March 19, 2019 - Islands Trust Council Makes Reconciliation Declaration

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Bowen, Denman, Hornby,  Gabriola, Galiano, Gambier, Lasqueti, Mayne, N. Pender, Salt Spring, Saturna, S. Pender, Thetis 
 
 
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March 19, 2019           2019-08-IT 
 
ISLANDS TRUST COUNCIL MAKES RECONCILIATION DECLARATION 
 
Lekwungen Territory, Victoria—On March 14, 2019, on Gabriola Island, the Islands Trust Council passed a 
Declaration regarding Reconciliation:  
 
The Islands Trust Council acknowledges that the lands and waters that encompass the Islands Trust 
Area have been home to Indigenous peoples since time immemorial and honours the rich history, 
stewardship, and cultural heritage that embody this place we all call home.  
 
The Islands Trust Council is committed to establishing and maintaining mutually respectful 
relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples. Islands Trust states a commitment to 
Reconciliation with the understanding that this commitment is a long-term relationship-building and 
healing process.  
 
The Islands Trust Council will strive to create opportunities for knowledge-sharing and understanding 
as people come together to preserve and protect the special nature of the islands within the Salish 
Sea. 
 
The Declaration acknowledges that the lands and waters that encompass the Islands Trust Area have been 
home to Indigenous peoples since time immemorial, and outlines the commitment the Islands Trust has to 
Reconciliation. The journey to this historic declaration has been long. The Islands Trust honours the rich 
history, stewardship, and cultural heritage of Coast Salish peoples—now and into the future. 
 
“Reconciliation with First Nations is an ongoing process, and for me, this Declaration is a crucially important 
step in that process,” said Islands Trust Council Chair, Peter Luckham. “The Islands Trust Council had already 
adopted a policy on First Nations engagement, which has been useful in guiding our work, but we had yet to 
make a formal declaration about Reconciliation. A declaration like this acts as a mandate or vision statement. 
It is an expression of intent that provides a clear and unequivocal message that will guide and underpin the 
work we do towards reconciliation and relationship building with First Nations and communities in the Trust 
Area.” 
 
The Declaration takes guidance from key documents such as the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls 
to Action (TRC), the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), the Draft 
Principles that Guide the Province of British Columbia’s Relationship with Indigenous Peoples, and Islands 
Trust Council’s First Nations Engagement Principles.  
 
The Islands Trust Council Chair will be writing to First Nations in the Islands Trust Area to provide Trust 
Council’s R

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