SEPTEMBER 30

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) provided those directly or indirectly affected by the legacy of the Indian Residential Schools system with an opportunity to share their stories and experiences.

CAUAC is a collaborative effort between The City of Calgary and the Indigenous community to address and resolve issues pertaining to urban Aboriginal residents.

It is a initiative that sparked from the aboriginal population growth of the 1970’s in Calgary and during that time it became apparent to Aboriginal leadership and Calgary City Council that a cooperative effort should be made towards addressing the social conditions of the Aboriginal community.

Indigenous Canada is a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) from the Faculty of Native Studies that explores Indigenous histories and contemporary issues in Canada.

From an Indigenous perspective, this course explores key issues facing Indigenous peoples today from a historical and critical perspective highlighting national and local Indigenous-settler relations.

Indigenous Canada is for students from faculties outside the Faculty of Native Studies with an interest in acquiring a basic familiarity with Indigenous/non-Indigenous relationships.

The NCTR is a place of learning and dialogue where the truths of the residential school experience will be honoured and kept safe for future generations.

The NCTR was created as part of the mandate of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC). The TRC was charged to listen to Survivors, their families, communities and others affected by the residential school system and educate Canadians about their experiences. The resulting collection of statements, documents and other materials now forms the sacred heart of the NCTR.

The NCTR Archives and Collections is the foundation for ongoing learning and research. Here, Survivors, their families, educators, researchers, and the public can examine the residential school system more deeply with the goal of fostering reconciliation and healing.

The Caring Society works to ensure the safety and well-being of First Nations youth and their families through education initiatives, public policy campaigns and providing quality resources to support communities. Using a reconciliation framework that addresses contemporary hardships for Indigenous families in ways that uplift all Canadians, the Caring Society champions culturally based equity for First Nations children and their families so that they can grow up safely at home, be healthy, achieve their dreams, celebrate their languages and culture and be proud of who they are. The Caring Society proudly works with our partners in Canada and around the world to promote the rights of Indigenous children.

Since news broke of the uncovered remains of 215 children buried at the site of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School, both Indigenous Peoples and non-Indigenous Canadians have been expressing widespread grief in person and across social media.

With this outpouring of grief, many are asking what to do next. There is a path to build upon the stories of these 215 children in the same way that remembering stories like Chanie Wenjack’s changed conversations about reconciliation across Canada. Together we can ensure that the lives of these 215 children and children across Canada who died while attending the residential school system are honoured.

Individuals, families, communities, and organizations can take the pledge and create their own ways to act. This is a call to action, not a prescribed path to achieve the change.

The remains of 215 Indigenous children killed in a Residential School in B.C. were found in May 2021, with thousands more still unaccounted for. Over seven generations of Indigenous people continue to feel indescribable effects of personal and intergenerational trauma to this day. This is not just a historical issue; it is also a current issue.

For all of us in Canada, this moment should be one of national grieving.

We as settlers need to own that; we need to sit with the discomfort of our country’s actions. We have to accept that while we might not be directly responsible, we still greatly benefit from colonialism in Canada. We need to understand that we can love this country and know it needs to be better.

Our government has a responsibility to do better, but so do we. We can’t just mourn; we need to do more, individually as settlers and collectively as a settler nation.

We all have a part to play in Truth & Reconciliation, and since our government isn’t stepping up, then we, the people, must.

The Caring Society works to ensure the safety and well-being of First Nations youth and their families through education initiatives, public policy campaigns and providing quality resources to support communities. Using a reconciliation framework that addresses contemporary hardships for Indigenous families in ways that uplift all Canadians, the Caring Society champions culturally based equity for First Nations children and their families so that they can grow up safely at home, be healthy, achieve their dreams, celebrate their languages and culture and be proud of who they are. The Caring Society proudly works with our partners in Canada and around the world to promote the rights of Indigenous children.

We at Indian Residential School Survivor Society (IRSSS) strive to provide physical, emotional, intellectual, spiritual growth, development, and healing through culturally-based values and guiding principles for Survivors, Families, and Communities.

Mission Statement

Providing Indigenous cultural connection through programs and services for the urban population.