“Facing Colonial Complicity and Mobilizing Reparations in Canadian Higher Education” is a SSHRC Insight Grant-funded research project led by PI Dr. Tricia Logan, Assistant Professor of First Nations and Indigenous Studies and Interim Academic Director of the Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre at the University of British Columbia (UBC). The project is supported by several Indigenous and settler faculty members and staff at UBC and the University of Victoria (UVic) who are affiliated with various departments and disciplines.
In this project, we have two parallel streams of work, each of which will inform the other: 1) Conduct research to document the roles of UBC and UVic in settler colonialism; 2) Mobilize support for the two universities to commit to processes of material and relational repair with the Indigenous communities that have been harmed by their colonial actions. These two streams of work are separate but deeply related, and the role of Indigenous peoples, settlers, and institutions in each stream also differs. Our specific rights and responsibilities will differ depending on who we are and the communities we belong to and are accountable to.
We have chosen to centre reparations, rather than reconciliation, to emphasize universities’ responsibility for harm done in the past and present and highlight the imperative for deeper forms of social and institutional transformation, and thus, for enabling different higher education futures. This project frames reparations as a regenerative process by committing to:
- unsettle settler-Indigenous relations in the context of universities and rebuilding relations according to principles of trust, respect, reciprocity, consent, and accountability;
- reimagine teaching, research, and community relations in ways that centre intergenerational and interspecies responsibilities; and above all,
- repair through the reallocation of power and resources in ways that support the self-determined healing, resurgence, and survivance of Indigenous Nations, knowledge and education systems, and livelihoods. Lessons that emerge from this project can inform similar efforts in other institutions in BC, and across Canada and the world.
Public submissions
We are inviting individual and community reflections and insights on how universities can embrace responsibility for their roles in settler colonialism and move toward reparative practices. This initiative particularly welcomes contributions from First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities within what is currently known as Canada, as well as from all those engaged in or affected by higher education.
Our goal is not to gather “data” or “consult” in the traditional sense; rather, we seek to co-create a platform where diverse voices can shape the conversation on reparative pathways. These contributions will inform our collective work in mobilizing structural changes within universities, ensuring the process of reflection, accountability, and repair extends beyond symbolic gestures.
We recognize that each submission is part of a wider relational ecosystem and reflects specific knowledges and experiences. Contributions will be made public, honoring transparency and accountability to all participants.
Submissions will be open from January to December 2025. Click here for more information.