Land Acknowledgement

Our Land Acknowledgement is a formal statement that recognizes and respects Indigenous Peoples as traditional stewards of this land and the enduring relationship that exists between Indigenous Peoples and their traditional territories. 

LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT

NACO is situated upon the traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishinaabe, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat peoples. Today, the city of Toronto, also known as Tkaronto (meaning “the place in the water where the trees are standing) is covered by Treaty 13 signed with the Mississaugas of the Credit. 

This territory is governed by The Dish with One Spoon Wampum treaty, an agreement to peaceably share and care for the land and its resources. Toronto is still home to many First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples from across Turtle Island.  

Living and working on this territory makes all people in Toronto Treaty people, including those who have come as settlers, or immigrants of this generation or generations past, as well as those who were brought forcibly as a result of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade.  

LEGACY OF COLONIALISM AND RECONCILIATION

We are mindful of broken covenants and acknowledge the cultural, economic, and psychological harm done to Indigenous communities by colonial practices, discriminatory policies, and institutions. 

We understand that land acknowledgment is important, but only an initial step in the ongoing reconciliation process; advancing meaningful reconciliation must move beyond good intentions, superficial reforms, and symbolic gestures. Hence, we recognize our responsibility as an organization, and as individuals, in pushing for real accountability and transformative change, including implementing the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. 

NACO is committed to addressing systemic injustice by working with Indigenous community partners, government, and the private sector to remove barriers to career advancement and support the growth of underrepresented talent in technology and innovation-based organizations, start-ups, and the creative industries. To find and reflect on your own location, visit Native Land.