Elders and Indigenous representatives

Inviting an Elder or Indigenous representative to attend and/or speak at your event offers a recognition of the Nation(s) who have had a relationship with the land since time immemorial. Ideally, you will form relationships with Elders and First Nations communities before asking them to participate. This not only aids your cultural learning and understanding as an individual and as an organization, but is also much less transactional. When possible, try to invite someone who has a connection to the topic of the event, e.g., through their work or other interests. If they are not available, consider asking them if they have anyone else they would suggest.

Note: This is not the same as a territorial acknowledgement.

Here are some considerations when asking an Elder or Indigenous representative to attend an event.

• Don’t wait until the last minute, if at all possible, to invite someone to participate.
• Always invite someone as a participant, not as a “performance.”
• Each territory has specific protocols around giving gifts (or tokens of appreciation, in addition to the honorarium). If you’re unsure about territorial protocol, ask for guidance. Approach this conversation with the Elder or Indigenous representative with humility, emphasizing that you want to not only be respectful in this process, but also learn more. Transparency and honest effort go a long way, and they will likely appreciate you asking. 
• Beyond territorial protocol, each individual will have their own preferences around communication, how to be addressed, etc. Just because you have worked with one person from a certain First Nation does not necessarily mean someone else from that community will feel exactly the same. When you build authentic relationships with the people you work with, you get to know them as individuals and not only as representatives of their community or territory.