Douglas Channel. Photo by Thane Bonar
On May 5th and 6th the second annual Global Indigenous Conference will take place at the UBC First Nations Longhouse. This year’s theme is “Uniting Nations, Taking Action: Aboriginal Perspectives on Sustainability, Development, and Cultural Determination.” The conference will take place on the traditional, ancestral and unceded territory of the Musqueam Nation.
Over the course of the day, participants will hear from community members, academics and professionals in four key panel discussions: Aboriginal title and legal sovereignty, cultural self-determination, and sustainable development. The purpose of the event is to inspire dialogue, foster connections, and generate action plans.
Last year’s inaugural Global Indigenous Conference was an overwhelming success. For that event, the student organizing committee chose the theme of “Globalization and Indigenous Peoples,” which covered topics ranging from self-determination, activism and art, Indigenous health, Indigenous education, and more. The conference featured keynote speaker David Suzuki as well as Klaus Quicque and Antonio Fernandini, members of FENAMAD- an Indigenous Environmental activist organization in Peru.
Speakers at this year’s event will include Miles Richardson, former president of the Haida Nation, Art Sterrit, Executive Director of Coastal First Nations, Stewart Phillip, Grand Chief of the Union of BC Indian Chiefs, and Lucas Irar, Elder and school teacher from the Achuar community of Rubina, Ecuador.
Visit the conference site to register and learn more.