City of Calgary working with Indigenous Gathering Place Society of Calgary to build a gathering place for all Nations within city limits

CALGARY, Alberta, May 26, 2021 — The City of Calgary (City) and the Indigenous Gathering Place Society of Calgary (IGPSC) participated in a traditional Indigenous ceremony to honour their shared commitment toward building an Indigenous Gathering Place within the City of Calgary.

Representative participants from the City of Calgary included General Manager Katie Black with Mayor Naheed Nenshi and Manager David Duckworth participating as active witnesses. Indigenous Gathering Place Society of Calgary's (IGPSC) Co-Chair John Fischer was the representative participant with witnesses Co-Chair Bill Anderson and Elder Doreen Healy from Kainai First Nation.

The ceremony is parallel to the Western practice of a Memorandum of Understanding, which was signed at the same time by both parties.

Blackfoot Elders Dr. Reg and Rose Crowshoe of Piikani First Nation led the ceremony and shared teachings on the significance of this traditional form of commitment to work together while conveying the important role witnesses have within an oral culture.

"The Indigenous Gathering Place honours both traditional and oral practices of knowledge transfer and Western written practices," says Crowshoe. "It's important because that's our connection to natural laws and Creation."

The ceremony would have occurred face-to-face and gifts exchanged in person if not for the Covid-19 safety restrictions. Over 450 grassroots individual, organizational and institutional supporters were invited to witness the webinar-style event.

"The expansive network of Elders we have engaged from the beginning strongly encouraged us to move forward despite the current restrictions sharing their support for the innovative webinar format," says IGPSC Chair, John Fischer. "Efforts to secure land and build a gathering place for, with and by Indigenous Peoples is a conversation decades in the making. This ceremony is also to honour all those who came before us," says Fischer.

There are over 500 places of worship within the City of Calgary and not one of them is dedicated for Indigenous peoples and their traditional practices. The date (May 26) was chosen by both parties commemorating the 2017 Reconciliation Bridge renaming event held four years prior.

"The City of Calgary is committed to reconciliation and working together with Indigenous peoples towards creating an Indigenous Gathering Place in Calgary."

A shared vision exists between all benefactors and signatories for an IGP: a space to share, connect, heal, renew and celebrate Indigenous cultures. A place to protect Indigenous practices, languages and Elders' wisdom, oral and written teachings among all Nations and all relations.