Indigenous Garden

The Indigenous Garden is for all students, faculty, and staff to gather and reflect on the displacement and dispossession of the stewards of these lands that has taken place for us to be here. The Garden supports our responsibilities to remember and honour Indian Residential School survivors, intergenerational survivors, their families, and communities. It is a learning place for us to acknowledge the rich knowledge systems that have existed for thousands of years while calling us to restore and renew our relationships with mother earth. A dedicated space for Indigenous cultural activities, it is also used for the sharing of traditional knowledges and land-based practices.

The Indigenous Garden features a fire pit and a circular east-facing amphitheater for story telling, dialogue, group instruction, and Indigenous events and ceremonies. It is our hope that this space will contribute to participatory pedagogies and future understandings of Indigenous education locally, provincially, and nationally.

With Indigenous trees, bushes, and plants throughout the Garden, our intention is to incorporate Indigenous signage, murals, artwork, and carvings that enhance understanding of Indigenous languages, cultures, and histories. The names of plants, trees, and bushes will be written in both Halkomelem and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh sníchim.

This is a living document that continues to be discussed with the Indigenous Education Reconciliation Council (IERC) and are interim guiding principles that will be expanded over time.