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“Indigenous Enough” Common Indigenous experience sharing circle
Not feeling “Indigenous enough” is a common experience for Indigenous folks across Turtle Island. This is a direct result of colonization and no fault of your own, your family or your ancestors.
If you are searching, questioning, learning, un-learning, craving for a sense of belonging or to be heard, seen or understood you are welcome to this circle.
What to expect:
- Welcome and open the circle in a good way
- Circle check-in and opportunity to introduce yourself to the group
- Group sharing in large or small break-out circles
- Journal/reflection activity for a chance to connect to self (bring a pen and paper!)
- Closing the circle with a reflection prompt
You are welcome to this circle if you are:
- First Nation, Metis or Inuit
- Indigenous from other parts of the world
- Status or non status
- Light skinned, dark skinned and everyone in between
- Mixed heritage
- Live on or off reserve
- Grew up with or without your culture
- A survivor or intergenerational survivor of residential or day schools
- A survivor or intergenerational survivor of the 60s scoop
- All genders are welcome
- All ages are welcome
Topics the event cover:
- Impacts of colonization/genocide
- Discuss relevant things that are happening in the news or social media such as race shifting or the use of the term “Pretendian”
- How those of us with light skin/white passing can use it in a good way
- Personal stories/experiences of feeling “Indigenous enough”
Join this monthly circle to be heard, seen and valued for who you are and where you’re at. This circle will be held either the day before or day of every new moon to represent a new journey, new goals or a new start.
About Your Host
Vanessa Lesperance is a mixed heritage woman on the journey of reclaiming her Metis heritage. For her this means unlearning and re-learning what it means to decolonize; walk in two worlds; and understand her privileges as someone who is white passing and represents both the colonized and colonizer.
A lot of her work centers around Indigenous entrepreneurship – mentoring Indigenous youth in BC creating pop-up business with the BCAAFC 3C Challenge and as the LIFT Circle Lead with the Indigenous LIFT Collective. Vanessa’s masters degree was centered on workplace spirituality and how we might use that to increase collective well-being at work and decolonize business.
She’s been published in SAY Magazine on Indigenous leadership and entrepreneurship, LiisBeth online publication with an article about decolonizing the media and the World Federation Association of Teachers Education on what children look for in leaders.
She is also the founder of The Mindful Managers that focuses on workshop development, facilitation and research.
Located on the ancestral, traditional and unceded territories of the Qayqayt, Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), Səl̓ílwətaʔ (Tsleil-Waututh) and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Nations
