April 23, 2025

The Canadian Council for Indigenous Business and the Ontario Chamber of Commerce have unveiled the first report in a series on economic reconciliation. The first report focuses on how to best support people—who are the foundation of economic growth—through improvements such as the expansion of Indigenous access to education. In their recommendations, the report authors call for improvements to financial aid and student support as well as the creation of dedicated pathways for Indigenous candidates in both education and employment. “Indigenous people are the youngest and fastest-growing population in Canada, yet systemic barriers continue to limit access to education, employment, and leadership opportunities,” said OCC President Daniel Tisch. “Businesses tell us they see reconciliation as an economic opportunity, but often don’t know where to start, or where to go. In this series, [we] aim to give them a roadmap.” Future reports will address issues such as finance and capital, procurement, and lands and resources.

The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR) has received $2M from Canada Life and the Power Corporation of Canada towards a $40M capital campaign focused on building a permanent home for the NCTR at the University of Manitoba. “This gift will help us build our international learning lodge, where the truths are protected, where history is never forgotten nor denied, and where all are welcome to visit to know more about residential schools, and the impacts they have had on Indigenous Peoples, their families and communities,” said NCTR Executive Director Stephanie Scott. Construction on the facility will begin in 2026; it is expected to open in 2029.

The Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies has officially broken ground on the expansion of its Saskatchewan Aviation Learning Centre. This project will double the size of the current facility, adding more classroom space, a dedicated avionics lab, and increased hands-on training opportunities for students. Boeing Canada previously committed $17M to help SIIT create a province-wide hub for aviation training and improve access for Indigenous learners. “With the support of Boeing, this facility will play a crucial role in addressing the skilled labour shortage in aerospace while empowering Indigenous professionals with high-demand career opportunities,” said SIIT President Riel Bellegarde.

Indigenous leaders and organizations such as the BC Civil Liberties Assocation have spoken out against a lawsuit filed by a group of academics from the University of British Columbia. The lawsuit seeks to stop the university from engaging in “political activity,” which they allege includes actions such as making statements that UBC is on unceded Indigenous land. The Chiefs of the Syilx Okanagan Nation, Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs, and Westbank First Nation each issued statements expressing their disappointment with the lawsuit and indicating the need for postsecondary institutions to support truth and reconciliation. Grand Chief Stewart Phillip added that UBC’s statement that it is on unceded Indigenous land is also “factually correct.” BCCLA Executive Director Liza Hughes condemned the lawsuit, describing it as “an attempt to maintain status quo and the privilege it offers some, not an effort towards political neutrality.”

Students from two Indigenous nations in Alberta and Ontario were recently brought together for a cultural exchange program. Through the exchange, students from Napi’s Playground Elementary School on the Piikani Nation in southern AB and Oliver M Smith Kawenni:io (OMSK) Elementary School in Six Nations in ON came together to immerse themselves in the culture of their peers. Turtle Island News reports that they found common ground through activities related to language, tradition, and storytelling. “I like their traditions and how they dance,” said OMSK Grade 5 Student Madisyn Hess, who added that “They had a whole bunch of beading.”

At the First Nations University of Canada, journalism students are rewriting historical articles that were originally written with a colonial bias. The project, which is part of the university’s INCA 392 course, saw students rewriting and revising news stories from as long ago as 1880 to add context and perspectives that were not originally included. They then presented both the original and revised stories on posters at the university. CP24 reports that the selected news stories cover topics such as the massacre at Wounded Knee in 1890, with original language that demonstrates a colonial perspective. “You’re not changing history necessarily in terms of changing timelines, you’re just creating a context that’s more relevant and more open to everybody’s perspective,” explained FNU Student Tyrone Perreault.

Schools in Alberta, British Columbia, and Saskatchewan are sporting new murals and artwork, thanks to the efforts of students and Indigenous artists. In AB, as part of the Chinook’s Edge School Division’s Indigenous residency program, Cree artist Clare Butterfly created paintings for Penhold Crossing Secondary School. Butterfly also helped students paint tipis at HJ Cody School, Steffie Woima Elementary School, and Beacon Hill School. In BC, Senator Reid Elementary School is now sporting a new mural designed by Katzie artist Rain Pierre in collaboration with the school’s students. The unveiling ceremony included a territorial acknowledgment, traditional Indigenous drumming, and a witnessing ceremony; the students who contributed to the mural also received blankets. In Saskatchewan, Estevan Comprehensive School debuted a new mural by Plains Cree artist Geanna Dunbar. Dunbar said that the students asked powerful and thought-provoking questions about the mural and its meaning.

A pair of Indigenous teachers in Saskatchewan have founded an organization called Indigenous Teachers for Two-Spirit Youth, which is dedicated to helping elementary and high schools better support their two-spirt students and teachers. Two-spirit teachers Tanzy Janvier, who is Dene, and Madelaine Enns, who is Métis, started the organization. Through it, they share resources and host workshops in local schools. “School is the very first place where students start to explore the identity amongst their peers,” explained Janvier, “and if they don’t have those safety nets to be able to do that, once they’re done school and in adulthood they don’t know who they are.”

The Council of Canadian Academies has appointed an Expert Panel on Indigenous Science and Food Sovereignty that will explore how Indigenous science can be supported to advance Indigenous priorities and achieves reciprocal benefits for Canada. The panel will be chaired by Treena Wasonti:io Delormier, Director of the Centre for Indigenous Peoples’ Nutrition and Environment at McGill University. “Indigenous and western science are distinct ways of knowing, but their meeting space can create new perspectives and understandings that could help us to address many of the pressing issues facing us today,” said Dr Delormier. “I’m honoured to lead the panel as we work to answer the vital question entrusted to us.” The CCA formed the panel at the request of the Government of Canada’s Indigenous Science, Technology, Mathematics, and Engineering (I-STEM) Cluster, which is sponsoring the project.

Three universities in British Columbia—Thompson Rivers University, the University of Northern British Columbia, and the University of Victoria—have recently reaffirmed partnerships or embarked on initiatives alongside Indigenous community partners in the spirit of reconciliation. TRU and the Skeetchestn Indian Band have signed an affiliation agreement committing to recognition, respect, and a shared purpose. UNBC has partnered with the Sahtú Land and Water Board on an oilfield reclamation project. The project is guided by Sahtú Dene and Métis perspectives and focuses on helping these communities participate in reclamation processes. UVic’s Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions (PICS) and the First Nations Leadership Council have entered into a climate-focused Relationship Protocol. UVic PICS Executive Director Ian Munro explained that the protocol “creates a meaningful foundation for academic and community partnerships that benefit First Nations and their lands and waters.”