Every Child Matters: National Day for Truth and Reconciliation & Orange Shirt Day

On June 3, royal assent was given to Bill C-5 making September 30 of each year the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. 

This step responds to Action 80 of the 2015 Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada Calls to Action, which states: “We call upon the federal government, in collaboration with Aboriginal peoples, to establish, as a statutory holiday, a National Day for Truth and Reconciliation to honour Survivors, their families, and communities, and ensure that public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential schools remains a vital component of the reconciliation process.” 

Although the statutory holiday has been established for federal employees, the Government of Ontario has not recognized September 30 as a provincial holiday.

September 30 has also been recognized as Orange Shirt Day since 2013. Orange Shirt Day similarly recognizes the harm caused by the residential school system to children’s self-esteem and well-being and provides affirmation to the Survivors that Every Child Matters, even into adulthood.  

Orange Shirt Day draws on the experience of residential school Survivor Phyllis Webstad. As an excited 6-year-old, Phyllis wore a new orange shirt her grandmother had gifted her for her first day at residential school, but when she arrived, she was stripped of the shirt and never saw it again. This painful memory reflected the experiences of many Survivors who were stripped of their rights, cultures, languages, and identities while attending residential schools. The orange shirt now symbolizes hope and reconciliation.  

Today, in honour of residential school Survivors, their families, and communities, Odonaterra team members are wearing orange shirts and reflecting on our roles in the journey towards truth and reconciliation. We also take time to acknowledge the devastating discovery earlier this year of countless unmarked graves of children that never returned from residential schools. We are collectively committed to working in partnership with Indigenous peoples to ensure this dark and painful legacy is never forgotten and the systemic racism that permitted the separation of children from families is dismantled. 

Through our work, we further endeavor to close the social, cultural, economic, and environmental gaps that persist in Canada by contributing to decolonized laws, policies, and processes.  

To learn more about the significance of today’s observance and steps you can take to contribute to a more equitable Canada, visit the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day websites.  

Every Child Matters. 

Timiskaming Dam-Bridge of Quebec Replacement Project and community engagement post-COVID-19

Earlier this summer, members of the Odonaterra team travelled to Mattawa, Ontario, to work with Antoine Nation. The focus of the visit was a series of interviews documenting how Antoine Nation members use and value the lands, waters, and resources of their territory, as part of an Indigenous Knowledge and Land Use Study (IKLUS) on the potential human environmental impacts of the Timiskaming Dam-Bridge of Quebec Replacement Project.  

The Timiskaming Dam-Bridge crosses the Ottawa River, connecting the provinces of Ontario and Quebec at Temiscaming, Quebec, and regulates water levels on the river. The dam-bridge was first completed in 1913 and rebuilt in 1934. The Ontario section of the structure was replaced in 2017 with the replacement of the Quebec section currently undergoing a federal impact assessment.  

Engagement on the project is occurring with a number of Indigenous communities that have occupied the Ottawa River watershed since time immemorial, in both Ontario and Quebec.

The Timiskaming Dam-Bridge crosses the Ottawa River, connecting the provinces of Ontario and Quebec at Temiscaming, Quebec, and regulates water levels on the river. The dam-bridge was first completed in 1913 and rebuilt in 1934. The Ontario section of the structure was replaced in 2017 with the replacement of the Quebec section currently undergoing a federal impact assessment.  

Engagement on the project is occurring with a number of Indigenous communities that have occupied the Ottawa River watershed since time immemorial, in both Ontario and Quebec.

Upon arriving in the community, Odonaterra was welcomed by the Chief and community engagement liaison who took the team on a tour of Antoine Park and discussed general issues of concern for the Nation. Later in the week, the team was invited to a fish fry to connect with community members on a more personal level to exchange ideas, identify concerns in a relaxed setting, and foster a sense of partnership.  

The Odonaterra team was excited about this opportunity for in-person consultation as part of a 2-week engagement in the community that had not been possible during the pandemic. While our partners and clients demonstrated resilience throughout the health crisis, moving to online meetings, and reorganizing work, it was refreshing to have in-person meetings and valuable to building relationships.  

Although in-community consultations remain essential to impact assessment processes, a perhaps not surprising result of the COVID-19-related lockdowns, was an increase in virtual meetings coupled with improvements to virtual conferencing tools and innovative strategies for continued engagement. Being flexible, agile, and innovative became essential and offered many learning opportunities that will likely continue to be leveraged in future consultations to support ongoing conversations. 

Regular and timely meetings are perhaps more possible now that large portions of the population have been pushed to learn how to use remote working tools. Additionally, the Government of Canada recognized that the pandemic – and resulting dependence on online communications – reflected an increased need for reliable internet access across the country, especially in rural households and remote and isolated Indigenous communities, which may facilitate reaching universal connectivity targets of 50 Mbps download / 10 Mbps upload speeds earlier than anticipated in the High-Speed Access for All: Canada's Connectivity Strategy. 

Odonaterra was grateful for the warm welcome received from community members of Antoine Nation, and their participation in interviews with our team to inform the project’s Impact Assessment Statement. We look forward to similar consultation activities with other communities in the project area.  

We are also excited for the future and are committed to remaining adaptable to new tools, technologies, and engagement strategies to facilitate regular communications with clients, partners, friends, and family, both in-person and online.

Indigenous Peoples Day

As we celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day in Canada, we recognize and reflect on:  

• Our privilege to live, work and play on Indigenous land,

• The need to share natural resources revenues to close the gaps in socio-economic conditions that are unacceptable and have resulted from colonial influence,

• The need to educate all Canadians about cultural genocide and the need to eradicate systemic racism from this country's healthcare, legal, education, political and other institutions

• The incredible diversity of Indigenous cultures in Canada and the outstanding contributions of Indigenous people to Canadian society, and

• Our shared responsibility to work towards reconciliation every day.

We are all treaty people.

Bill C-15: An Act respecting the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

If Bill C-15 comes into force it would require that new legislation is aligned with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) to which Canada is a signatory. It has been a recommendation from both the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls and was promised by the Liberal government in 2019.

Letter to Minister Vic Fedeli on Bill 197: COVID-19 Economic Recovery Act, 2020

See our letter to Minister Vic Fedeli regarding Bill 197.

A brief spotlight for Odonaterra on Bill 197 - which was passed without legal consultation and will result in major amendments to the Environmental Assessment Act - all at a time when Ontarians and Indigenous communities are grappling with the real challenges (education, childcare, long-term care facilities, small business) of trying to recover from COVID-19. https://www.erisinfo.com/…/environmental-industry-implicat…/

Another good article by Gowlings on implications for Indigenous consultation here: https://gowlingwlg.com/…/bill-197-indigenous-communities-o…/