Hot Dogs & Hot Takes on History: Reckoning the Understory with Kevin Van Tighem

Debunk and debate local histories at Hot Dogs & Hot Takes on History! Every month, a historian or specialized expert will share their research and offer new perspectives on the history we think we know. Every Hot Dogs & Hot Takes event kicks off with a short presentation on a historical topic by the guest speaker, followed by an interview facilitated by The Confluence President Jennifer Thompson, and an open discussion where you can offer your knowledge and questions about the evening’s topic. Reckoning the Understory with Kevin Van Tighem.

What happens when you realize the place you thought you knew has been telling you only half the story?In Understory, author and naturalist Kevin Van Tighem turns his lens inward, uncovering the layers of silence, omission, and misunderstanding that have shaped how many settlers, himself included, came to know Alberta. Through personal reflection, historical inquiry, and candid self-examination, Understory follows Kevin’s gradual awakening to the absence of Indigenous knowledge, relationships, and history in the world he inherited. It’s a book that challenges not only how we see our province’s past, but how we understand our own complicity in shaping it.

Join us this November at Hot Dogs & Hot Takes on History as Kevin sits down at The Confluence to discuss Understory, the process of writing through discomfort, and what it means to truly know a place.