Land Acknowledgment Resources
We acknowledge that we live and work on the unceded ancestral lands of the Coast Salish people, the land which touches the shared waters of all tribes and bands within the dxʷdəwʔabš, spuyaləpabš, dxʷsəq̓ʷəb, dxʷlilap and bəqəlšuł nations, and pay our respects to elders past and present. We make this acknowledgment as one part of our commitment to working to create inclusive and respectful partnerships that honor Indigenous cultures, histories, identities, knowledges, and sociopolitical realities, that dismantle ongoing legacies of settler colonialism, and that recognize the hundreds of indigenous Nations who continue to resist, live, and uphold their sacred relations across their lands.
In 2021, UWRA’s Social Justice, Equity and Inclusion committee charged a subcommittee with the task of exploring and developing a land acknowledgment for use by the organization as it gathers for events and meetings. In that process, the subcommittee drew on resources from local and national organizations and researchers.
Why Acknowledge the Land?
Find out whose traditional land you live on using this map
Honor Native Land — A Guide and Call to Acknowledgment from the US Department of Arts and Culture
Background and acknowledgments compiled by Tom Hinckley (updated 2/17/21)
Take Action
If you’d like to move beyond the words of a land acknowledgment to active participation in building a more just and inclusive UW, consider donating to one of the funds that supports American Indian and Indigenous Students.
Make a GiftDeveloping a Land Acknowledgment Statement
A Guide to Indigenous Land Acknowledgment from the Native Governance Center
Activism Skills: Land and Territory Acknowledgment from Amnesty International
Land acknowledgments and resources from universities in British Columbia
Land Acknowledgments: Helpful, Harmful, Hopeful
Land Acknowledgment at the UW
An interview by Ed Taylor with UW Tribal Liaison Iisaaksiichaa Ross Braine, part of 2020: The Course. The whole interview is about 15 minutes; land acknowledgment discussion is at about 5 minutes in.
Some land acknowledgments in use at the UW
Beyond Acknowledgment
Town Hall Land Acknowledgment: Beyond Gestures
Article: Cornell University’s attempt to address stolen indigenous land
Article from Alpinist: Water is Life
Article from Patagonia: All Trails Belong to Mother Earth, Following in Indigenous Footsteps on the Ute Pass Trail
From High Country News: So you want to acknowledge the land? Some notes on a trend, and what real justice could look like
Documentary: “The Rights of Nature: A Global Movement”
From Recognition to Action
What is the purpose of land acknowledgements? What meaning and intent do we hope they convey? How do we move beyond rote recitation to meaningful action? Join us for a conversation with Joshua Reid, associate professor of American Indian Studies and the John Calhoun Smith Memorial Endowed Associate Professor of History, where we explore the history, purpose, and meaning of land acknowledgments.