Personal Reflection: A Journey of Settler Responsibility on the Land
Acknowledging the 150th anniversary of the first signing of Treaty 6 at Fort Carlton, Saskatchewan, the following is a short personal reflection on settler heritage, land debt, and daily practice.
Joli Rumi, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
As a descendant of European settlers who arrived in Canada over 110 years ago, my family has directly profited from residing on Treaty land. As farmers, my ancestors built lives and thrived on these lands of Turtle Island. For generations, we blindly and carelessly used the land without recognizing the Indigenous stewards who cared for it for centuries before we arrived, nor did we nurture a relationship with the land beyond what it could extract or produce for us.
Part of my personal decolonization journey involves confronting and recognizing that history. Today, I am working to acknowledge all that the land has provided and to actively nurture a respectful relationship with it.
In my own front yard garden, this commitment takes small, intentional forms:
No synthetic pesticides or chemicals: Allowing the natural ecosystem to balance itself.
Welcoming native species: Planting native flora to nourish local pollinators and wildlife rather than deterring them.
Sharing the harvest: Giving away excess food to neighbours and community members.
Coexisting with all relations: Welcoming creatures that fly, walk, crawl, and slither. Over time, I’ve shared this space with porcupines, squirrels, rabbits, coyotes, and skunks. Birds visit the trees throughout the changing seasons for remaining fruit, while earthworms enrich the soil below. I have watched aging bees spend their final hours resting gently inside sunflower blossoms.
To live on Treaty land is to hold an ongoing responsibility—to the land itself and to the Indigenous Peoples whose connection to it endures. Reconciliation cannot live solely in policy documents or annual events; it must live in our daily choices, our gardens, our public spaces, and our shared commitment to harmony and justice.
The JHC grounds its human rights advocacy in a deep commitment to Treaty relationships, acknowledging that meaningful peacebuilding requires honouring Indigenous connection to the land and recognizing settler responsibilities. By emphasizing environmental stewardship and shared accountability, we encourage individuals and organizations across Treaty 6 territory and beyond to move past symbolic land acknowledgements toward active, everyday practices of collective care.
Learn more by checking out some of our older blog posts, including Decolonial food security research and land-based practices from racialized and Indigenous perspectives and Visiting Lady Flower Gardens - An Innovative Model for Food Sovereignty.