Opening Ceremony
Ballroom, Thomson House, 3650 McTavish Street
12:00PM – 3:00PM
The opening ceremony for the 3rd annual Indigenous Awareness Week will begin with a welcoming address and blessing from McGill’s elder Alex Sonny Diabo. The warm welcome will be followed by traditional Inuit throat singing by Nina Segalowitz and Taqralik Partridge. Finally, our keynote speaker Teresa Edwards, Director of Human Rights and International Affairs for the Native Women's Association of Canada will be presenting the realities and current issues faced by Indigenous women across Canada, ranging from healthcare, to domestic violence, to missing and murdered women.
Schedule:
- 12:00PM – 12:30PM: Lunch Buffet
- 12:30PM – 1:00PM: Welcoming Address and Blessing
- 1:00PM – 1:20PM: Inuit Throat Singing
- 1:20PM – 2:10PM: Challenges and Barriers for Indigenous Women
- 2:10PM – 2:30PM: Closing Remarks
Challenges and Barriers for Indigenous Women
Part of the Opening Ceremony
Ballroom, Thomson House, 3650 McTavish Street
1:20PM – 2:10PM
Indigenous women continue to face struggles and social challenges, contributing to making them one of the most marginalized groups in Canada. Teresa Edwards, Director of Human Rights and International Affairs for the Native Women's Association of Canada, will be joining us for a presentation on current issues faced by Indigenous women across Canada, ranging from healthcare, to domestic violence, to missing and murdered women.
About the Speaker:
Teresa Edwards is a Mi'kmaq woman, a member of the Listuguj First Nation, and the mother of three wonderful children. Her traditional name is Young Fire Woman. She has worked for more than 20 years to advance the needs and rights of Aboriginal Peoples, with a particular focus on addressing Aboriginal women's human rights.
In 2004, she worked with the Native Women's Association of Canada (NWAC) to secure funding for the Sisters In Spirit initiative, aimed at raising public awareness about the growing number of missing and murdered Aboriginal women in Canada. She has travelled to more than 100 First Nations' communities within Canada and to international fora to engage people in identifying ways to address all forms of violence, including trafficking in humans, Nation-building and re-building, human rights awareness and implementation, education and economic development and many other socio-economic issues.
In her current role as the Director of International Affairs and Human Rights, and internal Legal Counsel for the Native Women's Association of Canada (NWAC), Teresa is dedicated to promoting gender equality in such forums as the United Nations (UN) and regional organizations such as the Organization of American States (OAS), where Indigenous issues are advocated for collectively with other Indigenous Peoples.
*Unfortunately scheduled Keynote Speaker Michèle Audette will no longer be able to present at this year's opening ceremony.
