Statement

UBC Vancouver is located on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the Musqueam people. The land it is situated on has always been a place of learning for the Musqueam, who for millennia have passed on their culture, history, and traditions from one generation to the next on this site.

-- Musqueam & UBC

Vision, mission and values

Vision: UBC as a leading university globally in implementation of Indigenous peoples’ human rights.

Mission: To guide UBC’s engagement with Indigenous peoples and its commitment to reconciliation, as articulated and called for by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.

Values: Throughout the engagement process and creation of this finalized Indigenous Strategic Plan we have emphasized the values of excellence, integrity, respect and accountability and this is evident in the final strategic plan document. We engaged directly with a crosssection of the UBC community in finalizing this Plan, and their voices and inputs have guided the Plan now being put into action. As this Plan is implemented, we will continue to emphasize these values of excellence, integrity, respect and accountability as we ensure that this Plan works to advance Indigenous human rights throughout the University. The Indigenous Strategic Plan is also committed to upholding the value of academic freedom in the context of Indigenous human rights. UBC’s Strategic Plan 2018-2028 defines academic freedom as “a scholar’s freedom to express ideas through respectful discourse and the pursuit of open discussion, without risk of censure.”

-- UBC Indigenous Strategic Plan (2020)

EOAS Initiatives

1. EaSEIL = Earth Science Experiential and Indigenous Learning project (funded by TLEF) – Laura Lukes, Shandin Pete, Brett Gilley, Bean Sherman, Silvia Mazabel

2. Three Nations – UBC project (UBC President’s office initiative, Sheryl Lightfoot) – Lee Groat, Philippe Tortell

3. Future Minerals Initiative (UBC VPRI Research Cluster) – Philippe Tortell, Roger Beckie, Shandin Pete, Shaun Barker, Lindsey Heagy, Erik Eberhardt, and other UBC scholars, working in partnership with leaders of the Tahltan and Kaska Nations

4. Developing relationships and partnerships with Indigenous undergraduate and graduate students in UBC Science – Shandin Pete (lead)

5. Developing a toolkit for assessing student understanding of how Indigenous issues intersect with their field of study – Laura Lukes (lead), Shandin Pete

6. Inaugural First Salmon Ceremony at UBC: Sustaining Inter-Cultural Relationships for Our Shared Future – Shandin Pete (co-lead)

7. Yeendoo Diinehdoo Ji’heezrit Nits’oo Ts’o’ Nan He’aa (After Our Time, How Will the World Be) – Shandin Pete (co-lead)

8. Toward the Development of an Indigenous Science Research Seminar/Course Series – Shandin Pete (lead)

9. Many EOAS individuals are partnering with BC First Nations communities, aligning their expertise with community priorities. Such efforts include:

   • Reform of BC’s Mineral Tenure Act (staking of mining claims on Indigenous lands)

   • Independent review boards of mines – environmental expertise

   • First Nations health authority

   • Fisheries

EOAS Indigenous Strategic Plan

EOAS Indigenous Strategic Plan (2023) (log in to view it)

UBC Initiatives & Resources

• Indigenous Learning Pathways: Land Acknowledgements at UBC (Canvas course)

• Why land acknowledgements at UBC?

• UBC Indigenous Strategic Plan website (ISP)

• UBC Indigenous Research Support Initiativ (IRSI)

• Indigenous Initiatives at UBC’s Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology (CTLT)

• UBC’s Indigenous Strategic Plan (ISP) Engagement in Skylight

• UBCV Indigenous-related events

Canada-wide initiatives & Resources

• Native land

• NRCan map browser

• BC First Nations map

• Indigenous lands

• Aboriginal and Treaty Rights

Videos

UBC Future Minerals Initiative

EOAS ISP (log in the website first to view it)