Indigenous

Indigenous Speakers Series presents Kim TallBear

Olivia Vanderwal — Fri, 05 Dec 2025 18:28:29 +0000

Indigenous Speakers Series presents Kim TallBear Olivia Vanderwal Fri, 12/05/2025 - 13:28

The Indigenous Speakers Series is honoured to present Dr. Kim TallBear, professor, author, and Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Peoples, Technoscience, and Society.

About the speaker

Kim TallBear (she/her) is a citizen of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate, a Dakota nation in present-day South Dakota. She is a Professor in the Department of American Indian Studies, University of Minnesota – Twin Cities campus. She earned a B.A. in Community Planning at the University of Massachusetts-Boston and a Master’s in City Planning (environmental policy and planning) at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She earned her PhD in History of Consciousness at University of California, Santa Cruz.

She is the author of Native American DNA: Tribal Belonging and the False Promise of Genetic Science. Dr. TallBear is the co-founder of the Summer internship for INdigenous peoples in Genomics (SING) Canada. She has advised the President of the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) on issues related to genomics and Indigenous peoples. She has also advised museums on exhibits related to race and science.

In addition to studying genome science disruptions to Indigenous governance and to Indigenous self-definitions, Dr. TallBear studies colonial disruptions to Indigenous sexualities. She is a regular panelist on the weekly Indigenous current affairs podcast, Media Indigena. She is also a regular media commentator in outlets such as CBC, CNN, The Washington Post, The New Yorker, the LA Times, APTN, and the BBC on topics pertaining to Indigenous peoples, science, and technology; on the politics of self-indigenization; and on Indigenous sexualities. She is a former Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation (PETF) Fellow (2018-2021).

You can follow her on Bluesky @kimtallbear.bsky.social and read her occasional posts on her Substack newsletter, Unsettle: Indigenous affairs, cultural politics & (de)colonization.

Please note: Registration is appreciated but not required. Everyone is welcome!

Registration

Watch past recordings from our Indigenous Speakers Series on YouTube.

Indigenous Histories in Canada projects showcase

Wendy Philpott — Fri, 14 Nov 2025 14:51:05 +0000

Indigenous Histories in Canada projects showcase Wendy Philpott Fri, 11/14/2025 - 09:51

Visit the Dana Porter Library main floor to learn from course projects of students in Dr. Talena Atfield’s HIST 269, Indigenous Histories in Canada.

The Two-Row Wampum/Covenant Chain and Dish With one Spoon friendship agreements outline the principles that govern relationships between settlers/arrivants and Indigenous Peoples on the land the University of ��ݮ��Ƶ currently occupies.

Students taking HIST 269, Indigenous Histories in Canada, have spent the term learning about the histories that took us off the path of mutual respect, non-interference, and friendship. They have taken both individual and collective approaches to learning how they can take up their responsibilities to share the river as originally intended through poster-style presentations of their final projects. Presentations include a range of disciplines including health, education, politics, environment, tourism, and art.

From Myth to Malice: Affective and Political Consequences of False Claims to Indigeneity

Elizabeth Rogers — Mon, 29 Sep 2025 13:53:23 +0000

From Myth to Malice: Affective and Political Consequences of False Claims to Indigeneity Elizabeth Rogers Mon, 09/29/2025 - 09:53

Scholar Spotlight Series featuring Dr. Rowland Robinson

In this talk, Rowland will interrogate the phenomenon of false Indigenous identity claims and their corrosive effects on Indigenous communities. Drawing on personal experience, historical precedents, and critical Indigenous scholarship, he situates these practices within the broader logic of settler colonialism and its drive toward self-indigenization. In particular, he will focus on the drive to consume and assume historical Indigenous suffering in the effort to cohere false claims.

Read Rowland Robinson's bio

Indigenous Speakers Series presents Mary Spencer

Olivia Vanderwal — Fri, 05 Sep 2025 19:10:26 +0000

Indigenous Speakers Series presents Mary Spencer Olivia Vanderwal Fri, 09/05/2025 - 15:10

The Indigenous Speakers Series is honoured to present Mary Spencer, member of the Chippewas of Nawash First Nation and former WBA super welterweight world champion.

About the speaker

Mary Spencer is a member of the Chippewas of Nawash First Nation and held the WBA super welterweight world championship professional boxing title for the past year. She boxes out of Montreal, Quebec. Spencer grew up in Windsor, Ontario, and started boxing at the age of 17. She spent 10 years on the Canadian Boxing Team where she won three world titles as well as the PanAm Games, and in 2012 she became the first woman to represent Canada in Olympic boxing.

Spencer's talk will be followed by a Q&A moderated by Dale Bellaire, a PhD student in the Faculty of Health.

Please note: Registration is appreciated but not required. Everyone is welcome! You can join the livestream via MS Teams.

Portrait of Mary Spencer by Hawlii Pichette, Urban Iskwew.

Registration

Watch past recordings from our Indigenous Speakers Series on YouTube.

Political Science Speaker Series - Red River Onto-Sovereignties: On Radical Refusal, Fish Conservation & Quantum Relationality

Elizabeth Rogers — Fri, 28 Feb 2025 19:40:43 +0000

Political Science Speaker Series - Red River Onto-Sovereignties: On Radical Refusal, Fish Conservation & Quantum Relationality Elizabeth Rogers Fri, 02/28/2025 - 14:40

Dr. Zoe Todd is a Red River Métis scholar from Edmonton, Alberta who studies the relationships between freshwater fish futures and Indigenous sovereignty in Canada, with a particular focus on freshwater fish relationships in Todd's home province of Alberta.

Drawing on various scholars, Todd critiques the push to 'braid' Indigenous and settler paradigms in conservation. As a Red River Métis scholar, Todd advocates for the radical refusal of systems based on white possession and individualism, urging western institutions to embrace Indigenous practices and global anti-imperialist solidarities.

Political Science Speaker Series: Permanent Marginality - Indigenous Identity and Academia

Elizabeth Rogers — Thu, 20 Feb 2025 22:02:00 +0000

Political Science Speaker Series: Permanent Marginality - Indigenous Identity and Academia Elizabeth Rogers Thu, 02/20/2025 - 17:02

Rachelle Besaw is a Descendant Member of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin, and veteran of the United States Navy. She is currently working on her Doctorate in Sociocultural Anthropology from Arizona State University.

As a Descendant Member of the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin, raised in Phoenix, AZ, Rachelle was culturally and geographically displaced from her Tribe while growing up. In this lecture, she will discuss the marginal space she now inhabits as a linguistic anthropologist, indebted to the oftentimes cruel and violent history of anthropological and linguistic research inflicted upon Indigenous Nations, and her own Tribe, in the name of Science. She will discuss her own journey through an academic system built on the oppression and subjugation of her people, and how she has had to rely upon extractive and exploitative research on her path to reclaiming her Indigeneity.

Join the meeting: MS Teams link

Indigenous Speakers Series presents katherena vermette

Olivia Vanderwal — Fri, 03 Jan 2025 20:39:33 +0000

Indigenous Speakers Series presents katherena vermette Olivia Vanderwal Fri, 01/03/2025 - 15:39

The Indigenous Speakers Series is honoured to present katherena vermette, a Michif (Red River Métis) award-winning writer from Treaty 1 territory, the heart of the Métis Nation, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

About the speaker

Born in Winnipeg, katherena vermette's Michif roots on her paternal side run deep in St. Boniface, St. Norbert and beyond. Her maternal side is Mennonite from the Altona and Rosenfeld area (Treaty 1). She holds a Master of Fine Arts from the University of British Columbia and an honourary Doctor of Letters from the University of Manitoba.

In 2013, her first book, North End Love Songs (Muses’ Company), won the Governor General’s Literary Award for Poetry. Since then, her work has garnered awards and critical accolades across genres. Her novels The Break (House of Anansi), The Strangers and The Circle (Hamish Hamilton) were all national best sellers and won multiple literary awards. Her fourth novel, real ones (Hamish Hamilton), was longlisted for the 2024 Giller Prize.

In a conversation facilitated by Dr. Talena Atfield, Assistant Professor in History, katherena will share about her upcoming poetry collection and creative practices.

Visit katherena vermette's website.

Please note: Registration is now closed. If you weren't able to join us, keep an eye on our YouTube channel for the recording of the talk.

Portrait of katherena vermette by Hawlii Pichette, Urban Iskwew.

Watch past recordings from our Indigenous Speakers Series on YouTube.

Innovating Strategic Planning: A Decolonial Approach

Elizabeth Rogers — Thu, 31 Oct 2024 14:22:25 +0000

Innovating Strategic Planning: A Decolonial Approach Elizabeth Rogers Thu, 10/31/2024 - 10:22

Feminist Think Tank is excited to invite you to “Innovating Strategic Planning: A Decolonial Approach,” a talk by speaker Benny Skinner!

Benny Skinner (they/them) is a Two-Spirit decolonial thinker, educator, and human rights advocate living in the Great Lakes Regions of Turtle Island. On their father’s side, they come from the community of Harbour Round in Ktaqmkuk (Newfoundland) that has mixed Mi’kmaq, Inuit, Keltic, and French ancestry. On their mother’s side, they come from the Kapampangan people in Pampanga, Luzon (The Philippines). Benny currently works as an Indigenous Research Advisor at the University of ��ݮ��Ƶ. They are also a consultant at multiple organizations, including Canadian Women & Sport where they are a trans and gender equity consultant, and LURA where they are an Indigenous community engagement consultant. Benny holds a Bachelor of Arts in Peace and Conflict Studies and a Master of Arts in Global Governance, both from University of ��ݮ��Ƶ. They are a research fellow at the Balsillie School of International Affairs, an ambassador for a number of human rights advocacy organizations, and in their spare time they enjoy both playing and coaching rugby at a high level.

Join us as Benny shares their expertise on strategic planning from a decolonial perspective. This will be an invaluable opportunity to reflect on planning processes grounded in transformative justice and decolonization.

Questions? Email Feminist Think Tank Co-Directors Brianna Wiens (biwiens@uwaterloo.ca) or Shana MacDonald (shana.macdonald@uwaterloo.ca).

Indigenous Speakers Series presents Greg Staats

Olivia Vanderwal — Wed, 30 Oct 2024 18:05:15 +0000

Indigenous Speakers Series presents Greg Staats Olivia Vanderwal Wed, 10/30/2024 - 14:05

The Indigenous Speakers Series is honoured to present Greg Staats, winner of the 2024 Governor General’s Award for Visual and Media Arts (GGArts) and a 2024-25 Longhouse Labs Fellow here at the University of ��ݮ��Ƶ.

A restorative aesthetic

Greg Staats is Skarù:reˀ [Tuscarora], Hodinöhsö:ni whose lens-based work combines language, mnemonics, and the natural world as an ongoing process of visualizing a Hodinohso:ni restorative aesthetic that defines relational multiplicities with condolence and renewal.

At this event, Greg will discuss his evolving methodology based on phenomena, lens-based issues and a lifelong practice focused on Hodinosho:ni imagery and the responsibilities to land body and memory. He will show selected images that identify key moments of movement over a 40-year career of exhibitions and sharing.

More about Greg Staats

Greg is a founding member of the Native Indian/Inuit Photographers' Association (NIIPA).  He was awarded the 1999 Duke & Duchess of York Prize in Photography from the Canada Council for the Arts and, recently, the 2021 Toronto Arts Foundation’s Inaugural Indigenous Artist Award. Greg has had 17 solo national, regional and artist-run exhibitions, including at the Art Gallery of Ontario, Gallery 44 and the McMaster Museum of Art, as well as 16 group exhibitions, including at the National Gallery of Canada, the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts, in Sante Fe, USA, Mercer Union and the International Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, in Washington, D.C. He has lectured extensively nationally, and his works are held within public, private and corporate collections. Greg has served as faculty for two Aboriginal Visual Arts Residencies at the Banff Centre. Greg Staats grew up on Six Nations of the Grand River Territory, Ohsweken, and has resided in Toronto, Ontario, since 1986. 

Watch the 2024 GGArts video about Greg Staats.

Visit Greg Staats’ website.

Please note: Registration is now closed. If you weren't able to join us, watch Greg's talk on our YouTube channel.

Photograph of Greg Staats.

About Longhouse Labs

Longhouse Labs (LLabs) at the University of ��ݮ��Ƶ builds capacity among Indigenous students and artists while integrating Indigenous knowledge, perspectives, traditions and leadership broadly within education. Located in East Campus Hall, LLabs includes a studio and gallery space, an archive, and soon, a garden for land-based learning. The Longhouse Labs Fellows visiting artist program is a central part of the project.

We gratefully acknowledge the 2024-25 Longhouse Labs Fellows supporters: K.M. Hunter Charitable Foundation, Partners in Art, Rex Lingwood, TD Employees Endowment Fund held at the ��ݮ��Ƶ Region Community Foundation.

Watch past recordings from our Indigenous Speakers Series on YouTube.

TH'OWXIYA: The Hungry Feast Dish

Elizabeth Rogers — Mon, 28 Oct 2024 13:58:32 +0000

TH'OWXIYA: The Hungry Feast Dish Elizabeth Rogers Mon, 10/28/2024 - 09:58

Written by: Joseph A. Dandurand

Directed by: Andy Houston

When you take something from the earth you must always give something back.

From the Kwantlen First Nation village of Squa’lets comes the tale of Th’owxiya, an old and powerful spirit that inhabits a feast dish of tempting, beautiful foods from around the world. But even surrounded by this delicious food, Th’owxiya herself craves only the taste of children. When she catches a hungry mouse named Kw’at’el stealing a piece of cheese from her dish, she threatens to devour Kw’at’el’s whole family, unless he can bring Th’owxiya two child spirits. Ignorant but desperate, Kw’at’el sets out on an epic journey to fulfill the spirit’s demands. With the help of Sqeweqs, two Spa:th and Sasq’ets, Kw’at’el endeavours to find gifts that would appease Th’owxiya and save his family.

Like “Hansel and Gretel” and the northwest First Nations stories about the Wild Woman of the Woods, Th’owxiya—which integrates masks, song, and dance—is a tale of understanding boundaries, being responsible for one’s actions, forgiving mistakes and finding the courage to stand up for what’s right.

This show is considered “Theatre for Young Audiences”. Ages 4 to 104.

Running Time: 1 hour (no intermission)

Ticket prices: General Public $15 / Students & Seniors $10 / High school and children $5

10% discount for groups of 10 or more people. Contact the box office in person or by phone, 519-888-4908 for the group rate.