From Friday, March 10 until Sunday, March 12 Trent University hosted the 47^th Annual Elders and Traditional Peoples Gathering. This year, the theme was Returning to Ourselves. This was the first time the event was able to be held in person again since the initial outbreak of COVID-19. 

Friday’s events started at 9:30 am with a pre-conference keynote from Rebecca Sinclair and panel discussions with Sinclair, Dr. Dan Longboat, Dr. Deborah McGregor, and Anishinaabe Knowledge Keeper from Wikwemikong, Joe Pitawanakwat. The theme was climate change and the environment and how looking at these issues through an Indigenous lens can be extremely beneficial. One of the main takeaways from this discussion was that we as humans should approach engaging with the environment as though it is a relationship. Pitawanakwat does a lot of work with natural medicines and he explained that everything that makes humans is in some way a part of the land. As a result, instead of looking to synthetic solutions to our illnesses, we should first look to the land for healing. 

The next event that took place on Friday was at 5 pm when the opening ceremonies began. To begin the ceremony, Unity, a four person Indigenous women's acapella and drumming group, performed a song. This event was hosted by Director of the Chanie Wenjack School for Indigenous Studies, Professor David Newhouse, who began by introducing some notable attendees at the conference. Each was called to the stage and provided the opportunity to say a few words to the audience. The first person was Lorenzo Whetung who started by stating that he is a survivor of the Canadian Residential School System. He emphasized that the school may have taken his language but through his own resurgence and attending this conference, he will reclaim it. The next person called to the stage was the Chief of Curve Lake, Keith Knott who welcomed us all to the land. Following him was the President of the Peterborough & District Wapiti Metis Council, Andy Dufrane, who celebrated the tremendous effort to create an inclusive space for everyone at the conference. Next was the Chief of Hiawatha First Nation, Laurie Carr, who proudly announced that in April gifts that were given to the Prince of Wales (the future King Edward VII) in 1860 will be returning. This presents an exciting opportunity to hold a ceremony that will bring together many generations. Next Elder Shirley Williams and Director of First Peoples House of Learning, Dr. Dawn Lavell-Harvard came to the stage and expressed their gratitude to be able to see everyone together in the same room again. The last person who was called to the stage was Julie Davis, Vice President of External Relations for Trent University. While she was on stage she presented Trent University’s Distinguished Alumni Award to the late Doug Williams. She provided a small talk about Williams, and mentioned that he knew he won the award before he had passed. Afterwards, a song was performed to aid Williams’ spirit in joining the gathering and passing on. 

Starting the events on Saturday was the sunrise ceremony which began at, well, sunrise, but because time slots must be assigned for scheduling purposes it began at 6:30 am. As this was the first event I attended in person, I was quite nervous at first, especially being a white settler. Very quickly, however, I felt welcomed into the ceremony by Barb Wall and Jack Hoggarth. The ceremony really made me feel like I was welcomed to be a part of the gathering.

The rest of the day was filled with a vendor’s market, presentations, and workshops. During this time, I explored the vendors and tried to interact with each of them. Most of them were selling their own hand-crafted work, which was all very beautiful. The best part about all the vendors was how friendly they all were. 

I was able to attend two of the presentations that took place on Saturday. The first was Thosh Collins' keynote address where he discussed his Seven Circles Project for Indigenous health and healing. The Seven Circles Project is an initiative that Collins started with his wife to promote living a healthy lifestyle in the modern world while maintaining important Indigenous ways of living. One interesting thing that Collins did to start his keynote was that he had everyone close their eyes and rub their hands together. He then guided the crowd through a short breathing exercise then had everyone open their eyes and hold their hands slightly apart from each other. Collins explained that this represented the fire, or energy, inside of each person. It is what drives us to do the things that we do. He referred to this activity throughout his presentation relating it to one of the teachings he was sharing. 

The next presentation I went to was by Trent student, Zhaawnong Webb who talked about using social media as a medium through which to connect with Indigenous communities and youth. Webb shared with the audience his story and how he came to develop his online presence. He discussed how the COVID-19 pandemic allowed him to see how social media can be used for education and connecting with community. He also elaborated on how it is important to spread positive messages, and plant seeds to get people thinking about the true history of Canada and Indigenous peoples.

Other events included discussing the process for making corn soup, and how corn is such a valuable part of many Indigenous communities' diets and culture. There was also a discussion on two-spirit identity and teachings as well as a space where a traditional fire was burning. One event I was able to participate in was the corn bread making workshop. In this workshop Gutch and Bailey taught people how to wash white corn in hardwood ash, boil it to the perfect degree, grind it up and mould it into a small loaf of cornbread. I was fortunate enough that they allowed me to take the cornbread I made home with me, and I am excited to try it. 

The day ended with a feast held in the Gzowski dining hall and a performance by DJ Shub at the personal touch banquet hall. Sunday had another few presentations and then the closing ceremony took place at 11 am. In the closing remarks, David Newhouse talked about what Trent is doing to facilitate a space in which Indigenous and settler relationships can grow and prosper. This event was organized and made possible due to the hard work of countless individuals from First Peoples House of Learning and the help of over fifty volunteers. Despite not being an Indigenous person myself, I felt welcomed and encouraged to participate in the gathering. I also was given an incredible opportunity to learn from and with Indigenous folks and other settlers. Thank you and miigwetch to all who organized this event and graciously welcomed me into the space.