This UBC website explains the importance of land acknowledgments.
“Land acknowledgements are considered a respectful, yet political, statement that acknowledges the colonial context of the Indigenous territory/territories where a gathering is taking place. It recognizes relationships between land and people, and in particular Indigenous peoples’ continued presence on the lands being acknowledged” (2021).
The website also gives suggestions on how to create a land acknowledgment and how to make it more personal. I was under the impression there was a standard template for land acknowledgments, so it was wonderful to learn that it is more authentic and meaningful to make them more personalized. For my final project, my partner and I will make a personal land acknowledgment and demonstrate how it is one way teachers and students can start to build a relationship with Indigenous ways of knowing and learning.