I acknowledge that the rivers, streams, lakes, and lands of the area that the city of Edmonton presently occupies, rest upon the occupied territories of the nêhiyaw (Nay-hee-yow) / Cree, Dene (Deh-neyh), Anishinaabe (Ah-nish-in-ah-bay) / Saulteaux (So-toe), Nakota Isga (Na-koh-tah ee-ska) / Nakota Sioux (Na-koh-tah sue), and Niitsitapi (Nit-si-tahp-ee) / Blackfoot peoples. I also acknowledge this as the Métis’ (May-tee) homeland and the home of one of the largest communities of Inuit south of the 60th parallel. I recognize the many villages, traditions, cultures, and relationships that existed on this land and on and along the rivers of this area since time immorial. I recognize that these people stewarded the lands and waterways for many generations.

I recognize and undertake responsibility of the destruction of the waterways and lands; of traditional food sources, sacred places and multifaceted ways of life. I recognize the economic and social values that enabled the harm to the waterways, land, and air including systemic racism, classism, colonalism, and other forms of oppression, including genocide, that perpetuated harm against the indigenous people of this area and recognize these same systemic systems that were inflicted upon BIPOC and other immigrant communities.

With this acknowledgement, I commit to honouring and learning from the past in working towards a more equitable and sustainable future for this part of the world. I commit to seeking solutions that acknowledge the inequities of past socioeconomic policies and the harm these policies inflicted upon the people of this land and my relationship with the land and water.

First, I try and listen to the wisdom of the Indigenous voice – the original land stewards.

Hiy hiy!