Indigenous Content

Law

Type
Indigenizing and decolonizing - curriculum

Contributor
Faculty of Law

As of the incoming class of 2021/22, all Juris Doctor students are required to take a minimum three credit course in Indigenous people and the Law. There is a list of courses available that meet the requirements.

Activity Details
As of the incoming class of 2021/22, all Juris Doctor students are required to take a minimum three credit course in Indigenous people and the Law. There is a list of courses available that meet the requirements. All courses that meet the requirement are vetted by a Faculty of Law committee tasked with Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) matters. Students may take more than one of the courses available. They cannot use the course to cover multiple requirements simultaneously.

Law 486

Law

Type
Indigenizing and decolonizing - curriculum

Contributor
Faculty of Law

Course: Law 486 - Jurisprudence (Indigenous Law Foundations and Methods): course responds directly to the Calls to Action. It works towards the greater recognition and use of Indigenous laws in Canada. Many Indigenous communities, justice system professionals and legal scholars are increasingly interested in accessing, understanding and applying Indigenous legal traditions today.

Activity Details

Course: Law 486 - Jurisprudence (Indigenous Law Foundations & Methods): course responds directly to the Calls to Action. It works towards the greater recognition and use of Indigenous laws in Canada. Many Indigenous communities, justice system professionals and legal scholars are increasingly interested in accessing, understanding and applying Indigenous legal traditions today. Yet how to do this raises practical and critical questions.

This highly interactive intensive seminar explores some of the current challenges related to this timely subject. Students identify and critically examine legal theories about the nature and sources of law and reflect on the work of justice and reconciliation in inter-societal contexts. The course has recently been offered twice a year: once during Fall or Winter, and once in Spring, when it is a hybrid course taught simultaneously at the UofA and the University of Victoria.

Law 589

Law

Type
Indigenizing and decolonizing - curriculum

Contributor
Faculty of Law

Course: Law 589 - Wahkohtowin Intensive: Miyowîcêhtowin Principles and Practice: course responds directly to the Calls to Action. Community-led, on-the-land course introduces students to sources and resources for engaging with Indigenous – particularly Cree – legal concepts from a language and land-based perspective.

Activity Details

Course: Law 589 - Wahkohtowin Intensive: Miyowîcêhtowin Principles and Practice: course responds directly to the Calls to Action. Community-led, on-the-land course introduces students to sources and resources for engaging with Indigenous – particularly Cree – legal concepts from a language and land-based perspective.

Students will actively engage or re-engage with these core precepts of Cree legal thought through a variety of pedagogical methods, guided by professors, Elders, and knowledge-keepers within a classroom and a community setting. These may include lectures, stories, language, land-based or nature based teachings, experiential learning, reading, writing, and ceremonial experiences. The central pedagogy the class will be structured around is the traditional tanning of a moose hide and related activities, in Aseniwuche Winewak Nation territory.

Law 590

Law

Type
Indigenizing and decolonizing - curriculum

Contributor
Faculty of Law

Course: Law 590 - Indigenous Peoples and the Law: course responds directly to the Calls to Action. It examines Canadian law and policy as it affects First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples.

Activity Details
Course: Law 590 - Indigenous Peoples & the Law: course responds directly to the Calls to Action. It examines Canadian law and policy as it affects First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. This includes the foundations of Aboriginal and treaty rights, the intersection of Indigenous and Canadian legal traditions, the impact of Canadian law on Indigenous legal identity, jurisdiction, and self-government, as well as treaties and modern land-claim agreements.

Law 591

Law

Type
Indigenizing and decolonizing - curriculum

Contributor
Faculty of Law

Course: LAW 591 - The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), Law, Justice and Reconciliation course responds to the Calls to Action. The TRC Final Report called for significant change in the Canadian justice system’s relationship with Indigenous peoples. These calls to action extended to law societies, lawyers, law schools, and government.

Activity Details
Course: LAW 591 - The TRC, Law, Justice and Reconciliation course responds to the Calls to Action. The TRC Final Report called for significant change in the Canadian justice system’s relationship with Indigenous peoples. These calls to action extended to law societies, lawyers, law schools, and government. How do Indigenous and non-indigenous lawyers practice law or for law impacting Indigenous peoples in the age of reconciliation? Are current laws compatible with the justice and reconciliation called for by the TRC? How did we get to where we are today? This highly interactive seminar draws on the TRC Final Report to critically engage with current legal issues in their social and political context.

Law 594

Law

Type
Indigenizing and decolonizing - curriculum

Contributor
Faculty of Law

Course: Law 594 - Gladue Principles Seminar responds to the Calls to Action. The course is designed to provide law students with a deeper and critical understanding of the legal, social, cultural and economic contexts for implementing Gladue principles.

Activity Details
Course: Law 594 - Gladue Principles Seminar responds to the Calls to Action. The course is designed to provide law students with a deeper and critical understanding of the legal, social, cultural and economic contexts for implementing Gladue principles, including the relevance of individual social and historical factors, the TRC final report, and the relationship of Gladue principles to Indigenous laws, Indigenous healing and ceremonial processes and restorative justice practices. Students will participate in-class activities, attend weekly seminars and have interactions with Gladue report writers and other professionals involved in sentencing.

Law 599

Law

Type
Indigenizing and decolonizing - curriculum

Contributor
Faculty of Law

Course: Law 599 - Methods of Indigenous Legal Engagement: course responds directly to the Calls to Action. This seminar offers a robust and pragmatic examination of the current state-of-the art for Indigenous legal engagement practices.

Activity Details

Course: Law 599 - Methods of Indigenous Legal Engagement: course responds directly to the Calls to Action. This seminar offers a robust and pragmatic examination of the current state-of-the art for Indigenous legal engagement practices.

Students will gain exposure to the immediate legal concerns of Indigenous peoples, including recognition and reconciliation of their own legal traditions with the Canadian legal system. Work in this area is diverse and often rapidly evolving. The legal needs and ambitions of Indigenous communities and nations extend to land management processes, environmental impact assessments, matrimonial real property regimes, and other self-government initiatives. We will also engage in related needs of the profession for trauma-informed skills and sensitivity to Indigenous perspectives and community dynamics.

Law 599

Law

Type
Indigenizing and decolonizing - curriculum

Contributor
Faculty of Law

Course: Law 599 - Métis Law and the Canadian State: The course responds directly to the Calls of Action. This course is intended to explain the legal relationship between Métis people(s) and the Canadian state. This course will examine Métis Treaties and Métis claims to Aboriginal title within the context of Canada’s racist colonial laws under the largely discredited Aboriginal rights doctrine as defined under s. 35 of the Constitution.

Activity Details
Course: Law 599 - Métis Law & the Canadian State: course responds directly to the Calls of Action. This course is intended to explain the legal relationship between Métis people(s) and the Canadian state. This course will examine Métis Treaties and Métis claims to Aboriginal title within the context of Canada’s racist colonial laws under the largely discredited Aboriginal rights doctrine as defined under s. 35 of the Constitution. However, given the racist nature of the Supreme Court of Canada’s Aboriginal rights doctrine, considerable attention will be paid to addressing such claims relying on international human rights law. Métis customary law will be examined and considered in light of domestic and international Indigenous legal system recognition as valid sources of law within Métis communities but also as a source of law for a more inclusive understanding of the substantive content of Canadian law which includes Indigenous legal traditions.

Permanent Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) Committee

Law

Type
Indigenizing and decolonizing - Institutional policy and praxis

Contributor
Faculty of Law

The Faculty of Law has a permanent TRC committee created to address how the continued implementation of Call to Action #28.

Activity Details
The Faculty of Law has a permanent TRC committee created to address how the continued implementation of Call to Action #28. The committee approves courses for the course requirement and addresses other curriculum issues relating to the Calls to Action and to Indigenous peoples and law.

Kawaskimhon National Indigenous Moot

Law

Type
Indigenizing and decolonizing - curriculum

Contributor
Faculty of Law

The U of A's Faculty of Law students participate in the annual Kawaskimhon National Indigenous Moot. The Kawaskimhon National Aboriginal Moot is unique among moot court competitions in the world, in that it is conducted in accordance with Aboriginal customs of peaceful negotiation and consensus-building rather than adversarial competition.

Activity Details

The UofA's Faculty of Law students participate in the annual Kawaskimhon National Indigenous Moot. The Kawaskimhon National Aboriginal Moot is unique among moot court competitions in the world, in that it is conducted in accordance with Aboriginal customs of peaceful negotiation and consensus-building rather than adversarial competition.

Established in 1995, the moot attracts teams from law schools across Canada. Each team represents a different party in a complex negotiation concerning Aboriginal law and works toward consensus with the help of Aboriginal facilitators and an elder. The format of Kawaskimhon, which is a Cree word meaning “to speak with knowledge,” encourages students to bring their unique personal perspectives to bear on a collective problem affecting Aboriginal peoples and to work toward a mutual consensus.

Indigenous Relationship-building Activities

Law

Type
Indigenizing and decolonizing - curriculum; Cultural competency; Land-based learning

Contributor
Faculty of Law

All first year law students do an adapted Law-focused blanket exercise and additional Indigenous relationship-building activities hosted by Enoch Cree Nation at the old pow-wow grounds, with Indigenous facilitators and instructors for 1/6 (6-8 hours) of the mandatory introductory "Foundations of Law" class that all take in the first two weeks of their first year.

Activity Details
All first year law students do an adapted Law-focused blanket exercise and additional Indigenous relationship-building activities hosted by Enoch Cree Nation at the old pow-wow grounds, with Indigenous facilitators and instructors for 1/6 (6-8 hours) of the mandatory introductory "Foundations of Law" class that all take in the first two weeks of their first year.

Indigenous Law Students Association

Law

Type
Conference/Presentation/Speakers Series/Professional Learning

Contributor
Faculty of Law

The Indigenous Law Students Association, with funding from Faculty endowments and the Alberta Law Foundation, hosts a 5-day speaker series every year. The speaker series is open to all communities, on and off campus.

Activity Details
The Indigenous Law Students Association, with funding from Faculty endowments and the Alberta Law Foundation host a 5-day speaker series every year. The speaker series is open to all communities, on and off campus. They stream to speaker series to Alberta high schools and provide those schools with information packs to prepare the students for the talks.

Hadley Friedland

Law

Type
Indigenizing and Decolonizing - Curriculum

Contributor
Faculty of Law

Hadley Friedland, Assoc. Professor, Law, was hired in 2017. She specializes in Indigenous law, Aboriginal law, methods for engaging with and revitalizing Indigenous legal traditions, and Indigenous community-led research.

Activity Details
Hadley Friedland, Assoc. Professor, Law, was hired in 2017. She specializes in Indigenous law, Aboriginal law, methods for engaging with and revitalizing Indigenous legal traditions, and Indigenous community-led research. Dr. Friedland is the director of the Wahkohtowin Lodge located in the Faculty.

Tamara Pearl

Law

Type
Indigenizing and decolonizing - curriculum

Contributor
Faculty of Law

Tamara Pearl, Assistant Professor, Law, was hired in 2022. Her research focuses on “anti-dominance” training which challenges the dominance dynamics of the settler colonial framework imposed upon Indigenous Peoples.

Activity Details
Tamara Pearl, Assistant Professor, Law, was hired in 2022. Her research focuses on “anti-dominance” training which challenges the dominance dynamics of the settler colonial framework imposed upon Indigenous Peoples. The aim is to use anti-dominance to train law students and legal practitioners to respectfully engage with Indigenous legal traditions and communities, while using Treaty relationships as a guide in bridging our communities using the Nēhiyawak (Plains Cree) concept: māmawī wīcihitowin (“working together, helping one another”).

Dr. Rebecca Macias Gimenez

Law

Type
Indigenizing and decolonizing - curriculum

Contributor
Faculty of Law

Dr. Rebecca Macias Gimenez researches the intersection between Aboriginal Law, Indigenous peoples and Indigenous Law, and Environmental Law, particularly in British Columbia.

Activity Details
Dr. Rebecca Macias Gimenez researches the intersection between Aboriginal Law, Indigenous peoples and Indigenous Law, and Environmental Law, particularly in British Columbia. Her courses include Indigenous People and the Law and upper level Indigenous people-focused courses, both North American and comparative.

Indigenous Law Program

Law

Type
Recruitment and Retention - Students

Contributor
Faculty of Law

The Indigenous Law Program was established to increase the representation of Indigenous Peoples in the legal profession by promoting the recruitment, participation and success of Indigenous law students. The program provides academic support for Aboriginal students in the form of academic tutorials and informal academic assistance as needed.

Activity Details

The Indigenous Law Program was established to increase the representation of Indigenous Peoples in the legal profession by promoting the recruitment, participation and success of Indigenous law students. The program provides academic support for Aboriginal students in the form of academic tutorials and informal academic assistance as needed.

As well, Indigenous applicants and students are provided with funding information, support services, personal counseling, and employment and career opportunities. The Indigenous Admissions category in the Faculty of Law aims to address the traditional under-representation of Indigenous Peoples in the legal profession. Up to (10%) per cent of the admissions places shall be allotted to Indigenous Applicants admitted under this special category.

Enhancement of Indigenous Legal Issues

Law

Type
Recruitment and Retention - Students

Contributor
Faculty of Law

Curriculum enhancement of Indigenous legal issues is a fundamental objective of the Indigenous Law Program. In addition, the program is active in providing cross-cultural and Indigenous awareness training to Faculty, staff and students to foster a mutual understanding between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal members of society.

Activity Details
Curriculum enhancement of Indigenous legal issues is a fundamental objective of the Indigenous Law Program. In addition, the program is active in providing cross-cultural and Indigenous awareness training to Faculty, staff and students to foster a mutual understanding between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal members of society.

Indigenous Support Manager

Law

Type
Recruitment and Retention - Students

Contributor
Faculty of Law

The Indigenous Support Manager is a full-time position at the Faculty of Law responsible for the development and implementation of initiatives, programs and services to facilitate the success of Indigenous students through engagement and strategic partnerships with Indigenous communities and external Indigenous organizations.

Activity Details
The Indigenous Support Manager is a full-time position at the Faculty of Law responsible for the development and implementation of initiatives, programs and services to facilitate the success of Indigenous students through engagement and strategic partnerships with Indigenous communities and external Indigenous organizations. The position is responsible for developing and implementing Indigenous student recruitment and retention strategies, and delivering and facilitating academic and cultural support to Indigenous law students.

NS 240

Native Studies

Type
Indigenizing and decolonizing - curriculum

Contributor
Faculty of Native Studies

Course: NS 240: Introduction to Indigenous Legal Issues course responds to the Calls to Action. A critical introduction to Indigenous legal issues in Canada through historical and theoretical interpretations of legislation and major court cases from 1763 to the present.

Activity Details

Course: NS 240: Introduction to Indigenous Legal Issues course responds to the Calls to Action. A critical introduction to Indigenous legal issues in Canada through historical and theoretical interpretations of legislation and major court cases from 1763 to the present.

The course problematizes the neutral operation of law in society. It thereafter examines the role of law in the colonial context (with a focus on gender), the development of treaty and Aboriginal rights, the obligations of the crown, the criminalization of Indigenous peoples and reconciliation.

Sections may be offered in a Cost Recovery format at an increased rate of fee assessment; refer to the Fees Payment Guide in the University Regulations and Information for Students section of the Calendar.

NS 340: Indigenous Legal Systems: An introduction to the normative systems of Indigenous peoples in Canada and around the world, often called customary law. Includes considerations of Indigenous legal issues and jurisprudence from various perspectives, including legal histories, conceptions of law, theories of law, and legal pluralism.

Indigenous Governance and Partnership (IGP) Program

Native Studies

Type
Indigenizing and decolonizing - curriculum

Contributor
Faculty of Native Studies

Indigenous Governance and Partnership Program - The Indigenous Governance and Partnership Program offers undergraduate, graduate, executive, and community-based programming, including a Certificate in Indigenous Governance and Partnership.

Activity Details

Indigenous Governance and Partnership Program - The Indigenous Governance and Partnership Program offers undergraduate, graduate, executive and community-based programming, including a Certificate in Indigenous Governance and Partnership.

With over 11 years of programming, the Certificate in Indigenous Governance and Partnership has partnered with over 30 organizations to successfully engage and graduate over 70 students who are continuing to apply their knowledge in Indigenous governance and relationship building through positions of leadership for their communities (e.g. chiefs, executives, administrators), governments (Alberta, Northwest Territories), and in Indigenous and non-Indigenous organizations.

Over the last few years, we have had many people interested in the IGP Certificate programming who are working full-time. Additionally, in light of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's call to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, many working professionals are reaching out to our programming to engage in this timely and relevant learning opportunity to increase knowledge toward building better relationships between government, industry, and Indigenous communities.

To address this need, we are transitioning six courses for the Stand Alone IGP Certificate to blended delivery in order to increase access to programming. In addition to increasing connections through online and blended delivery, we are continuing to strengthen relationships guided by our original mandate of

1. engaging undergraduate degree students through our embedded certificate program,
2. providing alternative learning opportunities through the standalone certificate,
3. offering graduate-level programming specific to governance, social order, and relations with the Canadian state,
4. partnering with the Alberta School of Business through the Indigenous Partnership Development Program (IPDP), and
5. engaging in community-informed research.