CALGARY, ALBERTA – May 31, 2016 – A 2016 Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences public event features Cindy Blackstock, Executive Director of First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada and Associate Professor, University of Alberta, in a half-day public forum that aims to foster an informed public dialogue on reconciliation, the role of the humanities and social sciences, and explore key areas for action: honouring treaties, K-12 and PSE education, child welfare, and tapping into the power of the arts.
WHAT: Sharing the Land, Sharing a Future
WHEN: Wednesday, June 1, 2016 from 9:00 am - 12:00 pm
WHERE: Taylor Institute 160, University of Calgary campus
KEYNOTE: Government's great failure: Doing better for First Nations children when they know better
Cindy Blackstock
9:10 am - 9:45 am
What kind of a nation are we? What kind of a nation do we want to be in the next 150 years? The 2015 Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) has challenged all Canadians to work towards reconciliation in the context of renewed, respectful relationships between peoples. This was also a central theme of the report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP), which will have its 20th anniversary this year.
Learn more at this event, whose highlights include:
• Opening by Marlene Brant Castellano, Professor Emerita, Trent University ; Co Chair, Oversight Committee for the RCAP Anniversary Initiative and Stephen Toope, President of the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences
• Keynote by Cindy Blackstock of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada, and member Board of Directors, Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences
• Panel comprised of six co–sponsoring scholarly associations: Association of Canadian College and University Teachers of English (ACCUTE), Canadian Association for Studies in Indigenous Education ( CASIE), Canadian Association for Social Work Education (CASWE), Canadian Historical Association (CHA), Canadian Political Science Association (CPSA) and Canadian Sociological Association (CSA )
• Group discussions led by noted scholars :
o Negotiating nation to nation relationships over four centuries (Mark Dockstator, President of First Nations University of Canada)
o “Being alive well” Reconciliation and the well-being of Indigenous children (Cindy Blackstock, Executive Director of First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada)
o Indigenizing education in Canada from early childhood to post graduate (Jan Hare, Professor of Indigenous Education UBC. Paper co-authored with Jo-Ann Archibald, Associate Dean for Indigenous Education, UBC)
o The power of the arts in healing and reconciliation (Jonathan Dewar, Director of the Shingwauk Residential Schools Centre and Special Advisor to the President at Algoma University)
This event is open to the public, free of charge. Media welcome.
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About the Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences
Organized by the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences, Congress is the largest interdisciplinary conference in Canada, and one of the largest in the world. Now in its 85th year, Congress brings together approximately 70 academic associations that represent a rich spectrum of disciplines in the humanities and social sciences, including literature, history, theatre, film studies, education, music, sociology, geography, social work and many others. Congress 2016 is hosted by the University of Calgary. For more information, visit congress2016.ca.
About the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences
The Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences promotes research and teaching for the advancement of an inclusive, democratic and prosperous society. With a membership now comprising over 160 universities, colleges and scholarly associations, the Federation represents a diverse community of 91,000 researchers and graduate students across Canada. The Federation organizes Canada’s largest academic gathering, the Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences, bringing together more than 8,000 participants each year. For more information about the Federation, visit ideas-idees.ca.
Media contact and interview requests:
Nicola Katz
Communications Manager
Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences
Cell: 613-282-3489
nkatz@ideas-idees.ca