Indigenous

News Stories

Riley Yesno portrait

Indigenous speaker elevates the voices of the “Reconciliation Generation”

November 15, 2023

Riley Yesno will deliver the keynote address at VIU’s Indigenous Speakers Series event on November 22. Riley Yesno is part of a generation of Indigenous youth who have grown up with the term reconciliation occupying an ever-increasing share of Canada’s national dialogue. The queer Anishinaabe scholar, writer and commentator from Eabametoong First Nation has spent a great deal of time thinking... Read more


Hands hold a long bill with a grocery cart in the background

VIU News & Experts: October 6, 2023

October 6, 2023

Grocery store prices, land stewardship and more 🌏 VIU is excited to introduce DiscoverFest, a new, free community event that includes live music, an artisan market, science demos, expert talks, campus tours, activities for kids and teens, food trucks, a beer garden and much more. DiscoverFest is for: Anyone interested in getting out and learning more about VIU Students exploring post-secondary... Read more


Two people sign papers while a third in the background looks on

Province, First Nations and VIU announce new funding and training for Indigenous guardians protecting coastal lands and waters

October 4, 2023

Partnership between Nanwakolas Council nations and Vancouver Island Universityaddresses urgent need for more Indigenous Guardians across BC VICTORIA, B.C. (Oct. 4, 2023) - An agreement signed today by Nanwakolas Council and Vancouver Island University (VIU) and supported with funding from the Ministry of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills, will provide new Indigenous Guardians with the... Read more


From left to right: Hayden Kenneth Taylor, Sheldon Scow and Talela Manson are hard at work planning a fun-filled summer camp experience for students.

VIU hosts summer camp for Indigenous students

July 6, 2023

The camp is organized by the ‘su’luqw’a’ Community Cousins Indigenous student mentorship program. Making Indigenous youth feel like they belong at university is the goal of a seven-day summer camp taking place at Vancouver Island University (VIU) this August. The Thuy’she’num Tu Smun’eem: Building a Foundation for our Youth summer camp takes place August 6 to 12 at the Nanaimo campus. The camp is... Read more


Indigenous Speakers Series graphic

Indigenous speaker shares story of fight for the return of traditional lands

March 9, 2023

Wilson Williams (Sxwíxwtn), a Squamish Nation Councillor and Spokesperson, will deliver the keynote address at VIU’s Indigenous Speakers Series event on March 20. Wilson Williams (Sxwíxwtn) grew up without knowledge of his culture or history. His parents, both residential school survivors, did not talk about any element of their First Nations background and it wasn’t until Sxwíxwtn was in his... Read more


People doing a live broadcast in a coffee shop

VIU experts appear live on CBC Nanaimo broadcast

January 27, 2023

Several shows were broadcasting from Serious Coffee on Hammond Bay Road The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation launched its permanent bureau in Nanaimo on Friday, January 27 with a special live broadcast in the Harbour City that featured several experts from Vancouver Island University. The Nanaimo bureau “will focus on telling stories from the mid-and-north Vancouver Island region” states a CBC... Read more


Culinary arts and microbiology students in the lab

VIU Media Highlights: November 23, 2022

November 23, 2022

Seaweed product research, Christmas magic & sustainable packaging 📦 November is a busy month at VIU. Students are showcasing projects they have been working on all semester, and we have a lineup of community-focused events and campaigns.  Top stories VIU students pitch seaweed products to industry tonight What happens when VIU microbiology and culinary arts students work together? Some cool... Read more


VIU's Indigenous Speakers Series featuring Wilson Williams (Sxwíxwtn)

Indigenous speaker shares story of fight for the return of traditional lands

November 22, 2022

Wilson Williams (Sxwíxwtn), a Squamish Nation councillor and spokesperson, will deliver the keynote address at VIU’s 2022 Indigenous Speakers Series event on November 29. Wilson Williams (Sxwíxwtn) grew up without knowledge of his culture or history. His parents, both residential school survivors, did not talk about any element of their First Nations background and it wasn’t until Sxwíxwtn was in... Read more


A group of soldiers pose for a photo with Nanaimo Remembers written across the bottom

VIU and community partners remember local fallen armed forces members through video memorial

October 28, 2022

VIU video project acknowledges Nanaimo armed forces members' contributions to the First and Second World Wars. Private Reginald Edgar Emblem, a farmer and resident of South Wellington, served in the 72nd Battalion during the First World War. He died at age 20 of influenza and pneumonia in October 1918 and was buried at Seaford Cemetery in Sussex, United Kingdom. Private William Armstrong Syer, a... Read more


Headshot of Dr. Shanna Lorenz

Using technology to support Indigenous data sovereignty

September 28, 2022

Dr. Shanna Lorenz, VIU’s 2022 Fulbright Canada Visiting Research Chair in Indigenous Studies, is working with Indigenous communities on a data gathering app.       Dr. Shanna Lorenz’s research is supporting Indigenous data sovereignty thanks to a digital app called Our Data Indigenous, which she helped design alongside faculty and First Nations community data specialists in Canada and the United... Read more