Academic Programming
Last Updated: November, 2024
On this page you will find a listing of Indigenous Courses offered at the University of Waterloo. Please note that this is a living webpage. For a full list of courses available, please visit the undergraduate and graduate studies academic calendar.
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Faculty of Arts
Arts Undergraduate
ANTH 272 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 003945
Issues in Contemporary Indigenous Communities in Canada
An examination of First Nations and Métis cultures and cultural development from the perspective of local Indigenous communities. The course will feature lectures, discussions, and occasional guest speakers representative of the wider Indigenous community.
Prereq: INDG 201.
Antireq: ANTH 370, NATST 272
(Cross-listed with INDG 272)
ANTH 309 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 003401
The Archaeology of North America
This course examines past Indigenous lifeways in North America north of Mexico from the time of earliest settlement to contact with Europeans. It provides a broad survey of space-time systematics as well as conceptual, methodological, and ethical issues relevant to study of the North American archaeological record.
[Note: Formerly ANTH 203]
Prereq: ANTH 201/CLAS 221.
Antireq: ANTH 203
CDNST 201 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 015692
The Indigenous Experience in Canada
An introduction to the Indigenous experience in Canada with a broad overview of history, culture, and contemporary issues. This course highlights the holism of Indigenous perspectives through assigned readings, discussions, projects, and sharing of personal experiences.
(Cross-listed with INDG 201)
Offered at United College
ENGL 211 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 014998
First Nations, Metis, and Inuit Literatures
This course examines literary works in a variety of genres by First Nations, Metis, and Inuit authors in Canada. Students will study the literature in relation to key concepts that recur in Indigenous literary criticism such as land, teaching, and respect.
(Cross-listed with GSJ 211)
FINE 216 LEC,SEM 0.50
Course ID: 005483
Indigenous Visual Culture in Canada
This course will introduce students to issues in contemporary Indigenous visual culture within the Canadian context. Special attention will be paid to the complexities of contemporary art and cultural practices. The course will examine both practice and relevant theoretical paradigms.
[Note: Art History course]
(Cross-listed with INDG 216)
HIST 269 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 014393
Indigenous Histories in Canada
This course examines the histories of Indigenous peoples (First Nations, Inuit, Métis) in local and national contexts. It emphasizes the relationship between Indigenous peoples and settler society, including histories of treaty-making and colonial policies of dispossession and assimilation such as the Indian Act and the Indian residential school system. We will highlight forms of Indigenous resistance and resurgence, assertions of land rights, and the diversity of communities and cultures.
HIST 271 DIS,LEC 0.50
Course ID: 014394
Global Indigenous Issues
This course examines the histories of Indigenous peoples from around the world, covering areas such as educational assimilation, the internationalization of Indigenous rights, lands and resource development conflicts, Indigenous-state relations, language and cultural revitalization, and international political activism. We examine local Indigenous histories and place these experiences into the larger global context.
Prereq: Level at least 2A
HRTS 305 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 015749
Indigenous Rights in Global Context
A comparative examination of the rights challenges faced by diverse Indigenous peoples around the globe. Special attention will be given to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and work being done to protect and advance the rights it enshrines.
Prereq: HRTS 101 or INDG 201
(Cross-listed with INDG 305)
Offered at United College
INDENT 200 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 016236
The Past, Present, and Future of Indigenous Entrepreneurship
The Indigenous peoples of this land have always been expert entrepreneurs. Indeed, European colonization was driven by the desire to engage in trade with Indigenous peoples who had complex commercial practices and supply chains long before contact. This course will provide an overview of Indigenous entrepreneurship from the pre-contact era through the present, and will investigate its future prospects. Special attention will be paid to the ways in which Indigenous approaches to commercial activity have differed from mainstream approaches.
Offered at United College
INDENT 210 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 016237
Fundamentals of Indigenous Entrepreneurship
An introduction to key elements of entrepreneurship such as strategy, marketing, and sales. Reflecting the principle of "two-eyed seeing," the course will focus on these elements both as practiced in the mainstream economy and as practiced in the Indigenous economy.
Offered at United College
INDENT 225 PRA 0.50
Course ID: 016238
Practicum in Indigenous Entrepreneurship 1
An experiential course in Indigenous entrepreneurship. In addition to developing the knowledge-base required to succeed in social venture creation, students will also gain experience in the process of proposing and validating new initiatives. Success in the course is measured by how well students improve their understanding of the process of venture creation and the degree to which they use the experience to develop entrepreneurship skills and mindsets.
Prereq: INDENT 210.
Antireq: SVENT 225P
Offered at United College
INDENT 310 LEC,SEM 0.50
Course ID: 016239
Case Studies in Indigenous Venture Creation
A study of approximately a dozen cases of ventures created by Indigenous entrepreneurs. The cases will reflect a variety of sectors and will be drawn from a variety of regions.
Offered at United College
INDENT 320 LEC,SEM 0.50
Course ID: 016240
Indigenous Economic Development Corporations
Community-based economic development corporations are the engines of entrepreneurship within specific Indigenous communities. This course will focus on the roles of EDCs in promoting economic development and the ways in which they support entrepreneurship.
Offered at United College
INDENT 325 PRA 0.50
Course ID: 016241
Practicum in Indigenous Entrepreneurship 2
The instructor works with each student to identify a real world experience in the field of Indigenous entrepreneurship and to plan how they will use that experience to achieve an agreed-upon set of learning outcomes. The instructor provides mentorship and coaching as each student works through the course they have created for themselves.
Prereq: INDENT 225.
Antireq: SVENT 325P
Offered at United College
INDG 101 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 015861
Mohawk Language 1
An introductory course for students with little or no knowledge of Mohawk. The course is designed to develop basic reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills, however, emphasis will be placed on oral proficiency and comprehension.
[Note: Conducted in Mohawk. No prior knowledge of Mohawk is expected. Not open to students with advanced ability in Mohawk.]
Antireq: ARTS 190 (LEC 002) taken fall 2017, ARTS 190 (LEC 003) taken winter 2018, ARTS 190 (LEC 001) taken fall 2018
(Cross-listed with MOHAWK 101R)
Offered at Renison University College
INDG 102 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 015862
Mohawk Language 2
This course builds on the content learned in MOHAWK 101R/INDG 101. Students will expand their working vocabulary and learn to create more complex sentences. The emphasis will continue to be on improving oral proficiency and comprehension.
[Note: Conducted in Mohawk.]
Prereq: MOHAWK 101R/INDG 101 or one of ARTS 190 (LEC 002) taken fall 2017, ARTS 190 (LEC 003) taken winter 2018, ARTS 190 (LEC 001) taken fall 2018.
Antireq: ARTS 290 (LEC 001) taken winter 2018 or winter 2019
(Cross-listed with MOHAWK 102R)
Offered at Renison University College
INDG 201 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 015692
The Indigenous Experience in Canada
An introduction to the Indigenous experience in Canada with a broad overview of history, culture, and contemporary issues. This course highlights the holism of Indigenous perspectives through assigned readings, discussions, projects, and sharing of personal experiences.
(Cross-listed with CDNST 201)
Offered at United College
INDG 216 LEC,SEM 0.50
Course ID: 005483
Indigenous Visual Culture in Canada
This course will introduce students to issues in contemporary Indigenous visual culture within the Canadian context. Special attention will be paid to the complexities of contemporary art and cultural practices. The course will examine both practice and relevant theoretical paradigms.
[Note: Art History course]
(Cross-listed with FINE 216)
INDG 226 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 016341
Introduction to Indigenous Spirituality
This course introduces the plurality of Indigenous spiritual traditions in Canada and the diversity, complexity, and strength of these traditions. Included is an understanding of traditional ceremonies, world views, creation stories, cultural values, healers, and medicine. Special attention is given to Anishinaabe and Haudenosaunee nations.
(Cross-listed with RS 226)
INDG 272 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 003945
Issues in Contemporary Indigenous Communities in Canada
An examination of First Nations and Métis cultures and cultural development from the perspective of local Indigenous communities. The course will feature lectures, discussions, and occasional guest speakers representative of the wider Indigenous community.
Prereq: INDG 201.
Antireq: ANTH 370, NATST 272
(Cross-listed with ANTH 272)
INDG 301 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 015695
Critical Theories of Indigeneity in a Global Perspective
This cross-cultural and interdisciplinary course critically examines the definitions of, and debates surrounding, indigeneity, drawing on both Indigenous and non-Indigenous theorists. The course covers a range of themes, from constitutions and peoplehood to epistemologies and ontologies, and draws on a variety of examples from around the globe.
Offered at United College
INDG 305 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 015749
Indigenous Rights in Global Context
A comparative examination of the rights challenges faced by diverse Indigenous peoples around the globe. Special attention will be given to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and work being done to protect and advance the rights it enshrines.
Prereq: INDG 201
(Cross-listed with HRTS 305)
Offered at United College
INDG 318 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 010156
Indigenous Worldviews and Spirituality
This course introduces students to the integral role and place of spiritual practices and ceremonies in the everyday experiences of Indigenous peoples in Canada. Course materials will be supplemented by visits with Elders, Knowledge Keepers, Storytellers, as well as integration of ceremonial and land-based practices.
(Cross-listed with RS 318)
LS 373 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 011378
Indigenous Peoples and Canadian Public Policy
Framed within the Truth and Reconciliation process underway in Canada, this course examines the historical and ongoing colonial processes and impacts of government policies targeting First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. Particular analysis will be given to government policy as a cause of (and response to) social, political, and economic problems experienced by Indigenous peoples in Canada.
[Note: SWREN 311R is available only to students who have been given conditional admission to the BSW program; such students must have already completed their first undergraduate degree.]
(Cross-listed with SWREN 311R, SDS 311R)
LS 462 SEM 0.50
Course ID: 013476
Indigenous Political Theory
In this course students will develop familiarity with key concepts such as dispossession, elimination, and the politics of refusal, and situate them in a context of differing ideas regarding authority and contrasting legal orders. The role of these concepts in the political thought of Indigenous peoples and movements will be critically assessed. Students will demonstrate their learning through both oral and written assignments.
Prereq: Level at least 4A
(Cross-listed with PSCI 462)
MOHAWK 101R LEC 0.50
Course ID: 015861
Mohawk Language 1
An introductory course for students with little or no knowledge of Mohawk. The course is designed to develop basic reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills, however, emphasis will be placed on oral proficiency and comprehension.
[Note: Conducted in Mohawk. No prior knowledge of Mohawk is expected. Not open to students with advanced ability in Mohawk.]
Antireq: ARTS 190 (LEC 002) taken fall 2017, ARTS 190 (LEC 003) taken winter 2018, ARTS 190 (LEC 001) taken fall 2018
(Cross-listed with INDG 101)
Offered at Renison University College
MOHAWK 102R LEC 0.50
Course ID: 015862
Mohawk Language 2
This course builds on the content learned in MOHAWK 101R/INDG 101. Students will expand their working vocabulary and learn to create more complex sentences. The emphasis will continue to be on improving oral proficiency and comprehension.
[Note: Conducted in Mohawk.]
Prereq: MOHAWK 101R/INDG 101 or one of ARTS 190 (LEC 002) taken fall 2017, ARTS 190 (LEC 003) taken winter 2018, ARTS 190 (LEC 001) taken fall 2018.
Antireq: ARTS 290 (LEC 001) taken winter 2018 or winter 2019
(Cross-listed with INDG 102)
Offered at Renison University College
PSCI 228 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 016563
Introduction to Indigenous Political Thought
In this course students will learn theories, concepts, and topics in contemporary Indigenous political thought in Canada and North America including settler colonialism, assimilation policies, gender and sexuality, ecology, law, treaties, reconciliation, and decolonization. By exploring a variety of sources, students will understand and engage critically with structures, interests, and processes of settler-colonial institutions in North America. Students will learn to articulate diverse perspectives from Indigenous peoples critical of such institutions.
Prereq: Level at least 1B
PSCI 362 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 014387
Politics of Indigenous Peoples
Students will gain an understanding of and learn to articulate diverse perspectives on contemporary Indigenous issues, politics, and critical theory by examining these issues from the perspective of Indigenous North American peoples. Through a variety of research-based reading and writing assignments, students will critically reflect on colonialism, power, and state policy to understand the structures, interests, and processes that shape Indigenous struggles in Canada and North America.
Prereq: At least 0.50 unit in PSCI course at the 200-level or above; Level at least 2B
PSCI 462 SEM 0.50
Course ID: 013476
Indigenous Political Theory
In this course students will develop familiarity with key concepts such as dispossession, elimination, and the politics of refusal, and situate them in a context of differing ideas regarding authority and contrasting legal orders. The role of these concepts in the political thought of Indigenous peoples and movements will be critically assessed. Students will demonstrate their learning through both oral and written assignments.
Prereq: Level at least 4A
(Cross-listed with LS 462)
RS 226 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 016341
Introduction to Indigenous Spirituality
This course introduces the plurality of Indigenous spiritual traditions in Canada and the diversity, complexity, and strength of these traditions. Included is an understanding of traditional ceremonies, world views, creation stories, cultural values, healers, and medicine. Special attention is given to Anishinaabe and Haudenosaunee nations.
(Cross-listed with INDG 226)
RS 318 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 010156
Indigenous Worldviews and Spirituality
This course introduces students to the integral role and place of spiritual practices and ceremonies in the everyday experiences of Indigenous peoples in Canada. Course materials will be supplemented by visits with Elders, Knowledge Keepers, Storytellers, as well as integration of ceremonial and land-based practices.
(Cross-listed with INDG 318)
SDS 311R LEC 0.50
Course ID: 011378
Indigenous Peoples and Canadian Public Policy
Framed within the Truth and Reconciliation process underway in Canada, this course examines the historical and ongoing colonial processes and impacts of government policies targeting First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. Particular analysis will be given to government policy as a cause of (and response to) social, political, and economic problems experienced by Indigenous peoples in Canada.
[Note: SWREN 311R is available only to students who have been given conditional admission to the BSW program; such students must have already completed their first undergraduate degree.]
Prereq: Level at least 2A.
Antireq: ISS 311R
(Cross-listed with LS 373, SWREN 311R)
SDS 411R SEM 0.50
Course ID: 015573
Decolonization and Social Action
This course focuses on the relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples within, against, and beyond settler colonialism. We explore the concepts of decolonization, resurgence, unsettling, and reconciliation and address issues of settlement, sovereignty, treaty relationships, solidarity, appropriation, and the relationship between Indigenous struggles and other movements for social change.
Prereq: Level at least 3A
SDS 421R SEM 0.50
Course ID: 016101
(Re)framing Indigenous-Settler Relations
Interactions between Indigenous and Settler peoples are influenced by historical and contemporary stories told about each other. This course will examine the ideologies, knowledge, beliefs, values, and assumptions behind these stories, within the context of Canada's current Truth & Reconciliation process. It will be taught using Indigenous pedagogy in a sharing-circle format.
Prereq: Level at least 3A.
Antireq: SDS 450R (001) taken spring 2018, spring 2019
Arts Graduate
GGOV645
Global Indigenous Rights
This course examines the historical and political contexts of Indigenous rights movements from around the world. It considers the histories of Indigenous-state relations and Indigenous assertions of rights and sovereignty through cultural, political, and legal means. We will discuss grassroots and global Indigenous rights movements and international efforts to address Indigenous aspirations and decolonization especially following WWII. Attention will be also paid to the formation of Indigenous organizations and the engagement of international forums (i.e., through the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples).
Units0.50
Cross-Listed Courses:HIST612 - Global Indigenous Rights
HIST612
Global Indigenous Rights
This course examines the historical and political contexts of Indigenous rights movements from around the world. It considers the histories of Indigenous-state relations and Indigenous assertions of rights and sovereignty through cultural, political, and legal means. We will discuss grassroots and global Indigenous rights movements and international efforts to address Indigenous aspirations and decolonization especially following WWII. Attention will be also paid to the formation of Indigenous organizations and the engagement of international forums (i.e., through the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples).
Units0.50
Cross-Listed Courses:GGOV645 - Global Indigenous Rights
HIST728
Indigenous History Major Field
Major field seminars meet biweekly throughout the Fall and Winter terms for discussion of a reading list of 50 books selected by the instructor. During the subsequent Spring term major field participants read a further 50 books selected by the instructor in consultation with each participant's supervisor.
Units: 1.00
HIST778
Indigenous History Minor Area Seminar
Minor area seminars meet biweekly throughout the Fall and Winter terms for discussion of a reading list of 50 books selected by the instructor.
Units:1.00
SWK654R
Indigenous Wellbeing, Health, and Social Justice
This interdisciplinary course is intended to engage and advance knowledge and practice in Indigenous wellbeing and health through a social justice lens. The course critically links determinants of Indigenous Peoples¿ wellbeing and health to historical and ongoing colonial priorities and practices. Disparities in health and social issues, access to care, and systemic challenges, including racism experienced by Indigenous Peoples in different regions and contexts, are shared as points for discussion and reflection. An intersectionality lens is applied in consideration of the unique wellbeing and health experiences among Indigenous Peoples, including Indigenous women, youth, and Two Spirit Peoples. Indigenous approaches to science, healing, and community-based ethical practices are also profiled in social work and health care delivery, research, policy, and programming. The knowledges, values, and perspectives of Indigenous Peoples are highlighted throughout this course, incorporated within a variety of resources including readings, film and other arts-based narratives that include Indigenous scholars and community activists, in the delivery of course content and assignments. This course was created in consultation with a local Indigenous Advisory Circle that included community-based Indigenous Elders, health leaders, social workers, and academics involved in Indigenous initiatives and research. (Note: This is an online course).
Units:0.50
Cross-Listed Courses:HLTH644 - Indigenous Wellbeing, Health, and Social Justice
TS733
Indigenous Theologies and Methods
This course explores the unique indigenous theological contributions to the meaning of Christian faith and life. With attention to experience, history, the nature of the spiritual and post-colonial perspectives on scripture, indigenous hermeneutical practices will be examined in contrast with Western.
Units:0.50
Faculty of Engineering
Engineering Undergraduate
ARCH 243 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 016386
Indigenous Practices
This course will engage students in a range of topics that include historical, practical, or theoretical investigations centering indigenous topics and epistemologies. This can include indigenous architectures, spatial and land practices locally or globally, indigenous typologies and worldviews, traditional ecological knowledge, and practices of restoration. This course will also look at critical and decolonizing frameworks for research methods and creative practices in order to introduce other ways of knowing and engaging the world. [Offered: S, first offered Spring 2023]
Prereq: Level at least 2A Architecture
Faculty of Environment
Environment Undergraduate
ENVS 401 LEC 0.50
Course ID: 005294
Canadian Law, Indigenous Peoples, and Natural Resource Development
The course examines the historical development of the constitutional relationship between the Crown (the Canadian and provincial governments) and Indigenous Peoples, and the current impact of this constitutional relationship on the development of resources in Canada. Particular focus will be paid to the judicial development of Aboriginal rights and Aboriginal title, the duty to consult and accommodate Indigenous Peoples in the context of resource development, and the future trajectory of the relationship between the Crown, Indigenous Peoples, and resource developers.
Prereq: Level at least 3A
ERS 200 LEC,TUT 0.50
Course ID: 016530
Indigenous Sustainability Entrepreneurship
An overview and introduction to environmental sustainability is provided through the lens of Indigenous entrepreneurship. Through a series of case studies students will be introduced to Indigenous sustainability entrepreneurs addressing pressing environmental challenges for Indigenous Peoples and communities. Ultimately, students will be charged with identifying an environmental challenge facing an Indigenous community and developing a business innovation that is a cultural match to protect the planet and future generations.
Antireq: ERS 275 001 W23, ERS 275 001 W21
Environment Graduate
GEOG668
Indigenous Environmental Management Perspectives
This course examines Indigenous knowledge-based approaches to environmental management. The first part of the course is dedicated to fostering a better understanding of and appreciation for Indigenous land-based philosophies and ways of knowing from across the Americas. Key differences between Western and Indigenous approaches to environmental management will also be highlighted. The second half of the course deals with finding more effective ways of integrating Indigenous land-use principles and knowledges in the management of Indigenous and non-Indigenous territories in Canada and worldwide.
Units: 0.50
Faculty of Science
Science Undergraduate
PHARM 230 LEC 0.25
Course ID: 016354
Culturally Safe Patient Care
This course builds on PHARM 120 with a focus on providing care in a culturally safe manner. Special attention is given to optimizing care to Indigenous patients in Canada. [Offered: F]
Prereq: PHARM 120; Pharmacy students only
Faculty of Health
Health Graduate
HLTH644
Indigenous Wellbeing, Health, and Social Justice
This interdisciplinary course is intended to engage and advance knowledge and practice in Indigenous wellbeing and health through a social justice lens. The course critically links determinants of Indigenous Peoples¿ wellbeing and health to historical and ongoing colonial priorities and practices. Disparities in health and social issues, access to care, and systemic challenges, including racism experienced by Indigenous Peoples in different regions and contexts, are shared as points for discussion and reflection. An intersectionality lens is applied in consideration of the unique wellbeing and health experiences among Indigenous Peoples, including Indigenous women, youth, and Two Spirit Peoples. Indigenous approaches to science, healing, and community-based ethical practices are also profiled in social work and health care delivery, research, policy, and programming. The knowledges, values, and perspectives of Indigenous Peoples are highlighted throughout this course, incorporated within a variety of resources including readings, film and other arts-based narratives that include Indigenous scholars and community activists, in the delivery of course content and assignments. This course was created in consultation with a local Indigenous Advisory Circle that included community-based Indigenous Elders, health leaders, social workers, and academics involved in Indigenous initiatives and research. (Note: This is an online course).
Units:0.50
Cross-Listed Courses:SWK654R - Indigenous Wellbeing, Health, and Social Justice