Land Acknowledgment and Reflections

Land Acknowledgment and Reflections

Tomorrow is Canada Day. As you celebrate and reflect, remember that for so many people in our country, Canada Day is not a day of celebration. We would like to acknowledge the struggle and hardship that has been and still is imposed upon indigenous people in Canada.

The o-store would like to acknowledge that the land on which we gather is the traditional unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe People. The Algonquin peoples have lived on this land since time immemorial. We are grateful to have the opportunity to be present in this territory.

As orienteers, we are thankful to all who have and who continue to take care of, fight for, preserve, and love the land from coast to coast to coast. We recognize that as we orienteer our way across the country, we are witnessing the beauty of the traditional lands of different Indigenous groups – First Nations, Métis and Inuit.

We at the o-store are on a journey of continual learning. We want to learn and grow and understand. We used the following resource to help us determine whose traditional lands our home is on. From now on, before every orienteering race we participate in, we will learn in advance about the territory that we will be running through. www.native-land.ca

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This picture was taken during an orienteering meet at what we know as the Constance Bay area. A land acknowledgement was not made at the time of the event, and now that we know the significance and importance of this, we will do better at future events. This picture was taken during an orienteering meet on the traditional unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe People.