Since time immemorial, diverse Indigenous communities and groups have lived, harvested and utilized the land here in Jasper.
Take some time to read through Parks Canadas webpage, and learn about the history of Indigenous people’s connection to Jasper.
LINK: Indigenous connections - Jasper National Park (Parks Canada website)

Do you know the story of why we wear orange on National Day for Truth and Reconciliation?

Watch this video and learn about Phyllis Webstad’s story.

Also, do you have an orange shirt to wear on September 30th ? Consider supporting an Indigenous business! We’ve linked some below.

Educational Resource Link:
Children & Adult Resource - All About Orange Shirt Day | CBC Kids
Younger Children Resource - Storytime Honouring Orange Shirt Day (Today is Orange Shirt Day by Phyllis Webstad) | CBC Kids

Indigenous business Links:
- Apparel - T-Shirts and Tank Tops - Page 1 - Moonstone Creation
- T-Shirts – Young Spirit Supplies
- Orange Shirt Day Pin » Tribal Roots Inc
- Official Merchandise - Orange Shirt Society
- Adults' Morningstar Orange T-Shirt in Orange from Joe Fresh

Check out the Municipality of Jasper’s Truth and Reconciliation webpage.

Familiarize yourself with 21 Indigenous Partners, which can be found towards the bottom of the page.

LINK: Municipality of Jasper - Truth and Reconciliation

Check out this CBC Comedy sketch on Land Acknowledgments. This sketch might make you laugh – but it also makes you think.

While funny, it also encourages us to reflect on how to ensure our words and actions are thoughtful, respectful and grounded in genuine understanding and commitment to reconciliation…how can we all do better?

Resource for Adults: Land acknowledgement | Baroness von Sketch Show

Resource for Children - Indigenous land acknowledgements, their purpose, and how to make them meaningful | CBC Kids News

Also to include the Municipality of Jaspers Land Acknowledgement Policy - POLICY STATEMENT

Looking for a new podcast? Listen to CBC’s unreserved podcast with Rosanna Deerchild.

Resource Link: Unreserved with Rosanna Deerchild | Live Radio | CBC Listen

Searching for your next read? Explore these books in honour of National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. Many of these titles are available at the Jasper library – stop by and see what you can find! Or if you are able, consider purchasing a copy of a book to support Indigenous authors and their work.

Adult book titles:

Seven Fallen Feathers - Tanya Talaga
Braiding Sweetgrass - Robin Wall Kimmerer
Up Ghost River - Edmund Metatawabin, with Alexandra Shimo
The Reason You Walk: A Memoir – Wab Knew
Unreconciled – Jesse Wente
Medicine to Help Us: Traditional Métis Plant Use
Moon of the Crusted Snow – Waubgeshig Rice
From the Ashes – Jesse Thistle
21 Things you May Not Know about the Indian Act: Helping Canadians Make Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples a Reality – Bob Joseph
The Seven Generations and the Seven Grandfather Teachings – James Vukelich
Who We Are Four Questions for a Life and a Nation – The Honourable Murray Sinclair cc Mazina Giizhik
Indigenous Relations: Insights, Tips & Suggestions to Make Reconciliation a Reality – Bob Joseph
The Inconvenient Indian – Thomas King
Five Little Indians – Michelle Good
The Break – Katherena Vermette
Highway of Tears – Jessica McDiarmid

Children book titles:
Why we Dance: A Story of Hope and Healing – Deidre Havrelock and Aly McKnight
With our Orange Hearts – Phyllis Webstad and Emily Kewageshig
The Water Walker – Joanne Robertson
Walking Together – Elder Dr. Albert D. Marshell, Louise Zimanyi, Emily Kewageshig
We are Water Protectors – Carole Lindstorm, Michaela Goade
The Sharing Circle – Theresa “Corky” Larsen-Jonasson, Emma Bullen, Jessika Von Innerebner
Métis Like Me – Tasha Hilderman
Nibi’s Water Song – Sunshine Tenasco

Do you know about the Sixties Scoop in Canada? Canada took thousands of Indigenous children from their parents between the 1960s and the 1980s. Similar to the residential school system, the sixties scoop was an attempt to assimilate Indigenous peoples and the effects are still felt today.

Trigger Warning -
The following video discusses the Sixties Scoop in Canada and includes accounts of family separation, cultural loss, and trauma. This content may be distressing for some viewers. Please take care while watching and step away if you need to.

Resource Link: Separating children from parents: The Sixties Scoop in Canada (video can be found on youtube)

Do you know about the United Nations Declaration on the rights of Indigenous peoples (UNDRIP)?

Watch this video to learn about UNDRIP and why it is so important.

Resource link: The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples explained

Do you know about the four sacred medicines: Sage, sweetgrass, cedar and tobacco? Follow this link to learn more about the sacred medicines.

Resource Link - Four Sacred Medicines - The Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund

Watch this five minute video about significant dates in the history of residential schools in Canada. 

Show support for local Indigenous businesses here in Jasper!

Resource links: Guided Tours Jasper National Park I Metis - Owned (website link)

Warrior Women (website link)

Home | Fallen Mountain (website link)

Home | Zuc'min Guiding (website link)

In a moving TED talk that's also part poem, artist and Jasper-based Cree Knowledge Keeper, Matricia Bauer shares her journey to claim her Indigenous identity after her community suffered at the hands of Canada's residential schools

Check out UpLift! Mural Festival's 2023 piece by Mackenzie Brown: The Kamamak at the corner of Geikie and Miette.

Learn a greeting in Cree, an Indigenous language spoken in the Jasper area.

Cree: Tansi (THAN-SAY) means ‘how are things’ in Cree.

Resource Link: 5 - Indigenous Work of the Week - Hello in Cree (video)

Learn a greeting in an Indigenous language spoken in the Jasper area. 

Stoney Nakoda: Umba wathtech (UMBA WASH-STITCH)  

To learn more "Greetings and Gratitude Words" from Indigenous languages spoken in the Jasper area, Download this poster. 

Learn a greeting in Michif, an Indigenous language spoken in the Jasper area.

Cree: Tansi (THAN-SAY) means ‘how are things’ in Michif.

Resource Link: 1 - Indigenous Word of the Week - Hello in Michif (video

Listen to Indigenous partners share stories about the Jasper area. Learn about the Indigenous partners from the park and how that continues to impact generations.  

Watch this video of how to say hello in 15 Indigenous languages!

Child & youth friendly!

Resource Link - How to say hello in 15 Indigenous languages #CBCKN - YouTube

Plan to visit the Jasper Yellowhead Museum to learn more about some of the Métis families who were forced out of Jasper after the Park's creation in 1907. Admire the pieces of Suzette Swift's beadwork artistry that are on display!

Learn about the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls

May 5^th is Red Dress Day. Mark your calendar for May 5^th, 2024 to remember to wear red and share education about the importance of this day

Learn a greeting in an Indigenous language spoken in the Jasper area. 

Michif: Tawnshi/Taanishi (TAN-SHAY) 

Did you know Canada passed a new law in June 2023, called the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples’ Act (UNDA)? Learn more about UNDA here.

 

Watch Bones of Crows. A multi-generational epic; a story of resilience and strength told through the eyes of Cree Matriarch Aline Spears. 

It weaves together underrepresented moments in Canadian and Indigenous history, including the Indigenous contributions to WWII, the ongoing cases of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. 

Learn about the relocation of Simpcw from Jasper National Park to Tete Jaune Cache, then to Chu Chua.

Take some time today to consider how you in your role can advance Truth and Reconciliation

Go for a walk in what is now known as Jasper National Park. Look at the land around you and reflect on what you have learned in the past 28 days. 

What role do you play in advancing truth and reconciliation?

Set an intention on how you will observe September 30th and honour the survivors of the residential school system. 

How will you continue to learn and acknowledge the experiences of Indigenous peoples in Canada throughout the year?