There are more than 34 urban Indigenous coalitions in Canada affiliated with NUICC. During the past few months NUICC has been taking care of business and connecting with coalitions and we want to share some of the highlights with you!
In this newsletter:
A) Invitation to the National Gathering of Coalitions, in Ottawa, March 1-3, 2023.
B) New Speaker Series Event Monday, Dec. 12, 2022: UNDRIP implementation in Canadian cities.
C) Join our Knowledge Hub Community of Practice: open meetings every month.
D) About the National Council meeting held in Whitehorse in September 2022.
E) NUICC Terms of Reference Update
F) NUICC holds meetings in Toronto with Ontario Coalitions, Indigenous Services Canada, and Imagine Canada.
G) NUICC Indigenous Youtube Channel – Watch our Speaker Series recordings!
A. Invitation to the National Gathering of Coalitions, in Ottawa from March 1—3, 2023
Next March, NUICC will be hosting the National Gathering of Urban Indigenous Coalitions and we would like you to join us during this 3-day event! We are in final discussions with Novotel Hotel and the Ottawa Art Gallery as downtown venues.
The 3-day event breaks down as follows:
- Two days of expert panel discussions on urban Indigenous governance, UNDRIP implementation, and challenging Canada’s distinctions-based framework which harms our urban communities.
- In addition, we invite you to join coalitions as we come together to discuss our draft terms of reference so we can build a strong NUICC with a good foundation. And as we look to the future, we will discuss and co-build a NUICC 2023-2026 strategic plan.
- Finally, we will have one day dedicated to learning about decolonizing urban research, hosted by our NUICC Urban Indigenous Knowledge Mobilisation Hub. This features workshops to build capacity and analysis on data sovereignty, sharing research between coalitions, and examining the federal government’s UPIP program.In the coming weeks we will provide more program details and recommended flight information and our NUICC hotel booking information.
Note: NUICC covers the cost of 1 (one) delegate per coalition, with an additional delegate cost picked up by your coalition (Our Gathering hotel is the Novotel Hotel with a group rate of $210/night+taxes).
B. New Speaker Series EventMonday, December 12, 10–11:30am PT / 1-2:30pm ET. Join via Zoom.
NUICC’s next monthly speaker series is titled: Intersecting Indigenous Rights as we activate UNDRIP in Canadian cities. The event is part of the inaugural First Peoples Policy Forum in St. John’s Newfoundland under the theme “Mobilizing Indigenous Sovereignty through UNDRIP”. Produced in partnership with the Assembly of First Nations, Office of the Regional Chief for Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, and NUICC member coalition, First Voice.
Register for the 90-minute Speaker Series event, and if you are in Newfoundland check out the 2-day program in person.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Panelist
- Kamala Todd is a Métis-Cree community planner, filmmaker, curator and the proud mother of two amazing kids. She is Adjunct Professor in Planning at UBC and SFU, and runs Indigenous City Media, and was the City of Vancouver’s first Aboriginal Social Planner and first Indigenous Arts and Culture Planner. Her current role is Indigenous Relations consultant with the Vancouver UNDRIP Strategy.
- Matthew Norris is Nehithaw (Woodlands Cree) a member of the Lac La Ronge Indian Band (Treaty 6) and the President of the Urban Native Youth Association. He is a Senior Policy Analyst with the BCAFN holding the file on the implementation of the United Nations Declaration Act, a PhD Student at UBC researching UNDRIP implementation at the municipal level, and has contributed to Vancouver’s implementation of UNDRIP.
Moderator
- Becky Sasakamoose-Kuffneris Co-Chair of the National Urban Indigenous Coalitions Council (NUICC.ca) and a member of Ahtahkakoop Cree Nation in Saskatchewan.
C. Interested in decolonizing research for our urban Indigenous communities?
NUICC is welcoming coalition members to our monthly Urban Indigenous Knowledge Mobilisation Hub meetings.
Are you interested in driving Indigenous Knowledge into policy action? Come join our Community of Practice to share and learn what other coalitions and partners are doing to help make change. Participate and share with the NUICC’s Knowledge Hub and community researchers, and hear about Hub updates and projects, plus opportunities for collaboration and future work.
Please send an email if you wish to attend an upcoming friday Knowledge Hub session.
D. Highlights of the NUICC Council Meeting in Whitehorse, September, 2022.
In September 2022, Council delegates met in Whitehorse, Yukon for a series of key organisational meetings and activities. A highlight of the gathering included producing a hybrid Hub’s Speaker Series on Justice issues featuring Senator Kim Pate, Justin Campbell (St. John’s NL Coalition) and Chantal Genier (Whitehorse Coalition). The Sept 30th panel recording will be available on our Youtube Channel). Another highlight was visiting the Kwanlin Dun Cultural Centre for TRC/Orange Shirt Day events from our host, the Council of Yukon First Nations, CYFN.
E. NUICC has contracted Evitan Consulting to update our Terms of Reference (TOR).
NUICC is undertaking a TOR update process to reflect our growing organisation and to address mistakes and shortcomings in our evolution as a federation of coalitions. Darlene McCulloch of Evitan Consulting will be reaching out to coalitions in the coming weeks about opportunities for input and feedback to strengthen our TOR.
F. NUICC held meetings in Toronto from Nov 29 to Dec 1, 2022.
National Council members came together at the Native Canadian Centre of Toronto this past week. We met to discuss our working relationship with Ontario coalitions and mistakes that NUICC made a year ago (Ontario is currently an observer member of NUICC).
National Council also spent two working days with a facilitated strategic planning exercise supported by Evenings and Weekends Consulting. With so much growth experienced in the past year, Council representatives from each province wanted to come together to discuss the vision and purpose of NUICC as we get set to build a Terms of Reference and bring on more staff to support coalitions from coast to coast to coast.
NUICC meets monthly with Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) and during the Toronto meetings, the entire national council was able to join in a hybrid meeting with ISC. Topics of discussion included our funding needs for supporting coalitions, and if NUICC would participate in ISC’s self-evaluation of the Urban Program for Indigenous Peoples, coming up in 202
While in Toronto NUICC also held a meeting with Imagine Canada’s CEO & President Bruce MacDonald. Their research shows what we already know, but do not have all the data to prove: the non-profit sector workforce across Canada is incredibly diverse – 77% of workers are women and are critically undervalued. NUICC members bring together hundreds of non-profit organisations and share similar dynamics of colonial funding and regulatory systems. NUICC was appreciative of the warm welcome from Imagine Canada and is exploring the prospects of sharing efforts and future collaboration.
G. Past Speaker Series hosted by the NUICC Knowledge Hub
We are excited to announce that all the past Speaker Series events recordings will be progressively available in our new NUICC Indigenous Youtube Channel.
SPEAKER SERIES #7 – Building an Indigenous City: Decolonizing Cultural Policy. This panel was in conjunction with the 8th Symposium on Reconciliation and Redress in the Arts. In partnership with Vancouver Moving Theatre, Heart of the City Festival, Voor Urban Labs and NUICC. With our guest speakers, Alan Greyeyes, Daina Warren and Kevin Loring.
SPEAKER SERIES #6 – Urban Indigenous Governance: Justice Panel. Live from Whitehorse as the NUIC National Council met in the Yukon, Sept 29-30, 2022. Cohosted by Council of Yukon First Nations. With our guest speakers, Senator Kim Pate, Chantal Genier and Justin Campbell.
WATCH THE SPEAKER SERIES #5 – Urban Indigenous Governance: Learning from our Past. With guest speakers from the NUICC Urban Indigenous Knowledge Mobilisation Hub: Kamala Todd (Vancouver), Becky Sasakamoose-Kuffner (Saskatoon), Damon Johnston (Winnipeg).
