In the process of developing a land acknowledgment, we recognized that these statements can risk sounding scripted and inauthentic (and sometimes they are). As a Canadian company, it’s important for us to work towards truth and reconciliation, and we wanted to create a meaningful land acknowledgment rooted in what we understand–so far–about the history and present reality of Indigenous peoples in Canada.

Here’s what that process looked like:

• We integrated foundational learning of Indigenous history into our onboarding policies, making the completion of the University of Alberta’s Indigenous Canada course mandatory for all staff.
• We held an all-staff workshop on the importance of land acknowledgments, what they mean, and how to create them authentically.
• Several options for the land acknowledgment were drafted, and the team provided anonymous feedback.
• After incorporating the feedback, the final version was created and presented to the team for a final review.

The result was a land acknowledgment created through our collective efforts:

“Be the Change Group acknowledges our office is on the unsurrendered land of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, which have been here since time immemorial. In our journey to reconciliation, our team is working towards understanding of and allyship with these nations, and decolonizing the systems of which we are a part.”

We’re nearing the end of Indigenous History Month. But this doesn’t mean the work stops here. We’re committed to ongoing learning, and we’ll be incorporating the land acknowledgment in our day to day work.

Creating a land acknowledgment is only one of the many ways companies can take action towards truth and reconciliation. We encourage other teams to review their land acknowledgments, and if you don’t have one–you can use this process as a resource to get started. We’re happy to share more details about our process and other resources, so comment down below if you’d like to know more.