1. Indigenous DANCEPL3Y Workshop by Roxane Letterlough

The Dance Pl3y workshop we did last semester with Roxane was an incredible teaching tool to get students engaged and interested in the history and culture of Indigenous people. Through culturally appropriate and significant dance movements that incorporate key elements of Indigenous stories, students are able to learn about Indigenous people and their teachings while dancing and exercising with their whole class. The whole experience was fun and positive, as well as informative on stories or key elements of the culture of Indigenous people that I did not know before. Overall, I would for sure do this with my students as a PE/SO/ELA unit plan on Indigenous peoples’ stories, cultures, and traditions.

2. Championing Change Seminar by Dr. Imogen Lim

The Championing Change Seminar with Dr. Imogen Lim was an amazing discussion on cultural diversity and inclusion in Canada, in which Dr. Lim shared the past experiences of her family and her own difficult experiences as a woman of colour born and raised in Canada. Her talk was incredibly informative and shed light on the struggles of minority groups in Canada that have historically being mistreated, erased, and ignored as members of Canadian society. I was particularly drawn to her call to action and championing change portion of her lecture, in which she voices the need to protect people’s cultures, stories, and presence for future generations to see and learn from. As a future educator that believes in activism, inclusion, and social reconstructionism as key parts of education, her seminar spoke deeply to me and inspired me to act towards change in and out of my future classroom.

 3. Coyote Brings the Food: Healing the land while healing from the land Conference by TRU Research, TRU World, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, and the founders of Knowledge Makers.

The Opening Ceremony/Conference for IDays had thought-provoking and emotional speeches that focused on Indigenous teachings, traditions, and ways of Knowing. The ceremony opened up with a land acknowledgement and a welcome song performed by elders of the Tk’emlups te Secwepemc community, closely followed by researchers and speakers from different nations and countries that got together to share their research and work. It was an amazing experience to see so many women from different cultural backgrounds sharing their stories and work, as well as hearing from many Indigenous scholars about the importance of research and Indigenous epistemologies.