The National Residential School Crisis Line: 1-866-925-4419
The National Residential School Crisis Line: 1-866-925-4419
September 22 – 26, 2025
Open to the Public
We invite you to join our daily Lunch and Learn webinars – an immersive experience to UN-learn the myths of colonial history in Canada.
Lunch and Learn sessions are aimed at an adult audience, and open to the public, and will be hosted virtually over Zoom Webinar and streamed to YouTube.
Expert matter speakers will present for 40-50 minutes before a Q&A between the moderator and guest(s).
All sessions will have simultaneous English-French, and ASL interpretation.
Truth and Reconciliation Week daily Lunch and Learn webinars are presented with the gracious support of Enbridge and the Canadian Public Health Association.
Program details will be available soon.
Monday, September 22
1:00pm EDT
Surviving the Residential School System
English with French and ASL interpretation.
This session will consider the reason why we say “Survivor” rather than “graduate”, and how many Survivors of residential schools found solace through the media of sports and the arts. Artist and Residential School Survivor Antoine Mountain and author Janice Forsyth will be joined in conversation with moderator Dr. Vanessa Watts.
Tuesday, September 23
1:00pm EDT
Uncovering the Truth: Ground Searches
English with French and ASL interpretation.
This session will look into the technicalities of what a ground search constitutes and many of the questions around why and how they should be done. The conversation will combine the lived experience of Residential School Survivors Francis Dickie Yuzicapi and Jacquie Bouvier with the technical expertise of moderator Bryton Bigelow.
Wednesday, September 24
1:00pm EDT
The Ongoing Legacy of the Residential School System through Child Welfare
English with French and ASL interpretation.
This session will look at the direct throughline from the residential school system to the Sixties Scoop through to the overwhelming number of Indigenous children in child welfare today, including the directly related aspect of forced and coerced sterilizations of Indigenous women. CFS worker Roxanne Balan will moderate a discussion between Residential School Survivor Vivian Ketchum and reproductive justice support worker Shelby Ponace.
Thursday, September 25
1:00pm EDT
Reflecting on the TRC’s Calls to Action 10 Years Later
English with French and ASL interpretation.
This session will reflect on the decade which has passed since the TRC’s 94 Calls to Action were published, including how many of the Calls have been fulfilled and what is still holding back progress. It will feature TRC Commissioner Dr. Marie Wilson, founding Executive Director of the NCTR Ry Moran, and will be moderated by author Connie Walker.
Thursday, September 25
3:00pm EDT
Corporate Conversations on Reconciliation
English with French and ASL interpretation.
This session will bring together several institutions to discuss reconciliation efforts in corporate institutions. Speakers include Dan Adams, Head of Bank of Montreal’s Office of Reconciliation; Nadine Patel, Director of Inclusion and Reconciliation at Sysco Canada; and Keira Cappo, Strategist, Indigenous Partnerships, Policy, and Strategic Initiatives at Enbridge, with moderator Fiona Kirkpatrick Parsons.
Friday, September 26
1:00pm EDT
Confronting Residential School Denialism
English with French and ASL interpretation.
This session will actively confront one of the largest identified barriers to reconciliation: residential school denialism. Dr. Niigaanwewidam Sinclair and Residential School Survivor Eugene Arcand will dismantle the most frequent and inaccurate denialist arguments in a conversation moderated by Dr. Savage Bear.
Dan Adams
BMO Bank of Montreal
Head, Office of Reconciliation
Dan and life long resident of Northwestern Ontario, who has 26 years in the Financial Industry is dedicated to Indigenous Banking. Dan oversees all aspects of market, cultural awareness, and education to further our journey of reconciliation.
Dan is equally passionate on both; customer’s economic, social and community and also educating colleagues on history, truth and reconciliation.
Dan has won many BMO awards, including several Conference of Stars, however the proudest accomplishment is earning the trust and respect from Indigenous friends, family and customers. Learning Indigenous culture, language and customs will continue to be motivation to better serve our customers and represent BMO.
Ry Moran
Ry Moran was the founding director for the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NTRC). Among many significant projects, Ry launched the Indigenous Peoples Atlas of Canada, and contributed directly to the launch of Gord Downie’s “Secret Path”. All this work rests on a foundation of music. Ry is a dynamic multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and producer, and it was Ry’s love of music production that was deployed in recording residential school survivors from coast to coast. Despite a pause in public performances during his time with the NCTR, music remained a constant – not only as a place of emotional healing, but of active composition and recording. Ry’s music is now ready to re-emerge, and we are proud to present his work as part of the 8th edition of NEUZTEC. Ry currently serves as Canada’s inaugural Associate University Librarian of Reconciliation at the University of Victoria, and is a special guest on the Victoria Conservatory of Music’s faculty for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Dr. Marie Wilson
Marie Wilson is a Canadian journalist and public administrator who served as one of three commissioners of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC). Born in Petrolia, Ontario, Wilson holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in French language and literature and a Master of Arts degree in journalism, both from the University of Western Ontario. She spent over 35 years working in journalism for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, including as regional director for CBC North and as adviser to the South African Broadcasting Corporation. In 2015, she served as a professor of practice at McGill University. Prior to her appointment to the TRC, she was employed by the Workers’ Safety and Compensation Commission of the Northwest Territories as vice president for operations. The sole non-Indigenous TRC commissioner, she worked for over six years documenting the history and lasting impacts of the Canadian Indian residential school system. Wilson has received multiple awards and recognition for her work. She was appointed to the Order of Canada and the Order of the Northwest Territories in 2017. In addition, she is the recipient of the Meritorious Service Cross, a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, the CBC North Award for Lifetime Achievement, a Northerner of the Year Award, the Calgary Peace Prize, and honorary doctorates from St. Thomas University, the Atlantic School of Theology, and the University of Manitoba. Wilson has three children with her husband Stephen Kakfwi, former Dene Nation Chief and Premier of the Northwest Territories.
Roxanne Balan
Roxanne Balan, a member of Shoal Lake No. 40 First Nation is an Anishinaabe advocate, consultant, and facilitator grounded in cultural pride, language, and tradition. With training in Indigenous Governance, Project Management, and Comprehensive Community Planning, she supports communities and organizations through strategic projects, public speaking, panel moderation, and emceeing. Roxanne blends project management with inclusive engagement methods, using graphic illustration to translate complex ideas into visuals that resonate. Her approach is collaborative and strengths-based, centering community voices to drive practical results. Guided by a clear vision to uplift communities so everyone can thrive. Roxanne helps partners design pathways for meaningful change and collective wellbeing.
Janice Forsyth
Author Janice Forsyth’s work combines history and sociology to explore the relationship between sport and culture from Indigenous points of view. She focuses on the way organized sports have been used as tools for colonization, and how Indigenous people have taken up those same activities for cultural regeneration and survival. Her work has informed policy and program development across sectors, including youth and community development, justice, education, citizenship, and health, in addition to sport and physical activity. She often works with governments and non-profit organizations to develop more and better opportunities for Indigenous people to engage in sport and physical activity.
Dr. Savage Bear
Savage Bear is a rabble-rouser, Nehiyaw’iskwew (Cree woman) and member of the Montreal Lake Cree Nation in northern Saskatchewan. She is the Director for the McMaster Indigenous Research Institute (MIRI) and is an Assistant Professor within the Indigenous Studies Department. Savage is also the National Director of Walls to Bridges; an education program bringing post-secondary education to incarcerated and formerly incarcerated folks. Prior to arriving at McMaster in 2021, Bear worked at the University of Alberta, where she was the Director of the Indigenous Women & Youth Resilience Project and the academic lead on ‘Indigenous Canada’, and was an assistant professor of Native Studies and Women’s and Gender Studies. An accomplished academic, Bear has made significant contributions to Indigenous scholarship and the national Indigenous education landscape since earning her PhD from the University of Alberta in 2016.
Eugene Arcand
Eugene Arcand is a Cree from the Muskeg Lake First Nation in Saskatchewan, Eugene Arcand spent nine years at the St. Michael Indian Residential School in Duck Lake and two years at the St. Paul’s Lebret Students Residence, both in Saskatchewan. First Nation Sports Hall of Fame inductee, Mr. Arcand has dedicated much of his time to organizing regional and national events – First Nations sports events, cultural events, tourism events, and events geared to the advancement of First Nations youth. Over the past few years, through the Indian Residential Schools Survivor Committee at the TRC and the NCTR Governing Circle, Eugene has worked to ensure that both the public and Survivor communities are kept informed of the developments and processes associated with the Indian Residential School Settlement Agreement. Eugene was successful because of the support and love of his family and wife Lorna Arcand, who he has been married to for 48 years. Together, they raised three children, seven grandchildren and three chapan.
Dr. Niigaan Sinclair
Niigaan Sinclair is Anishinaabe from Peguis First Nation. He is an award-winning writer, editor and professor of Indigenous Studies at the University of Manitoba who was named by Maclean’s magazine in 2022 as one of the most influential people in Canada. Niigaan is a multiple nominee of Canadian columnist of the year (winning in 2018) and his commentary appears weekly on multiple platforms across Canada – from the pages of The Winnipeg Free Press to TV shows on CBC, APTN and on his co-hosted podcast Niigaan and the Lone Ranger. His first book Wînipêk: Visions of Canada from an Indigenous Centre (McClelland & Stewart, 2024) was a national bestseller that won the 2024 Governor General Award for Non-fiction. He is a former secondary school teacher who won the 2019 Peace Educator of the Year from the Peace and Justice Studies Association based at Georgetown University in Washington, DC.
Connie Walker
Connie Walker is a Pulitzer-Prize winning investigative journalist and host of the acclaimed podcasts Stolen and Missing & Murdered. Her work has exposed the crisis of violence in Indigenous communities and the devastating impacts of intergenerational trauma stemming from Indian Residential Schools. A member of the Okanese First Nation, Walker has spent over two decades shedding light on often overlooked stories within Indigenous communities. Walker’s podcast Stolen: Surviving St. Michael’s, is one of the most comprehensive investigations into a single Canadian residential school. The series won a Pulitzer Prize and a Peabody Award, becoming the first podcast to win both awards in the same year. The podcast also won an Edward R. Murrow Award, an Alfred I. duPont-Columbia Award, a National Magazine Award (Ellie) from the American Society of Magazine Editors, and an honourable mention from the Dart Awards for Excellence in Coverage of Trauma.
Vivian Ketchum
Vivian Ketchum is an Indigenous writer, activist, and amateur photographer whose work is shaped by her personal experiences with residential school system, child welfare, and foster homes. Vivian’s unique blend of storytelling, activism, and artistry has become a powerful voice for Indigenous communities. Her words and images paint a vivid picture of resilience, identity, and the ongoing journey towards healing. Through her advocacy work, Vivian sheds light on the challenges faced by Indigenous peoples, while empowering others to embrace their stories of strength and survival. Her use of humor serves as a beacon of hope in the darkest of narratives, making her message of survival all the more impactful and relatable. Vivian’s unwavering commitment to social justice and Indigenous rights continues to inspire and ignite change in the hearts of many.
Shelby Ponace
Shelby Ponace is a Survivor Support Worker with the Survivors of Reproductive Justice Circle. She is a Saulteaux woman from Zagime Anishinabek First Nation. She is a proud mother of two young boys aged 6 and 10. Shelby currently works at the First Nation Family Advocate Office with the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs. The office supports individuals and families who are navigating the children and family service system and provides advocacy for those who may need it most. Shelby is thrilled to be a part of this movement and can’t wait to see what the future has in store.
Bryton Bigelow
Bryton Bigelow is a passionate advocate for indigenous well-being and the dedicated Program Coordinator for the Na Too Na Wa Tan Nik Awasisik Project at the Guy Hill Indian Residential School. With a solid foundation in Indigenous Counselling, Cultural and land-based knowledge, Bryton bring a unique blend of expertise and cultural understanding to his role. Raised in Cranberry Portage, Manitoba, and a father of 2, he has deep connections to the land and its traditions. In his free time, you’ll find him immersed in nature, finding peace and happiness through fishing, hunting, and trapping. Bryton’s commitment to healing and his love for the outdoors make him a valuable asset to his community.
Jacquie Bouvier
Jacquie Bouvier is a 70-year-old third generation residential school survivor. She has mixed Métis and Dene heritage. She attended the Beauval Mission School where she suffered abuse. Her father worked for the Beauval Mission School. Her mother was Dene and Métis. Ms. Bouvier currently works in the Greater Vancouver area and has worked for Family Services, working with youth who are aging out of care.
Dr. Vanessa Watts
Dr. Watts completed her undergraduate degree at Trent University, MA at the University of Victoria, her PhD in the Department of Sociology at Queen’s University and is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology and the Indigenous Studies Program at McMaster University. She teaches in areas of Contemporary Indigenous Issues, Residential Schools, Indigenous Sovereignty, Indigenous Ways of Knowing and Methodologies, and Indigenous Ontologies, and launched a new course: Reconciling What? Indigenous Relations in Canada. In 2018, she was awarded a SSHRC Insight Development Grant for her project “An Indigenist Sociology of Knowledge: Indigenous social lives in Indigenous studies, sociology and political science (1895 and beyond).” Dr. Watts is also a Research Fellow at the Yellowhead Institute at Ryerson University, a centre that privileges First Nation philosophy and is focused on policies related to land and governance.
Antoine Mountain
Antoine was one of the children whom his grandparents didn’t want to let go of. They lived in the mountains in the far north and Antoine was sent to the first of three residential schools when he was nine. He was taken by a barge boat all the way from his home in Radelie Koe, Fort Good Hope, Northwest Territories to Aklavik, picking up other children along the way. The second residential school he was sent to be the notorious Grollier Hall in Inuvik, where many well-documented atrocities against Indigenous children occurred. Antoine spent a total of 12 years at residential schools and his high school years were spent in Fort Smith.
Francis Dickie Yuzicapi
Francis comes from a culturally diverse heritage which represents the majority of the Plains cultures found in Saskatchewan to this day: Ojibway, Cree, Metis, and Dakota. Dickie is unique in that he was raised by his great-grandparents who taught him traditional teachings before attending residential school. Dickie is a Survivor, and a multi-generational trauma Survivor. Dickie is currently the owner and chef of the Sioux Chef Catering Company and consults on all facets of indigenous culture. He is a master storyteller and experienced speaker who can provide his own ancestral context and historical connections in ways that bring the Truth and Reconciliation recommendations to practical reality. His workshops are led with great care to his family’s stories and to all participants’ level of Reconciliation. It is about creating understanding with care to lay the groundwork for what needs to be done to heal.