Indigenous faculty, staff, students and community members generously share their time and knowledge across the university. As interest in Indigenous histories, cultures, and practices continues to grow, so too do the number of questions that are received.
This FAQ is designed to support our shared responsibility for learning. It provides guidance on common questions related to Indigenous engagement at the university, and encourages respectful, informed, and proactive approaches to building relationships.
We invite you to explore these questions with openness and care as part of our ongoing journey toward truth, reconciliation, and respectful collaboration.
This resource is a starting point for commonly asked questions about Indigenous matters and engagement at McMaster. Browse the sections below to find information and guidance. If you don’t see the question or topic you’re looking for, please email trcomms@mcmaster.ca and we’ll do our best to assist you or connect you with the appropriate resource.
As an educational institution, McMaster is deeply committed to providing and supporting opportunities for our entire community to learn respectfully from Indigenous histories, cultures and ways of knowing and to contribute to redressing the injustices of settler colonialism in Canada – on the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and throughout the year.
There are two key groups that participate in McMaster’s governance. A new position, vice-provost, Indigenous, will soon join the university’s senior leadership team.
Indigenous Education Council (IEC) The IEC is an advisory group to McMaster’s president. The IEC is the primary body with responsibility for promoting and advocating for the advancement of Indigenous education at McMaster, championing the needs of Indigenous students, staff and faculty members, and providing advice and support to the university on all Indigenous matters.
Joint Indigenous-Administrative Consultation Group (JIACG) The JIACG brings together senior leaders from the university’s administration with leaders of the Indigenous community at McMaster. It was created in 2016 and the most important consideration was to ensure there are structures in place and the right people at the table, so more perspectives are included in the decision making. The JIACG also serves as a resource that can provide a diverse, senior leadership lens to projects and initiatives.
Vice-Provost, Indigenous (VPI) McMaster is currently searching for the inaugural vice-provost, Indigenous. This senior leadership position will be responsible for implementing and maintaining a university Indigenous education and research plan, providing vision and leadership for decolonization while furthering the Indigenization of the university.
A land acknowledgement is a statement that recognizes and respects the Indigenous Peoples as the original caretakers of the land where we live, learn, and work. It names the Nations or communities connected to the territory and acknowledges their enduring relationship to it.
Land acknowledgements are most meaningful when they include personal reflection. Consider your identity, your relationship to the land and institution and what actions you are committed to taking.
Ensure your land acknowledgement is accurate and respectful. Research the Indigenous Nations connected to the land and learn to pronounce names correctly.
It is appropriate to give a land acknowledgment at any event, meeting, or gathering, regardless of whether there is Indigenous involvement.
Smudging is an Indigenous ceremony passed down through generations and engaged in by many First Nations peoples. The burning of sacred medicines creates a small plume of smoke that is used to purify the body, mind and ceremonial or personal space and to cleanse away any negative energy and emotions.
More information and guidance on smudging at McMaster can be found on the Smudging Protocol for the Burning of Traditional and Sacred Medicines by the Equity and Inclusion Office.
The First Peoples Cultural Council, located in British Columbia, offer guidelines are for anyone, Indigenous or non-Indigenous, who requires the assistance of Elders for a project or event.
Consider what you mean by ‘Indigenize’ and the implications and politics of this term. Adam Gaudry and Danielle Lorenz (2018), for example, distinguish between Indigenization as inclusion, as reconciliation, and as decolonization, pointing out that many institutional efforts focus on inclusion in a narrow way.
Plan early and collaborate with Indigenous partners with whom you have already developed relationships. Work closely with these colleagues to determine if/why a collaborative event might be appropriate, and how design, decision-making, resourcing, etc. might be determined in a just way. Avoid simply coming to Indigenous partners with a pre-established event design and asking them to do extra labour by participating.
While collaborative events can be wonderful ways to work toward reconciliation, it is important to remember the already extensive demands on Indigenous colleagues’ time and to avoid replicating tokenistic/extractive approaches to collaboration. Consider whether you’ve developed relationships with people in advance and leave time for those relationships to grow. If you have not established relationships, and/or if you’re coming to an event idea rather late, perhaps consider whether another event is necessary or if you could instead attend, amplify, or otherwise support other events already happening on campus or in the community.
When asking Elders or faculty to speak or participate, keep in mind that their time is limited and highly valued. An honorarium and/or gift should be provided as a recognition of their contribution and it should not be assumed they can volunteer large amounts of time without acknowledgment or reciprocity.
The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, on Sept. 30, is a day of commemoration for non-Indigenous community members to learn about, recognize and reflect on the ongoing, intergenerational impact of residential schools. It is a day for all community members to honour survivors and to remember the children who never came home.
Engaging in truth and reconciliation is an ongoing, personal, and collective commitment. It begins with learning about the histories and experiences of Indigenous Peoples, and extends to meaningful actions that support Indigenous sovereignty, equity, respect, and healing.
If you’re looking to deepen your understanding, the following books by both Indigenous and non-Indigenous authors and scholars offer powerful insights into histories, experiences and the ongoing work of reconciliation.
Behind the Bricks: The Life and Times of the Mohawk Institute, Canada’s Longest-Running Residential School Author(s): Richard W. Hill Sr., Alison Norman, Thomas Peace, and Jennifer Pettit Publisher: University of Calgary Press
The Knowing Author(s): Tanya Talaga Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Unreconciled Author(s): Jesse Wente Publisher: Penguin Canada
When the Pine Needles Fall Author(s): By Katsi’tsakwas Ellen Gabriel, with Sean Carleton, Foreword by Pamela Palmater, Afterword by Audra Simpson Publisher: Between The Lines
Rehearsals for Living Author(s): Robyn Maynard and Leanne Betasamosake Simpson Publisher: Vintage Canada – Penguin Random House Canada
Settler: Identity and Colonialism in 21st Century Canada (Second Edition) Author(s): Emma Battell Lowman and Adam J. Barker Publisher: Fernwood Publishing
Where Mary Went Author(s): Lynne Sherry McLean Publisher: Theytus Books
A National Crime: The Canadian Government and the Residential School System Author(s): John S. Milloy Publisher: University of Manitoba Press
? da gaho d?:s (Odagahodhes): Reflecting on Our Journeys Author(s): Norma Jacobs Publisher: McGill-Queen’s University Press
We Share Our Matters: Two Centuries of Writing Author(s): Rick Monture Publisher: University of Manitoba Press
Deyohaha?:ge : Sharing the River of Life Author(s): Daniel Coleman, Ki’en Debicki & Bonnie M. Freeman Publisher: Wilfrid Laurier University Press
21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act Author(s): Bob Joseph Publisher: Indigenous Relations Press
Ally Is a Verb : A Guide to Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples Author(s): Rose LeMay Publisher: Page Two Books
52 Ways to Reconcile: How to Walk with Indigenous Peoples on the Path to Healing Author(s): David Alexander Robertson Publisher: McClelland & Stewart – Penguin Random House
Truth Telling: Seven Conversations about Indigenous Life in Canada Author(s): Michelle Good Publisher: Harper Collins Canada