgindigenous.