We respectfully acknowledge that we are in Menaquesk (MEH-nah-GWESK), Saint John, on the traditional territory of Wolostoqiyik/Wolastoqey (wool-as-ta-gwey) (Maliseet), and we recognize the enduring presence and relationships of the Mi’gmaq/Mi’kmaq (meeg-mah) and Peskotomuhkati (Passamaquoddy) peoples in this region.
This land is part of the unceded and unsurrendered territories of these Nations and is covered by the Peace and Friendship Treaties of the 1700’s, which continue to shape responsibilities and relationships today.
We honour the Elders, past and present, and commit to moving beyond acknowledgement through respectful partnerships, learning, and action.
ATLANTIC PRESENTERS ASSOCIATION Reconciliation Statement
The Atlantic Presenters Association recognizes the deep importance of the work and actions the organization must take towards Reconciliation with Indigenous people all over Turtle Island/North America.
We understand in our hearts that it is our social responsibility to prioritize and never lose sight of Reconciliation in every aspect of what we do. It is deeply important to the staff and board of APA that we continue to move the membership along in their knowledge too.
What we're doing
Since 2016, APA has engaged Indigenous artists, presenters, producers, directors and facilitators to deliver education activities to our members on topics under the umbrella of Reconciliation. The performance stages of our members across the Atlantic region have programmed Indigenous artists for many years, but very few. We recognize that this needs to change.
To that end, APA maintain ongoing support of initiatives that centre and support regional Indigenous creators/presenters through projects like the Indigenous Presenters Program, the Indigenous Presenter Gathering, professional development, integration of Indigenous-led arts programming in our annual conference Contact East, and through the development of a full-time Indigenous Network Manager position.
Indigenous Presenter Program and Gathering
APA has assembled a group of 35 Indigenous community based presenters in the region; general event and powwow, and provides funding for these annual gatherings. These gatherings until 2021 were organized and administered by APA staff, who do not identify as Indigenous. Beginning in 2022, APA began our commitment to stepping back to make space for Indigenous people to decide how they wanted to gather, and to determine the schedule and programming for the Gathering. APA continues to provide financial support and administrative assistance where desired. Since 2022, we have engaged the following Indigenous organizations and leaders to organize the Gathering: First Light Centre for Performance and Creativity (an organization that serves the urban and non-urban Indigenous populations and non-Indigenous communities alike with a wide range of programs and services rooted in revitalization, strengthening and celebration of Indigenous cultures and languages – 2022), Brit Johnson (2023), Lisa Neault (2024), and Clifton Cremo (2026).
The Indigenous Presenters Program (IPP) hosts Indigenous arts and culture presenters, event producers, and arts leaders from all across the Atlantic coast. The vision of IPP is to empower regional Indigenous communities to cultivate an Indigenous-led network to uplift Indigenous artists working in dance, music, theatre and creative arts. Indigenous leaders gather throughout the year to connect, exchange, and discuss the challenges and best practices for building touring networks within and between their communities, as well as to envision a future that celebrates Indigenous arts and culture in Atlantic Canada.
IPP is graciously supported by the Department of Canadian Heritage and the Province of Nova Scotia.
As part of our commitment to reconciliation and Indigenization, we have partnered with the Ulnooweg Foundation to create a full time salaried Indigenous Program Manager position supported by an Indigenous advisory circle, for whom there are paid honoraria. Ulnooweg funds this as a mentorship program, so the Program Manager will receive mentorship from APA staff as well as additional contractors (eg. previous Gathering coordinators). We are currently working with a Mi’kmaq consultant to define the scope of work for this position, and hope to have someone in place by mid-2025.
Professional development
This is # 57 of the 94 Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action:
We call upon federal, provincial, territorial, and municipal governments to provide education to public servants on the history of Aboriginal peoples, including the history and legacy of residential schools, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Treaties and Aboriginal rights, Indigenous law, and Aboriginal–Crown relations. This will require skills- based training in intercultural competency, conflict resolution, human rights, and anti-racism.
We were honoured to have Brit join the APA team this past Spring when she offered her professional development workshop, Reconciliation in Action: Building Good Relations, to our members in three Atlantic provinces (PE, NL, and NS). This is the description of the session Brit delivered throughout the region in March 2023.
Reconciliation requires action. It’s great to be an ally to your Indigenous friends and peers but it’s even better to be their arm-in-arm accomplice. This workshop is for Canadian performing arts presenters, managers, and other arts workers who are committed to learning better practices for building meaningful and long-lasting good relations with local Indigenous artists, elders, and communities.
What can you expect from this professional development workshop? The full-day activities will include formal presentations as well as collaborative group work. Listen and learn how community connections are being nurtured and sustained; you will come away with new tools and actionable ideals to consider in your personal journey as an ally to the Indigenous peoples of Turtle Island.
We opened our 2024 Convergence Conference in a good way with story and drumming from Michael R Denny, and included a follow up to a previous workshop on reconciliation statements, Reconciliation Statements, Revisited with Tosh Southwick and Davida Wood of Inspire Reconciliation Potential consulting.
This is the description of the session delivered by IRP Consulting in November 2024:
In this session Tosh and Davida will revisit Reconciliation Statements, what they are, how to create one, and why they should be an important part of the forward facing identity of your presenting organization, as well as what has changed over the past 2 years, and what are some new considerations.
After over twenty years of living and working in the North and doing reconciliation work across sectors, Davida and Tosh are eager to share what they have learned and use this knowledge to support other organizations in responding to the TRC’s 94 calls to action and supporting Indigenous self-determination.
Tosh and Davida are from the Yukon and are strong First Nations women who have a track record of creating the systemic change in organizations needed for reconciliation to actually occur. They have an extensive network across the Yukon, and nationally across Canada. They have built a distinct reputation for working with organizations and Indigenous communities to design and implement projects that move the bar on reconciliation, Indigenization and decolonization forward.
Contact East
APA endeavours to make Indigenous directed and created content an integral part of the beginning of every Contact East conference, in a respectful, impactful way that honours both the people of the land and the land itself.
Contact East 2026
Contact East 2026 will open with a sizzling performance from rising star Wolf Castle at our Opening Event. We move from contemporary Mi’kmak artistry to the living history of this place with guided Indigenous History Tours from First Nations Storytellers, helping to situate ourselves in relationship to the land and each other.
Contact East 2024
APA was honoured to open Contact East 2024 with poetry, song, and story from Poet Laureate Julie Pelissier-Lush, and multiple generations of dancers and drummers. Gathered on the steps of the Confederation Centre in downtown Epekwitk, the joy of the dancers, the power of the drum, and the warmth of Julie’s stories called up the resilience of the ancestors and showed us a hopeful vision for the future.
Contact East 2023
Instead of a standard land acknowledgement at the opening of Contact East 2023, APA engaged Indigenous artists to create an original land based opening performance. Delegates travelled by bus to the Tablelands, in Gros Morne, and witnessed words spoken in Mi’kmaq by Lloyd Prosper, a song in Mi’kmaq and drumming by Jenelle Duval and a movement piece by Sarah Prosper. In the wind and rain, facing a sublime and ageless backdrop of trees, rocks, water and mountains we shared in the connection to the land embodied by these artists.
Our ongoing commitments
- APA commits to continuing to prioritize presenter education on Reconciliation with a focus on how to respectfully welcome and work with Indigenous performers.
- APA commits to stepping back whenever there is a need to Indigenize a program or event that is a part of our organization and hire an Indigenous person to do that work.
- APA commits to continuing to view the way we work and build relationships through a Reconciliation lens.
Learning and moving forward
We invite you to engage in an open dialogue with us, and share your questions and comments, especially if we are doing something that is causing harm. We want to do better. We will continue to prioritize Reconciliation knowledge and action within the APA as an ongoing journey that is everyone’s responsibility.
