As we near the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, I find myself deeply moved by having just completed Indigenous Canada, the online course designed by Dr. Savage Bear and her team. This has been more than a course, it has been an invitation to look inward, to confront difficult truths and to consider how reconciliation requires action.
Indigenous Canada was both eye-opening and humbling. Even after many years in higher education, I realized how much I still had to learn: The scale of colonial policies, the stories of enforced assimilation and the ways these histories continue to shape Indigenous communities today.
In the context of September 30th, which also marks Orange Shirt Day, the course was even more meaningful. The day honours the survivors of residential schools, the children who never returned home and is an opportunity to reflect on the role each of us can play in advancing reconciliation.
What made the course especially impactful was how it moved beyond facts to emphasize relationships, giving voice to lived experiences and grounding the content in values of listening, respect, and humility.
One of the most powerful lessons for me is that learning cannot stop at awareness. For those of us in higher education, understanding Indigenous histories, cultures, and contemporary realities is a responsibility and reconciliation must be pursued through action. For me, that means:
Indigenous Canada itself is a strong example of such action. Launched in 2017 as a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC), it quickly became Canada’s most popular MOOC, surpassing half a million enrollments by 2024.
Dr. Savage Bear, who is now a faculty member in the Indigenous Studies Department at McMaster and Director of the McMaster Indigenous Research Institute (MIRI), played a central role in developing the course while at the University of Alberta.
Here at McMaster, in the initiatives surrounding September 30th, I see strong educational opportunities that will hopefully grow into action: Book displays in our libraries, a presentation on the Mohawk Institute Residential School, film screenings, and even the planting of a food forest. Staff in the Office of the Registrar also took Indigenous Canada together as a unit, met monthly for discussions and then gathered over lunch to reflect on what they had learned, a meaningful example of community learning in action.
These activities do more than mark a day; they build relationships, honour stories, and reshape how we understand our collective history.
I am grateful for what I have learned through Indigenous Canada. But gratitude alone is not enough. I am committed to turning these lessons into concrete steps and I invite all members of our community to do the same.
Every child matters. Every story matters. Every step forward matters.
— Maureen MacDonald Provost and Vice-President (Academic)
Community, Indigenous
Community, University Leadership