Several postsecondary institutions recently marked Indigenous-focused awareness weeks with special events and celebrations that involved their local Indigenous communities. Algoma University will be hosting an Indigenous Artisan Market and a 2Spirit Drag Storytime and Brunch event as part of 2Spirit Awareness Week in Sault Ste Marie and Bawating, Ontario. College of New Caledonia held an Aboriginal History Week, where participants could visit with Elders and knowledge holders to learn about crafts, traditional medicines, and other topics. Thompson Rivers University and the University of Lethbridge each celebrated Indigenous Awareness Week: TRU held events such as hand drumming and a Métis Social Night, while ULethbridge hosted events such as a mini-powwow, dance demonstration, and special Blackfoot Naming Transfer Ceremony for the university’s school of business. “What Indigenous Awareness Week does is bring people together and build relationships,” said ULethbridge Vice-Provost Iniskim Indigenous Relations Iikaisskini (Low Horn) Dr Leroy Little Bear. “The more we talk to each other, the better we know each other, the easier it is to work together.”
