2023 NCAIS Graduate Student Conference

Newberry Library, Chicago, Illinois

A paper I proposed titled: Where Past Meets Present: Land as a Historical Force and Land Acknowledgements in Canada was accepted to present at the 2023 Newberry Consortium in American Indian Studies (NCAIS) Graduate Student Conference. A program can be found here. The paper was an expanded version of a term paper I wrote for a seminar, and serves as the basis of my MA research. It formed an implicit argument, that performing a land acknowledgment brings several moments of Canadian history, which can be seen as a colonial pursuit of land, into the present.

This was my first academic conference. Aside from the challenges of travelling internationally, I was unsure what to expect. I found a group of both young and established scholars who were receptive to the ideas I was presenting. Furthermore, the Newberry has such a cool collection and seeing the miles of shelves really highlights challenges of storage and conservation.

In the presentations that I saw, I witnessed thoughtful work being undertaken by articulate presenters who highlighted the various overlaps between Indigenous Studies in the American and Canadian contexts.

DON’T RELY ON A USB KEY TO KEEP YOUR POWERPOINT SAFE, PUT IT IN ONEDRIVE.