Indigenous Meeting Experiences In and Around Calgary

Someone picks up a Beaded Orange Flower Barrette from a shelf full of other beadwork arts and crafts as well as ceremonial and medicine bags
Someone picks up a Beaded Orange Flower Barrette from a shelf full of other beadwork arts and crafts as well as ceremonial and medicine bags

Indigenous Meeting Experiences In and Around Calgary

In collaboration with Indigenous Tourism Alberta

Including Indigenous experiences into your Calgary meeting can be incredibly powerful. The nations of Treaty 7, the land that Calgary sits on, have rich and distinctive cultures. While all meeting planners are encouraged to work with local Indigenous partners, there are ways to ensure that it is a positive experience both for delegates and the participating nations.

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Partners

Working with Indigenous Partners 

Any work with Indigenous partners must be built on relationships. These relationships are not transactional. They are built over time through genuine intention that goes deeper than businesses purposes. This is your opportunity to help these communities share their culture and history with others. It is important and exciting work! Before contacting any of the Treaty 7 Nations directly, it is advised that you go through one of the following organizations:

Indigenous Tourism Alberta has created a fantastic toolkit for working with Indigenous partners.

 

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Gifting

Gifting from Indigenous-Owned Businesses 

Incorporating authentic Indigenous gifting into your meeting can be very meaningful for delegates. It may take more effort to set up compared to working with a large supplier, but it will be far more impactful. Here are some local Indigenous-owned suppliers: 

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Indigenous person traditional drumming at Dodging Horse Ranch

Traditional drumming at Dodging Horse Ranch (Photo Credit: Gavin John)

An indigenous woman giving a blessing in front of a podium during a gala convention

A blessing is given during the YWhisper Gala in 2023 at the Calgary TELUS Convention Centre (Photo Credit: Colin Way)

Experiences

Including Indigenous Experiences into Your Meeting

There are many ways to weave Indigenous experiences into your meeting, from live demonstrations, to Elder blessings, to guided tours.

Artist Demonstrations

Live demonstrations are an amazing way to create memorable interactions between delegates and Indigenous artists. The following three artists have all had experience with this type of work:

  • Kim Brothers from Moonstone Creation handed out traditional beading kits and did live beading demonstrations for Tourism Calgary at Convening Leaders 2024.
  • mikho maskwa (Red Bear), also known as Chance Bellegarde is the artist behind Redman Customs. He did a wood carving demonstration at the 2023 World Petroleum Congress.
  • Jason Carter from Carter-Ryan Gallery did a live sculpture demonstration at the 2023 Rendez-vous Canada.

Blessings, Panelists, and Performers

Starting off a meeting with an Elder blessing helps ground the rest of the event to the land, to relationships, and to reciprocity. There are often separate protocols for engaging Elders. Indigenous Tourism Alberta can help facilitate connections with Elders from the Treaty 7 Nations and provide suggestions for panelists, speakers, and powwow dancers.

Guided Tours

If you’re looking to incorporate a team-building activity into your meeting, these Indigenous-owned tour companies will provide cultural experiences with authentic knowledge keepers.

Offsite Venues

Sometimes it’s nice to give your group a change of scenery and these offsite venues offer unique opportunities to engage with Indigenous culture.

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Siksika Blackfoot dancers standing in front of the Blackfoot Crossing Historical Park Interpretive Centre

Siksika Blackfoot dancers standing in front of the Blackfoot Crossing Historical Park Interpretive Centre (Photo Credit: Travel Alberta/Katie Goldie)

An Indigenous Medicine Wheel at Nose Hill Park marks sacred ground once used for ceremony. The skyline can be seen far in the distance

The Siksikaitsitapi Medicine Wheel at Nose Hill Park marks sacred ground once used for ceremony and gathering (Photo Credit: Colin Way)

Land Acknowledgements

Understanding Land Acknowledgements 

It is recommended to start all events, large and small, with a land acknowledgement. This shows respect for the land that the meeting is being held on and the peoples who have traditionally lived there. Land acknowledgements can be done by anyone but the person giving it should understand the significance of the words included and add in some notes of personal reflection.  

Struggling with where to start? The Indigenous Relations Office of the City of Calgary has created an example land acknowledgement that includes pronunciations. 

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Did You Know?

Did You Know? 

  • There are 630+ First Nation communities in Canada with more than 60 distinct languages spoken 
  • There are approximately 2M Indigenous people and 600K Métis People in Canada 
  • Approximately 50% of the Indigenous population in Canada live in cities 
  • More than 41,000 Indigenous people live in Calgary 
  • The area known today as Calgary has several traditional names: 
    • Moh-kins-tsis (moh-GIN’-stis) - Blackfoot 
    • Wicispa Oyade (weh-CHIS’-spa oh-YAH’-day) - Stoney Nakoda 
    • Guts-ists-I (GOOT’-sis) - Tsuut’ina 
    • Otos-kwunee (oh-TUSS’ - kwanee) - Métis 
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