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Healing Forests can house a variety of spaces and activities, from tree planting projects to walking trails and gathering spaces to sacred medicinal gardens. The University of Waterloo Healing Forest comprises two parcels of land. The first is the UW Urban Forest, which serves as an outdoor learning lab where students and staff actively work to address invasive species and support the restoration of Indigenous plant relatives with the help of local nurseries. These activities are symbolic of a reciprocal path forward for the joint healing of the forest and our campus community.

The parcel is a five-hectare forest located between the Village residences, Health Services, and Westmount Road North. This forest is the largest remaining wooded green space on the University of Waterloo’s main campus, and it includes the Laurel Creek creek bed, marshy floodplains, and a moist forest populated with native sugar maple, ironwood, and black cherry trees.

In addition to the UW Urban Forest, the Healing Forest designation also includes a parcel of land on the University of Waterloo Environmental Reserve with dedicated space for a sweat lodge, longhouse, on-the-land learning center, and medicine garden. Located at the intersection of Westmount Road North and Columbia Street, the reserve is just over forty-four hectares and houses forests, meadows, and Columbia Lake.

The University of Waterloo Healing Forest is the first Healing Forest in the Waterloo Region, a clear embodiment of the University of Waterloo’s commitments to Indigenization and reconciliation.  

Today, University staff, students, and the Indigenous campus community collaboratively care for the Healing Forest, ensuring these green spaces on campus are welcoming to all and support reconciliation, learning, healing, and connecting. 

As of now, the UW Urban Forest parcel serves as an outdoor learning lab where students and staff actively work to address invasive species and support restoration of Indigenous plant relatives with the support of local nurseries. These activities are symbolic of a reciprocal path forward for the joint healing of the forests and our campus community. 

As for the parcel of land on the University of Waterloo Environmental Reserve, Indigenous Knowledge Keeper Elder Myeengun Henry, Faculty of Health Executive Officer Katherine Marshall, and Associate Vice-President of the Office of Indigenous Relations Jean Becker have been championing the developments. They have plans to build a sweat lodge, longhouse, on-the-land learning center, and Indigenous food garden. The sweat lodge and longhouse will be open to local Indigenous community members to hold ceremonies and the learning center will host classes from the University. This space will bridge these two communities, embodying the cross-culture collaboration the National Healing Forests Initiative calls for.