The Indigenous Initiatives Learning Community (or “II-Learning Community”) is peer-driven professional development community intended for participants who have completed the II-Design Series.
CTLT Indigenous Initiatives provides support for the II-Learning Community, but the II-Learning Community is self-directed, self-sustained, and self-facilitated by its own members.
Some of the goals of the II-Learning Community are to build and sustain supportive relationships amongst practitioners who are interested in “diving deeper” to explore integrating Indigenous perspectives and knowledges in their teaching and learning design; make space to share, apply, and test possible learning activities in an environment of constructive and caring feedback; support capacity-building and facilitate connections amongst those with shared interests and different skill and experience levels; open up opportunities for respectful and critical dialogues about “reconciliation,” “decolonization,” and “indigenization” in teaching and learning at UBC.
A couple members from the learning community shares with us their learnings and insights from having completed the II-Design Series and now being apart of the first learning community cohort.
“Ben and I co-facilitated the Indigenous Initiatives Learning Community on land acknowledgements. To prepare for the LC we researched how people around UBC used land acknowledgements in their courses. We found examples of syllabi that used land acknowledgements and Ben shared some of the ways he uses land acknowledgements in his courses. All of these examples led to discussions which helped the group identify ways that they might want to use land acknowledgements in their classes. Equally important, during the LC we discussed things to avoid with land acknowledgements. The LC was very respectful of one another and I think we all felt safe with sharing our fears and excitement with this topic.”
Sarah Bean Sherman, Science Education Specialist in Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, University of British Columbia
“As a settler teaching on Musqueam territory, it‘s important for me to be more knowledgeable about Indigeneity and colonialism, and use that knowledge to Indigenize and decolonize academia. This work requires an iterative process involving lots of exploration, learning, reflection, and practice. Because I only recently began learning about these issues in earnest, I‘m still discovering my relationship to these issues. All the amazing people in this LC have given me a great place to explore this relationship by helping me think and talk through my thoughts and emotions. What have I not considered? What do I not know? Most importantly – Is what I‘m doing culturally safe/appropriate? If not, how can I do better? I wouldn‘t be able to effectively and conscientiously do my work without this LC, and I‘m immensely grateful for its organizers and participants.”
Ben Cheung, Lecturer, Psychology, University of British Columbia