I gratefully acknowledge the Anishinaabe including the Mississaugas of the Credit, Haudenosaunee and Huron-Wendat nations – the original and enduring stewards of the traditional territories on which I live, work and play. 

My community, work, philanthropy and advocacy extends to the far reaches of these ancestral grounds – inhabited, protected and cared for by generations of Indigenous Peoples.  

In recognizing that this meeting place today is home to many Indigenous, Metis and Inuit Peoples, I continue to learn and honour their shared and diverse worldviews and ways of being.

In the spirit of Truth and Reconciliation, I pledge to turn my acknowledgement into action. Standing with Indigenous colleagues and friends, elders and knowledge holders who have shared their stories and teachings with me over the last 20 years. 

As a settler, this means a commitment to being partners with Indigenous Peoples, Metis and Inuit –  in caring for the land and water, honouring residential school survivors who have overcome, speaking truth about the many children who were robbed of their futures, and bringing justice to missing and murdered Indigenous women across the country. 

This is my pledge. I hope you take a moment to reflect and honour the land on which you live and learn about the Peoples who have – for generations – made your existence on this beautiful planet possible.