Indigenous Engagement E-Course Information

Welcome to Indigenous Insight's Online Indigenous Engagement Training course, designed to enhance your cultural awareness training. Once payment has been made, you will receive access to the course learning modules through links sent to your e-mail. Please click HERE to complete a survey and provide your name, the reason you are taking this course, your e-mail, and other relevant contact information. Upon completion, you will gain access to the Indigenous Engagement e-course via module links sent to your contact e-mail, which will help you understand Indigenous rights and title as part of your reconciliation education.

$400 Tuition fee for entire course

Indigenous Engagement Training: E-Course Information

This cultural awareness training course focused on Indigenous studies was developed in Coast Salish territory, specifically on Tla’amin Nation lands. I hold my hands up to our First Nation ancestors who came before us, facing challenges, hardship, and heartbreaks that are even hard for me to imagine. Our ancestors fulfilled their roles by providing for our people and protecting our territories, languages, and cultures, all while paying a heavy price in many ways. They consistently demonstrated strength, resilience, and integrity, 24/7/365.

I acknowledge our Elders, Indian Residential School Survivors, 60’s Scoop Survivors, and Indian Reserve community leaders, who are valiantly stepping in to confront the lasting impacts and challenges imposed by Canada’s Indian Policies, which include the Indian Act, the Indian Reserve system, and the Indian Residential School System. Their efforts are vital in advancing reconciliation education and the recognition of Indigenous rights and title.

I also recognize our First Nation youth who inherit our efforts, both good and bad. We have all tried our best to equip you with the tools and skills necessary to decolonize our people by safeguarding our true heritage, territories, languages, and cultures. Your struggles will be challenging, but look back to your ancestors for strength and motivation. To you, our youth – our ancestors, Survivors, and our community are holding you up high.

i?mote (meaning 'very well' in the Tla'amin Nation Coast Salish language).

Cartoon man shrugging while sitting on a chair.

What is Indigenous engagement training?

Indigenous engagement is the process of fostering respectful, meaningful, and ongoing relationships between Indigenous communities and non-Indigenous governments, organizations, or businesses. It must transcend mere consultation or checkbox exercises by actively listening, acknowledging Indigenous rights and title, honoring cultural protocols, and ensuring that Indigenous voices significantly influence decisions that impact their lands, resources, and futures. At its core, Indigenous engagement is about partnership, trust, and accountability — creating space for Indigenous worldviews, knowledge, and leadership to guide shared paths forward.

Cultural awareness training plays a vital role in deepening understanding of how Canada was colonized and its failure to extinguish Aboriginal title as mandated by the Royal Proclamation of 1763. This unresolved issue is the foundation of more than 630 unanswered land questions across the nation, including over 190 in BC alone, where numerous First Nations assert that their territories remain unceded.

The training addresses significant gaps in non-Indigenous Canadians’ knowledge, guiding participants through often uncomfortable but necessary truths about Canada’s colonization and assimilation history (e.g., the Indian Act, Indian Reserve System, Indian Residential School System, and the emergence of band offices as colonial instruments), existing treaties (e.g., Numbered Treaties, Douglas Treaties), and modern-day treaty negotiations. This reconciliation education emphasizes how Canada’s Indian policies have profoundly impacted First Nation Indian reserve communities.

Unpolished. Unscripted. Unapologetic

Please Note: the videos in this course are not Hollywood productions. All recordings were made in a modest home office, prioritizing truth, lived experience, and authenticity over polished sound and lighting. This Indigenous engagement course serves as a living program designed for growth and evolution, emphasizing the importance of cultural awareness training in understanding Indigenous rights and title.

This initial soft-launch represents Phase ONE, with Phase TWO focused on enhancing the app's interactivity.

COURSE VIDEOS: the course features over 15 videos that explore topics many settler Canadians may overlook or misunderstand regarding Indigenous peoples. Addressing these knowledge gaps is crucial for fostering reconciliation education and achieving meaningful reconciliation.

For the best experience, we recommend registering and signing in with your YouTube account.

Why this type of training may be necessary?

Cultural awareness training focused on Indigenous issues is often required due to the systemic inequities and colonial attitudes that continue to shape Canada’s institutions and relationships. Those in power may mandate this training to confront the ignorance, bias, and privilege still deeply rooted in society. While it may feel forced, the purpose of this reconciliation education is clear—to expose uncomfortable truths, demand accountability, and encourage non-Indigenous people to move beyond complacency toward a genuine understanding and respect for Indigenous rights and title, histories, and realities.

This Indigenous engagement course will not make you an expert in the field. Instead, its purpose is to plant a seed of curiosity and provide you with a starting point for your own journey of learning and research.

Why so many Indigenous relations departments?

There are two reasons why Indigenous relations & reconciliation departments, agencies, commissions and ministries are so prevalent at every level of government across Canada, and within corporations, organizations and associations.

1. Unresolved Indigenous rights and title - Indigenous rights and title, protected under the Constitution Act, 1982, remain Canada’s unresolved “land question.” Evolving case law has shaped how governments must address infringement, consultation, and accommodation, with the Supreme Court consistently urging negotiation as the preferred path to resolution. To support this process, cultural awareness training is essential for fostering understanding and respect among all parties involved.

2. Deeply flawed colonization and assimilation policies - Canada’s colonization and assimilation policies, such as the Indian Act and the Indian Reserve System, along with 162 years of Indian residential schools, have resulted in cultural genocide by eroding Indigenous land, languages, and identities. Rooted in Euro-centric assumptions of cultural inferiority, these policies have caused intergenerational trauma and continue to fuel the social, economic, and political marginalization of Indigenous peoples. Addressing these issues through reconciliation education is crucial for moving towards a more equitable society.

Training Format

Each learner will complete the following learning modules listed below:

Module 1: Introduction and Basics About Indigenous Peoples, including important aspects of cultural awareness training.

Module 2: Canada's Colonization History, with a focus on Indigenous rights and title.

2A: Canada's Indian Act

2B: Canada's Indian Reserve System

2C: Canada's Indian Residential School System

2D: Band Office or Colonial Instrument?

Module 3: Canada's 'Land Question' and its impact on reconciliation education.

Module 4: Truth and Reality First, Only Then Reconciliation, to foster a deeper understanding of Indigenous rights.

4A: Obstacles to Reconciliation

4B: Evolution of Thought Examples

COURSE STATEMENT

There are no exams—only meaningful learning. At the end of this journey through cultural awareness training, you may not become an Indigenous engagement expert, but you will gain valuable insights into Indigenous rights and title and receive a certificate of completion as a part of your reconciliation education.

REFLECTION ON CULTURAL LEARNING

On a personal level, I find it odd that in Canada, cultural awareness training for non-Indigenous individuals is often expected to include learning about Indigenous cultures, while Indigenous peoples are rarely required to engage in reconciliation education regarding other cultures or their rights and title.

What makes this training program unique?

Bestowed the ancestral name KWAST-en-ayu by the Tla’amin Elders on May 10, 2003, L. Maynard Harry brings more than 31 years of profound, practical, lived experience rooted directly in Canada’s colonization history. KWAST-en-ayu's delivery of content is grounded and unapologetically authentic, reflecting lived experiences that inform governance decisions made under Canada’s Indian Act (as Indian Act–elected Hegus (Chief Councillor) and councillor), as well as by a lifetime spent living on an Indian reserve and family experiences directly impacted by Canada’s Indian Residential School System. This course, viewed through the lens of a First Nation status Indian, also serves as valuable reconciliation education for individuals seeking to understand Indigenous rights and title in the context of ongoing challenges faced by First Nations in Canada.

Maynard has actively participated in his Nation's struggles to protect Aboriginal rights and title, addressing critical land questions through the BC Treaty Process. He is also a principal signatory to the historic 2003 Tla'amin Nation-City of Powell River Community Accord and an honorary signatory to the reaffirmed 2018 Accord.

Maynard’s insights into Canada’s colonization and assimilation history stem not from university courses or textbooks, but from his extensive work with Elders and community leaders.

In discussions about Indigenous engagement in Canada, it is vital to acknowledge the notable similarities among the 630+ recognized First Nation communities throughout the country, which transcend individual Indigenous cultures, regions, provinces, or territories. These parallels arise from the enforced imposition of colonial federal legislation (e.g., Indian Act), federal systems (e.g., Indian Reserve System, Indian Residential School System), and the involvement of powerful institutions such as the RCMP, Christian churches, and provincial governments.

Colonizer Rehab Seminar Series

Registering for this course is more than a transaction; learners automatically join the Colonizer Rehab Seminar Series for as long as they choose. This monthly series meets on the last Friday from 9:00 am to 11:30 am (PT), bringing together 15–20 participants to extend learning beyond the course and into real-world applications, enhancing cultural awareness training for all involved.

THOUGHT BOXES - Historical Quotes, Common Misconceptions, Magnitude, Red Flags, Reflections and Trigger Warnings

Throughout this course, 'thought boxes' are utilized as exercises that highlight key knowledge gaps in non-Indigenous Canadians’ comprehension of what it means to be Indigenous in Canada. These boxes include 'Common Misconceptions' (highlighted in green), 'Historical Quotes,' 'Magnitude' boxes (highlighted in orange), 'Red Flags' boxes (highlighted in dark red), 'Reflections' boxes (highlighted in blue), and 'Trigger Warnings.' The purpose of these thought boxes is to clarify important topics that promote cultural awareness training and facilitate critical thinking while engaging with Indigenous rights and title issues. They encourage you to empathize and put yourself in the shoes of an Indigenous person to better understand your own perceptions of Indigenous issues in the context of Canada.

There are no right or wrong answers, and no exams are involved. However, if you cheat at these exercises, you are perpetuating what Canada has done 'since time immemorial' - remaining silent, inactive, and ignorant. These three states of mind contribute to the slow progress of reconciliation education. The content presented here does not distort, minimize, or erase the realities of colonization; instead, it confronts these truths and seeks to acknowledge them.

Explanation of historical quote boxes about Canadian Indigenous figures.

HISTORICAL QUOTES

Historical Quote Boxes (highlighted in light grey) will feature factual quotations from significant figures in Canadian Indigenous history, contributing to cultural awareness training and enriching discussions on Indigenous rights and title as part of reconciliation education.

COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS

Common Misconceptions boxes (highlighted in green) dispel myths and misunderstandings that often hinder relationships, which is essential in cultural awareness training, particularly regarding Indigenous rights and title and the importance of reconciliation education.

Explore Our Philosophy

MAGNITUDE

Magnitude boxes (highlighted in orange) illustrate the scale and depth of colonial impacts, serving as a crucial component of cultural awareness training that supports Indigenous rights and title as well as reconciliation education.

Red flag warning about Indigenous engagement pitfalls.

RED FLAGS

Red Flag boxes (highlighted in dark red) serve as cautionary indicators of common pitfalls in Indigenous engagement, emphasizing the importance of cultural awareness training and an understanding of Indigenous rights and title within the broader context of reconciliation education.

Explanation of blue reflection thought boxes.

REFLECTIONS

Reflections thought boxes (highlighted in blue) invite you to pause, reflect, and connect with the material while enhancing your understanding of cultural awareness training, Indigenous rights and title, and the principles of reconciliation education.

TRIGGER WARNINGS

Magnitude boxes (highlighted in orange) illustrate the scale and depth of colonial impacts, emphasizing the importance of cultural awareness training in understanding these issues. Click HERE for a video summarizing the three thought boxes below (orange, green, and blue), which also touches on Indigenous rights and title, as well as the importance of reconciliation education.

Recommendation for frontline staff interacting with Indigenous communities.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Recommendations are offered to those who will interact directly with First Nation communities, including staff, frontline workers, management, and leadership roles. To foster effective relationships, it’s vital for these individuals to undergo cultural awareness training and understand Indigenous rights and title, as well as engage in reconciliation education.