land acknowledgement
MLSE Foundation acknowledges that our work, and the work of our partners and grantees, takes place on traditional Indigenous territory across what is now called Ontario. We wish to express gratitude to Mother Earth for her bounty and to honour all the original peoples of the land including the Anishinaabeg, the Chippewa, the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Wendat and the Haudenosaunee.
We also wish to acknowledge that MLSE Foundation’s head office is located on the traditional territory of many nations including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnaabeg, the Chippewa, the Wendat and the Haudenosaunee. The land on which we operate has been, and is still, governed by the Three Fire Confederacy and Dish With One Spoon Wampum Belt as well as in more recent times by the Nanfan Treaty, Treaty 13 and the Williams Treaties.
Today, Toronto (a Wendat word meaning “fishing weir” or “where sticks standing in the water” or “meeting place”) is still known as the meeting place and is still home to many Indigenous peoples from across Turtle Island.
A group of travelers left their moccasin-clad footprints in the blue clay beneath the buildings here in downtown Toronto. These moccasin footprints were uncovered by a dredging crew while doing underwater work at the foot of Bay Street, back in 1908. That trek by the first peoples took place over 12,500 years ago, and as we look back to those first Torontonians, we remember our Mother the Earth, through the seven Grandfather teachings of the Anishinaabe: Wisdom, Courage, Respect, Honesty, Truth, Humility and Love. The stories of each of these nations endure and continue to guide our thoughts and actions on this land.
For us, this recognition of the contributions and importance of Indigenous peoples is connected to our commitment to the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
Written With Guidance From:
Philip Cote, MFA Young Spiritual Elder, Artist, Activist, Ancestral Knowledge Keeper & Historian Moose Deer Point First Nation: Underwater Panther Clan.
Philip is the 7th Generation Great-Grandson of Shawnee Warrior and Leader Tecumseh, and his ancestor Amelia Chechok is the Grand Daughter of Chief Chechok who was the first signer of The Toronto Purchase of 1805.
We also wish to acknowledge that MLSE Foundation’s head office is located on the traditional territory of many nations including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnaabeg, the Chippewa, the Wendat and the Haudenosaunee. The land on which we operate has been, and is still, governed by the Three Fire Confederacy and Dish With One Spoon Wampum Belt as well as in more recent times by the Nanfan Treaty, Treaty 13 and the Williams Treaties.
Today, Toronto (a Wendat word meaning “fishing weir” or “where sticks standing in the water” or “meeting place”) is still known as the meeting place and is still home to many Indigenous peoples from across Turtle Island.
A group of travelers left their moccasin-clad footprints in the blue clay beneath the buildings here in downtown Toronto. These moccasin footprints were uncovered by a dredging crew while doing underwater work at the foot of Bay Street, back in 1908. That trek by the first peoples took place over 12,500 years ago, and as we look back to those first Torontonians, we remember our Mother the Earth, through the seven Grandfather teachings of the Anishinaabe: Wisdom, Courage, Respect, Honesty, Truth, Humility and Love. The stories of each of these nations endure and continue to guide our thoughts and actions on this land.
For us, this recognition of the contributions and importance of Indigenous peoples is connected to our commitment to the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
Written With Guidance From:
Philip Cote, MFA Young Spiritual Elder, Artist, Activist, Ancestral Knowledge Keeper & Historian Moose Deer Point First Nation: Underwater Panther Clan.
Philip is the 7th Generation Great-Grandson of Shawnee Warrior and Leader Tecumseh, and his ancestor Amelia Chechok is the Grand Daughter of Chief Chechok who was the first signer of The Toronto Purchase of 1805.