Acknowledging Territory

Quick links to sections on this page
What does Right Relations Mean | First Apology | Manitou Art Collection | Resources |  Staff Support

Territorial Acknowledgment

Canada is Indigenous territory. It is respectful protocol to acknowledge at the start of every gathering or meeting the particular nation(s) that had a relationship with the land you are on since time immemorial. In The United Church of Canada it has become common practice to acknowledge the land on which we gather. It is a small step toward reconciliation but it does not stop with some words. When you begin your meetings or gatherings by acknowledging the land on which you are worshiping, working, and living, you also acknowledge the presence of Indigenous people in the present as well as the past before colonization. You acknowledge connection and disrupted connection to the land and that there are things you need to do to act on your words and reconnect relationships. As one of the church parties to the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement, The United Church of Canada intentionally responds to the 2015 Truth and Reconciliation Call to Action #49:

In other words, Indigenous people and nations did not give up their lands that they had been on for thousands of years, Europeans did not “discover” Canada or arrive on an uninhabited land, treaties were not honoured.

Possible Components of an Acknowledgment

• Identifying traditional Indigenous territory
• Naming treaty agreements
• Re-affirming wampum traditions, like “The Dish With One Spoon”
• Lifting up commitments, like the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action and The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
• Expressing and connection one’s own connections to land, creation, and ancestry
• Confronting traditional texts that have been used to justify colonization, including both biblical and historical frameworks like the Doctrine of Discovery
• Connectioing to contemporary struggles for justice

Examples of Territorial Acknowledgements

Here are some really great examples of Territorial Acknowledgements from different organizations across Ontario.

An example from Keswick-Ravenshoe Pastoral Charge

(We are welcomed) to this piece of land that has been for thousands of years the territories of the Longhouse Confederacy, Anishinaabe, and Mississaugas. We thank the seven nations that signed the Williams Treaties, who allow us to share this land. We acknowledge the First Nations people, their history, spirituality, languages, and cultures. Among the Ojibwa, Anishinaabe, and Chippewas, we acknowledge in particular the Chippewas of Georgina Island First Nation as our close neighbour and friends, with whom we learn to live in peace and friendship.

An example from Toronto Metropolitan University

“Toronto is in the ‘Dish With One Spoon Territory’. The Dish With One Spoon is a treaty between the Anishinaabe, Mississaugas and Haudenosaunee that bound them to share the territory and protect the land. Subsequent Indigenous Nations and peoples, Europeans and all newcomers have been invited into this treaty in the spirit of peace, friendship and respect.

The “Dish”, or sometimes it is called the “Bowl”, represents what is now southern Ontario, from the Great Lakes to Quebec and from Lake Simcoe into the United States. *We all eat out of the Dish, all of us that share this territory, with only one spoon. That means we have to share the responsibility of ensuring the dish is never empty, which includes taking care of the land and the creatures we share it with. Importantly, there are no knives at the table, representing that we must keep the peace. The dish is graphically represented by the wampum pictured above.

This was a treaty made between the Anishinaabe and Haudenosaunee after the French and Indian War. Newcomers were then incorporated into it over the years, notably in 1764 with The Royal Proclamation/The Treaty of Niagara.”

(Pictures to the upper right and bottom of this page) Eighth Fire Prophecy Mural in Roncesvalles village Toronto by Philip Cote and Jim Thierry Bravo. Entitled The Original People Leading to the Eighth Fire, the mural presents the stories of the indigenous peoples who first walked the land where Roncesvalles Village now stands. A few local buildings from the last century emerge from the word ‘Roncesvalles’ which is heavily intertwined with foliage. Integrated into the wordmark is a symbol for The Eighth Fire. Read more here on the Roncesvalles BIA. 

Staff Support