AEN's Land acknowledgement
At the Alberta Environmental Network, we understand that Reconciliation starts with the land, and there is no Reconciliation until we have faced the Truth. While Truth is held collectively, we recognize everyone is on their own learning journey, at their own pace. Our work at AEN focuses on the lands outlined by the Province of Alberta, lands with which we are learning to be in kinship relationship, in the nêhiyaw (Cree) spirit of treaty-making. The lands we work for are described in Treaties 4, 6, 7, 8, and 10. The traditional keepers of this land are Anishinabe, Nêhiyawak (Cree), Dené, Dane-zaa, Nakota, Îyârhe Nakoda (Stoney Nakoda), Tsuut’ina, and Siksikaitsitapi (Blackfoot Confederacy); this land is also the homeland of the Métis. We are committed to building meaningful reciprocal relationships, to be of service particularly to those directly experiencing the effects of oppression, genocide, and exploitation.
To learn more about our process and progress, click on the links throughout our organizational land acknowledgement, or peruse this page, and share your thoughts with us below.
Truth & Reconciliation, Decolonization, and Indigenization are work in progress. AEN staff are engaging in weekly conversations to advance individual and organizational decolonization. We wish to be in conversation and collaboration with you. Please share your thoughts, comments, and resources below.
The Alberta Environmental Network is a connection point for Albertans who work with an environmental focus, with a focus to all that is in relationship with human society (see About Us). Truth & Reconciliation emphasizes for us that all work connects to the environment.
- We are not separate from the environment.
- Human activity is not separate from the environment.
- Humans are not separate from nature.
Wahkotowin is a nehiyaw (Cree) concept that describes the reality that we are all connected. Alongside our own lineages, our own ancestral cultures, we strive to connect with teachings from all original peoples of this land. Thus, we believe that all environmental work, done in a good way, is environmental justice work - providing regeneration to all.
What can we each do to step outside of separation, and extraction, into connection, and reciprocity?
Wendy Lynn Lerat reminded us that, to be able to reconcile, we must first reconcile with the Land. AEN staff are exploring what this means for us, as individuals, and as an organization. We wish to engage the network in these conversations, and welcome your stories and experiences, questions and suggestions. We know we will make missteps in our process, and want to continue to do our best, learn, repair, and uplift the network as we look to serve all our kin - fellow humans, whether Indigenous, settler, or newcomer, more-than-human, water, mountains, grasslands, and beyond.
About Our Journey
The Alberta Environmental Network has worked with Indigenous-led organizations, but has always been led by settlers. When the founding members of AEN established the network 40 years ago, their purpose was to protect and enhance Alberta’s environment. This evokes AEN as having a caretaker or stewardship relationship with our natural world, which is a mindset that persists. At AEN, many of us have experienced personal tension about our connection to, responsibility for and dominance over the land and all life forms. We have been searching for ways to evolve our thinking and understanding of life and our place in it but we have struggled with how to do that for decades. We have been uncertain about what steps to take and afraid of taking the wrong steps.
Our staff’s personal engagement with Truth & Reconciliation led to internal conversations about decolonizing and Indigenizing processes and organizational goals, and this work was formally set down as a priority in the organization’s strategic plan of 2023/24. Sustaining the ecosystems of our province is directly and inherently linked with sustaining Indigenous cultural practices, ways of being and knowing, and we are working on advancing this learning and understanding.
After many years of feeling this is important, we are making it important.
About AEN's Land acknowledgement
Our understanding of the importance of land acknowledgement has grown from the introductory, surface-level acknowledgement, as settlers, or newcomers to the land, of the peoples who are the local stewards, who are indigenous to this land (please enjoy this sketch, and this article). We are grateful for teachings from people including Terry Lin Fedorus, and Lewis Cardinal, that help us understand that appreciating how the land enables us to be alive here right now can be a daily personal practice, in Indigenous ways of being. As non-Indigenous peoples, we have the opportunity to practice a Treaty acknowledgement, including our understanding and current commitment to being in relationship with all beings, and our commitment to our own healing journey, and the healing journey of Indigenous peoples and cultures, through Truth and Reconciliation. This usefully includes our own reflection of our current connection to the land, our personal gratitude, and our next actions to continue moving toward being in good, reciprocal relationship.
We also have the opportunity to practice an acknowledgement of oppression. What do we currently know and think about how we have arrived here, who has experienced oppression and extraction, in the human and more-than-human world, for society to be what it is today? What is our vision of the future we wish to bring forth, and what are the actions we are taking today, the steps that are ours to take for this vision to be one step closer to realization?
Reconciliation Starts With the Land
Natalie Odd heard this from Wendy Lynn Lerat for the first time. It made so much sense, and also felt really overwhelming. What does this mean to me at this point? I love being outdoors, but I don’t think that’s a connection to the land. I don’t feel that connection. I care deeply, and I don’t yet know how to build this connection.
Melanie Hoffman thinks of reconciliation as the act of coming back together after a breach in a relationship. While we might quibble over the “back”, the idea if there ever was a good relationship, truly, we can focus on what it means to come together, to be in a good relationship. To be in good relationship with the Indigenous peoples who have survived genocide in Canada, I know I am asking for a lot of emotional labour from folks who carry intergenerational trauma. One way to ease that, one way to ease into building a good relationship, is being in good relationship with our shared kin, the land. My culture - Anglo-Saxon - does not view the land as kin. So, for me, beginning with reconciliation with the land makes so much sense, as it offers me a gentle, non-judgemental opportunity for cultural learning, to train my curiosity, and open my heart and mind.
Molli Bennett feels most grounded on the land, she feels most capable of compassion and connection with humans when she spends time on the land. The land comes first in so much of her personal ability to be in balance. Extending this to the acts of reconciliation feels like such a gift. Leaning into reconciliation with the land and in her work motivates her. She wants to share in the work of repairing our individual and collective relationships to the land and all of its inhabitants.
Truth & Reconciliation
Our understanding of Truth is largely shaped by Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada reports and videos, and materials from the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation. There are many support resources available for all of us to explore and advance the 94 Calls to Action. We are also engaging with the Truth of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-Spirit People. Resources to consult include Reclaiming Power and Place: The Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.
Our learnings include the 25 residential school locations in Alberta, which excludes non-federally supported schools run by religious orders or the Provincial Government, where more than 20% of all residential school student deaths occurred. This CBC article provides access to survivors’ voices, and invites you to find out how close you live or grew up to a residential school.
While the project of “removing the Indian from the child” has thankfully not been successful, Indigenous communities have suffered unimaginable physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual losses. As such, one step we can take as individuals and organizations is to explore within our own settler contexts, to learn together, and reduce the likelihood of unintentional harm as we build reciprocal relationships with our Indigenous brothers and sisters, is to host our own reconciliation circles, with humility and curiosity. Available facilitation tools include Circles for Reconciliation Resources and Reconciliation Canada: Reconciliation Dialogue Toolkits.
Kinship With the Land
Melanie learned through the UBC/Edx Reconciliation in Higher Education course, Donna Ross with the Calgary Regional Learning Consortium, and Lewis Cardinal with the Indigenous Knowledge and Wisdom Centre, about Woodland Cree and Dené teachings that we are all related, that we are not separate from, or above, other beings, and even the rocks and the soil and the water. As a trained chemist, she has much enjoyed contemplating that relation on a molecular level, in the ways in which minerals, nutrients, oxygen, carbon dioxide, are exchanged, and atoms are cycled through various living and nonliving things during their existence on this planet. Of course, this connection has not just these reductionist physical dimensions, but also spiritual, mental, and emotional facets. In nehiyawewin (Cree), this natural law is known as wahkohtowin (“we are all connected”). Kinship with the land recognizes that we are relations with the land, and our understanding is that good relationship requires reciprocity and humility.
- Wahkohtowin in Action p.2 (p.14): “Wahkohtowin directly translates to English as kinship or being related to each other”
- Nêhiyaw Âskiy Wiyasiwêwina: Plains Cree Earth Law and constitutional/ecological reconciliation
We Work for the Land
Environmental non-profits, communities, and organizations such as ours have the opportunity and responsibility to take meaningful steps toward justice for all by Indigenizing and decolonizing our work. This includes recognizing and overcoming the human/environment separation that our work often perpetuates; the image of “wild” and “nature” as free of human presence. The work that we do to protect and preserve the environment is inherently tied to the land on which we all live and work, and recognizing the deep connections Indigenous Peoples have to the land, respecting their traditional knowledge, and addressing historical injustices are significant steps.
Treaties 4, 6, 7, 8, and 10, and the nehiyaw (Cree) spirit of treaty-making
Native Land illustrates the reality that the land known to us as Alberta was already home to many people when European settlers arrived to make their homes here. Melanie Hoffman learned from Lewis Cardinal that treaties in Woodland Cree culture happen whenever new groups are met: Treaties are entered into as a form of kinship agreement. Our current understanding is that the nehiyaw (Cree) spirit of treaty making is that, through treaty, we agree to treat each other as brothers and sisters. How does this feel in contrast to the history we know, where European settlement and formation of today’s towns and cities primarily occurred by regarding treaty as land transaction, removing Indigenous peoples from the land, assigning them small parcels of land as reserve lands, and forcing the adoption of settler culture? For more, see e.g. Rethinking Treaty Six in the spirit of mistahi maskwa (Big Bear).
The Province of Alberta, in which the Alberta Environmental Network operates, resides on lands that are described in The Numbered Treaties 4, 6, 7, 8, and 10, by the Canadian Government. Our current understanding is that there are no Treaty 4 or 10 Indigenous groups that make their home on the lands known as Alberta, though there are settlers who are Albertan and reside on Treaty 4 or 10 lands, and hence are members of those Treaties. As discussed above, we interpret the nehiyaw spirit of treaty making, and wahkotohwin, as teachings that emphasize we are all brothers and sisters, we are all related, including with the inanimate, independent of any formal treaty agreement - and that the Numbered Treaties misrepresent the Indigenous spirit of entering into treaty, which does not have a concept of owning our kin, the land, but rather emphasizes reciprocal relationship with the land.
The numbered treaties offer a starting point for us to understand the wealth of Indigenous cultures that exist across what is known as Alberta. We recognize that, fundamentally, the geographic boundaries of the Province of Alberta are meaningless to Indigenous Peoples, who have been connected to this land for much longer than this colonial structure has existed. It appears that, having been forced to engage with, negotiate with, stand up to and defend themselves within a colonial structure that has municipal government, provincial/territorial government, and national government, Indigenous Peoples have assembled into colonial groupings for these purposes.
In early 2024, the following First Nations are collaborating in numbered treaty organizations:
Treaty 6
Treaty 6 covers an area that is colonially described as parts of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. The Confederacy of Treaty Six First Nations is a collaboration of only those Treaty Six First Nations residing in Alberta:
- Alexander First Nation
- Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation
- Beaver Lake Cree Nation
- Cold Lake First Nation
- Enoch Cree Nation
- Ermineskin Cree Nation
- Frog Lake First Nation
- Heart Lake First Nation
- Kehewin Cree Nation
- Louis Bull Tribe
- Montana First Nation
- O'Chiese First Nation
- Paul First Nation
- Samson Cree Nation
- Sunchild First Nation
- Whitefish Lake First Nation #128
Treaty 7
The Treaty 7 First Nations Chiefs’ Association includes the following Nations:
-
Îyârhe Nakoda (Stoney Nakoda Nations)
- Bearspaw First Nation
- Chiniki First Nation
- Goodstoney First Nation (Nakoda)
- Tsuut'ina Nation
-
Siksikaitsitapi (Blackfoot Confederacy Tribal Council)
- Kainai Nation (Blood Tribe)
- Siksika Nation (Blackfoot)
- Piikani Nation (North Peigan)
- Aamskapi Pikuni Nation (Blackfeet)
Treaty 8
Treaty 8 is made up of over 41 autonomous nations with individual goals and needs. Treaty 8 territory encompasses areas of Northern Alberta, Northwestern Saskatchewan, Northeastern British Columbia, and the Southwest portion of the Northwest Territories. Visit Treaty 8 First Nations of Alberta for more details.
- Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation
- Beaver First Nation
- Bigstone Cree Nation
- Chipewyan Prairie First Nation
- Dene Tha’ First Nation
- Driftpile Cree Nation
- Fort McKay First Nation
- Fort McMurray First Nation
- Western Cree Tribal Council - Duncan’s First Nation, Horse Lake First Nation, Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation
- Kapawe’no First Nation
- Little Red River Cree Nation
- Loon River First Nation
- Lubicon Lake Indian Band
- Mikisew Cree First Nation
- Peerless Trout First Nation
- Sawridge First Nation
- Sucker Creek First Nation
- Swan River First Nation
- Tallcree Tribal Government
- Whitefish Lake First Nation - kee tas kee now tribal council
- Woodland Cree First Nation
We also bring curiosity toward the many languages spoken on and with this land before English and French arrived, which primarily but not exclusively are nehiyawewin (Cree), Dené, Denesuline, and Siksikaitsitapi (Blackfoot). You can access an overview of Indigenous languages spoken at home in the 2021 Calgary census, Edmonton, or your home.
Métis People in Alberta
The Métis People are a distinct Indigenous People with specific European and Indigenous ancestry. In Alberta, Métis have a land base of Métis Settlements, and an independent government in the Otipemisiwak Métis Government of the Métis Nation of Alberta. Find out here which of the five Territories, and which District, you live in - and get to know your Citizen’s Council Representative, and District Captain.
Meaningful reciprocal relationships
In Canadian culture, we often experience relationships as extractive. “What’s in it for me?” feels like a more common theme than “What do I bring to the table?”. We aim to ground ourselves and our work in the recognition of interconnectedness, of give and take, of symbiosis. To build sustainable systems, we must operate in a way that sustains all parts. We have received teachings about reciprocity from mentors such as Terry Lin Fedorus, Lewis Cardinal, Wendy Lynn Lerat, and Robin Wall Kimmerer’s book Braiding Sweetgrass.
Our Understanding of Terminology
Land acknowledgement
A formal statement, usually by a Settler, recognizing the Indigenous peoples and their traditional territories upon which an event, organization, or project takes place. It can be a way to honour the history of the land and the ongoing contributions of Indigenous communities. Read more of our learnings in About Land acknowledgement.
Oppression
We understand that the history and evolution of our society and culture as Canadians is grounded in settler colonialism, in patriarchy, in power over, in White-body supremacy, in human supremacy or exceptionalism. We work to transform Canadian culture to truly reflect Canadian’s intent to be kind, inclusive, and sharing power with. We are committed to anti-oppression work as an integral part of Truth & Reconciliation.
Genocide
Canada’s treatment of Indigenous Peoples was, and is, genocide. “Indians” were considered “savage”, and Canadian culture continues to notice and unlearn stereotypes that place Indigenous culture as ‘less than’ European culture (or other Settler, displanted, and newcomer cultures). Indigenous Peoples were forcefully removed from their land and restricted in their movement by the Indian Act; Residential Schools were put in place to erase their languages and cultures. The Sixties Scoop forcibly removed Indigenous children from their families, and their cultures and languages. This continues with the current foster care system. We see the resilience and strength of Indigenous peoples, and commit ourselves to participating in language and cultural care.
Exploitation
Exploitation involves taking unfair advantage of someone or something for one's own benefit, disregarding the needs of others. In the context of Indigenous peoples, exploitation has manifested in the extraction of natural resources without consent, without fair compensation, or beyond limits that respect traditional knowledge and environmental stewardship practices. Moving towards a practice of reciprocity and respect is essential for building relationships that ensure a sustainable future for all.
A local example of Indigenous People resisting exploitation is in the making of Kitaskino Nuwenëné Wildland Provincial Park. In 2015, the Mikisew Cree First Nation proposed the creation of a buffer zone south of Wood Buffalo National Park, to protect the park from expanding oilsands projects. Four years later, three oilsands companies surrendered land to create this buffer zone, the Kitaskino Nuwenëné Wildland Provincial Park. While Wood Buffalo National Park continues to be threatened by encroachment of industry, this important Indigenous-led resistance against exploitation protects critical habitat for the Ronald Lake bison herd and woodland caribou.
Climate Justice
Climate Justice addresses the disproportionate impacts of climate change on marginalized communities, particularly those who have contributed the least to environmental degradation. It calls for just, or fully accessible, equitable and sustainable solutions to climate-related challenges.
Nature
In decolonized/Indigenized contexts, nature is another term for Earth, and includes humans. The human-made environment is a subset of the natural environment, rather than separate from nature.
Power
Power is the ability to influence or control others, institutions, or resources. It can manifest in various forms, such as political, economic, social, and cultural power. Understanding power dynamics is crucial in addressing inequalities and promoting justice. Reflect on some ways in which you hold or lack power through this Wheel of Privilege and Power.
Privilege
Privilege refers to unearned advantages or benefits that individuals or groups may have based on aspects such as race, gender, socioeconomic status, or other social identifiers. Recognizing privilege is essential in addressing systemic inequities. Reflect on some examples in which you have access to, or lack, privilege through this Wheel of Privilege and Power.
Injustice
Violations of fairness, equity, and the principles of justice. It can manifest in various forms, including social, economic, and environmental injustices. Decolonization and justice efforts aim to rectify these imbalances.
Indigenization
Practicing the positive - looking to local (and/or ancestral) Indigenous ways of knowing and being, and adapting or converting organizational processes to embody these ways of knowing and being. This might involve respectfully adopting thoughts, practices, or ideas of Indigenous voices, and bringing Indigenous voices into our work. Indigenization in a personal context may explore what it means to become Indigenous to the land by developing deep relationships to place, and entering into reciprocity by being considerate in what we take from the land, and what we give to the land.
Decolonization
We think of Decolonization as the act of removing the harmful: Dismantling colonial ways of thinking, oppressive ways of being and doing, supremacy of all kinds, to return to being in good relationship with ourselves and one another. Undoing the impacts of colonization involves challenging and transforming colonial structures, ideologies, and systems of power. It seeks to restore and empower marginalized communities that are oppressed by colonization.
Share your thoughts with us
We welcome your thoughts on our journey, or your own, with Truth & Reconciliation, Decolonization, and Indigenization. Thank you for taking the time to engage with curiosity and kindness.