Since many individuals are spending more time at home, both living and often working, it is important to not lose sight of the importance of territorial acknowledgements
For professors and teaching assistants who are designing curricula and delivering content virtually, there are creative ways to incorporate learning and action when acknowledging the territory not only where the University of Waterloo resides, but also the territory where students live and work, which is often outside the Haldimand Tract.
Acknowledging Territory in Virtual Spaces with Sorouja Moll
Sorouja Moll, a Continuing Lecturer in the Department of Communications Arts has created a video demonstration of a Territorial Acknowledgement. This video demonstrates what can be done to communicate the importance of recognizing territory and our association to it. Sorouja has also offered an accompanying document (PDF) that provides context around the video, and offers an alternative format of delivery should faculty members not wish to do a video recording of their own.
Additional virtual resources
Native Land is an excellent resource to locate yourself within the territory where you reside and work. The site also has teaching guides and further readings and podcasts related to territorial acknowledgements. Native Land is a map resource, and as stated within the site, “…this map must be used critically. Maps potentially function as colonial artifacts and represent a very particular way of seeing the world – a way primarily concerned with ownership, exclusivity, and power relations.” The Teachers Guides provide an excellent foundation to start a discussion in a critical and good way.
The Xwi7xwa Library is a centre for academic and community Indigenous scholarship. Its collections and services reflect Aboriginal approaches to teaching, learning, and research, and it is the only branch of an academic library in Canada that is entirely dedicated to Indigenous materials. They have developed a land acknowledgement research portal that provides guidance and resources on virtual territorial acknowledgements.