2016-03-11

Building a National Research Program to Advance Canada’s Understanding of Reconciliation: A Discussion with the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC)

As part of Aboriginal Peoples Week at Memorial, we cordially invite you toa discussion on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action 65 and relatedmeasures of support for Aboriginal research and talent in Canada. 

SSHRC and its community of scholars have been working intensively for almost 15 years to develop Aboriginal research programming centred on the principle of research ‘by and with’ Aboriginal peoples, as opposed to research ‘on and for’Aboriginal peoples – a fairly dramatic paradigm shift in agency and consequent protocols and rules of research engagement. 

Brent Herbert-­‐Copley (SSHRC’s Executive Vice-­‐President) and Gail Zboch (a Senior Program Officer in SSHRC’s Research Grants and Partnerships Division) will be on campus March 21-­‐23to engage with Memorial’s humanities and social sciences researchersand research partners working in the area of Aboriginal research.  

In a discussion planned for the morning of March 21, SSHRC will open with a synopsis of its work in support of Aboriginal research: (i) SSHRC initiatives on provisions to support Aboriginal research and talent; (ii) the upcoming SSHRC Knowledge Synthesis Grants about Aboriginal peoples; and (iii) SSHRC’s work in relation to an implementation plan for Call to Action 65.  

SSHRC would then invite feedback and input in all three areas (see attached documentation),but would in particular welcome ideas and options from Memorial faculty, students and partners –both Indigenous and non-­‐Indigenous – for implementation of the TRC’s Call to Action 65:  

We call upon the federal government, through the Social Sciences and Humanities Research   Council,   and   in collaboration  with   Aboriginal   peoples,   post-­‐secondary institutionsandeducators,andtheNationalCentreforTruthandReconciliationandits partner institutions, to establishanationalresearchprogramwithmulti-­‐year funding to advance understanding of reconciliation. 

We invite those interested in participating to review theTRC’s Calls to Action (attached) and to prepare short (5-­‐minute) position statements on how SSHRC and its community might design research funding strategies that support the TRC’s Call to Action 65,any related Calls to Action, as well as related elements of SSHRC programming in support of Aboriginal research and talent. 

 Participants are not obliged to prepare statements, but prepared statements will be given priority during the discussion. 

When: Monday, March 21st from8:30-­‐12Noon. Where: AA5014 

Space is limited, in order to ensure yours please RSVP to crcab@mun.ca by March 17th, 2016. 

On behalf of the organizing committee: 

             Dr. Mario Blaser, Canada Research Chair in Aboriginal Studies  

             Dr. Carrie Dyck, Associate Dean of Arts (Research and Grad Studies)