XwtatƏ'llƏm: Place of Learning
In this excerpt from the Rights & Respect Magazine, discover a case study of positive relationships inspired by Musqueam culture.
Stephen Bruyneel (left) and Nolan Charles (right) reflect on partnerships (PHOTO BY DARRYL DYCK FOR IPSS).
“How did all of our grandparents resolve issues before?” Nolan Charles asks the room during his IPSS Fireside Chat with Stephen Bruyneel, director, external relations & development, of the Fraser River Discovery Centre.
His answer: “Hey, put on some tea. . . . I’m coming over. Let’s talk.”
That’s the approach the Musqueam Indian Band (MIB) and the Fraser River Discovery Centre (FRDC) have taken to create Xwtatə'lləm (a Place of Learning). Xwtatə'lləm will be a permanent exhibit and programming telling the history of the Fraser River and its surrounds from the perspective of the Musqueam and other First Nations who have lived, worked, and taken care of the river from time immemorial.
The creation of Xwtatə'lləm emerged from an agreement signed in late 2020 between the Musqueam and the FRDC; the agreement allows for an open and flexible process to ensure meaningful and respectful collaboration.
Charles hopes others at IPSS ’22 will help shape Xwtatə'lləm. “What does Xwtatə'lləm look like?” he asks. “We don’t know yet. But we are prepared and offering to say we will put on tea, and we will invite others over to share their stories.”
This type of flexible approach is completely different than what the museum and interpretive centre sector typically do, says Bruyneel. Partner companies and organizations that fund projects generally expect to see firm project plans and timelines.
“As we’ve approached partners . . . without a spreadsheet and a Gantt chart, it was hard for some to get their head around giving us money to do something,” he says. “But some got it. . . . they got it right away. And they gave us a lot, a large amount of money, to help do this.”
Bruyneel says that the development of Xwtatə'lləm is especially important because “there is nowhere that I know of that tells the history and the teachings of the Fraser River from Indigenous perspectives.”
The Musqueam approach to developing Xwtatə'lləm from a reconciliation and an UNDRIP (United Nations Declaration of Indigenous Peoples Act) perspective was welcomed by the FRDC’s board of directors.
“We hear a lot of talk about reconciliation and UNDRIP,” says Bruyneel. “But a lot of times, companies, organizations, local governments don’t know how to do reconciliation, how to participate in UNDRIP. And for our board’s perspective, this is a way for us to do more than just talk about it. We can actually do something about it.
“This is a whole different approach because UNDRIP and Truth and Reconciliation affords latitude,” says Charles. “It affords innovative thinking. It affords the ability to say you can think outside the box. . . . We’re about getting beyond ticking off the boxes.”
Bruyneel adds that conversations with Nolan and the Musqueam have informed a whole new approach to all the centre’s activities.
“Everything we do now, current programs, everything is looked at through the lens of Xwtatə'lləm. We don’t make any changes, we don’t make any additions, until we think about this partnership. . . . From as simple as updating a sign on the boardwalk about the river, to creating a new program, to having a dialogue . . . we stop and we say, ’Okay, what is this? How would we do this from Xwtatə'lləm's perspective? How should we do this to make sure it’s done correctly?’ And then we do it. And that’s been a massive change for us at the centre in a positive way.”
“At the end of the day the FRDC board took the time to understand and educate themselves and share their stories of their understanding of what UNDRIP and Truth and Reconciliation means,” says Charles, who believes education precedes true reconciliation, including economic reconciliation.
“It’s either you talk culture conveniently, use culture conveniently, or you live it. That’s what I’m so thankful of my elders that bestowed their knowledge within me. And it’s my obligation to share that with the generation behind me.
“UNDRIP and Truth and Reconciliation are a benefit for the communities and the regions, but more importantly, it’s the benefit for the little ones. How do we arm all little ones to be successful? I’d be guilty if I were to perpetuate the system that was imposed on us. That’s not who we are. That’s not how we roll. We are about ‘Come sit by the fire and come share your stories.’”
This article was originally published in Rights & Respect, Issue 2. To purchase a physical copy of the magazine, click here. Click here to purchase tickets to IPSS 2023.
