First Nations 1 June 2023

Someone Else’s Country

Ninety-five percent of British Columbia, including Vancouver, is on unceded traditional First Nations territory. Unceded means that First Nations people never ceded or legally signed away their lands to the Crown or to Canada. A traditional territory is the geographic area identified by a First Nation as the land they and/or their ancestors traditionally occupied and used.

Before beginning an event, meeting, or conference, it is proper protocol to acknowledge the host nation, its people and its land. You may hear someone begin an event by saying something like this:

“It’s important to note that maps are colonial and political objects, and they can exercise power by what they include and exclude. This map in particular is simplified and incomplete. Many nations are not included, and the map itself implies clear borders between nations, which was often not the case.”