Reconciliation has many different dimensions because it can take on personal, group/organization, national and international meanings. For each role that you have in your life, there may be a different meaning and role for reconciliation. For example, if you are non-Indigenous, reconciliation may mean being a good ally; or, if you are Indigenous, it may mean healing and restitution for residential school experiences, day school experiences, or the Sixties Scoop.
At the organizational/business/institutional level, reconciliation may mean the recognition and acknowledgment of the traditional territories that your organization is situated on and working on projects that help to improve social and economic conditions for First Nations communities.
On the national level, reconciliation could be an active pursuit by government to adhere to the original treaty obligations set forth between Canada and its Indigenous peoples. At the international level, reconciliation could include the full implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).
Ask yourself… What does reconciliation mean to me on a personal, organizational (e.g. at work), national and international level? What role(s) can you play in reconciliation?
