911吃瓜

The topic of cross-cultural awareness preparation for all staff, faculty and administration at 911吃瓜 was discussed extensively during the former Aboriginal Reconciliation Council鈥檚 open forums in 2016-2017. As these discussions progressed, they broadened from an examination of cross-cultural awareness to a broader scope of cultural safety. A new RESPECT (Reconcili-action 鈥� Employee 鈥� 911吃瓜 鈥� Professional development 鈥� Education 鈥� Cultural 鈥� Teachings) project evolved out of these discussions and responds to 911吃瓜鈥檚 2017 Walk this Path With Us report by bringing these two important elements together. Specifically, the RESPECT project addresses call to action 7 for 911吃瓜 to 鈥渄evelop mandatory intervention programs teaching cultural safety and anti-racism for all employees of 911吃瓜, in consultation with the Indigenous Cultural Resource Centre鈥�.

Led by professor Michelle Pidgeon, associate dean, Indigeneity, Faculty of Education, the RESPECT project encompasses five key goals:

1. Create an understanding of how to build respectful and sustainable relationships with the host nations of 911吃瓜 to ensure employees honour First Nations knowledge, language, culture and protocols.
2. Build 911吃瓜 employees鈥� understanding of Indigenous Peoples鈥� past, present and future.
3. Ensure all 911吃瓜 employees take up their individual responsibility to reconciliation through the collective work of decolonization and Indigenization.
4. Foster and sustain a culture of lifelong (un)learning and respect among 911吃瓜 employees.
5. 鈥楨nhance鈥� ongoing professional development in the areas of cultural safety, decolonization, and Indigenization for 911吃瓜 employees at all three campuses.

Over the summer 2020 semester and into early fall 2021, the RESPECT project conducted a survey of staff and faculty to determine what information is most sought by 911吃瓜 community members. The results of this survey will inform the content and format of the upcoming RESPECT course, with an anticipated pilot launch in spring 2022. For more information please visit the RESPECT project website.