Land Acknowledgement

Land Acknowledgement

Northern Lights over Three Sisters mountain in Canmore Alberta 2024

In the spirit of respect, truth, and reciprocity, I acknowledge that I live and create on the traditional lands of the Îyârhe Nakoda (Stoney Nakoda), Tsuut’ina First Nation, and the Blackfoot Confederacy, within the Treaty 7 region of Southern Alberta, as well as the Métis Nation of Albeta, District 4. This land, known as ‘Chuwapchipchiyan Kudi Bi’ (Stoney Nakoda for ‘shooting at the willows’), has been home to these Nations for countless generations. I commit to living in right relations with this land and its peoples.

Layla Messner, a slender model in a red dress next to a huge mountain face. Photo by Kelly's Perspective

Having grown up on this land, as well as in the traditional territory of the Ktunaxa, Shuswap, Little Shuswap Lake Band, Adams Lake Indian Band, and Neskonlith Indian Band, I feel a deep bond with this land and the Earth as a whole. I honor Pachamama, the Earth Mother from my own Indigenous heritage, as a symbol of this connection.

I acknowledge my responsibility to honor and protect this land where I live, including the air, water, earth, mountains, plants, wildlife, and human instinct, recognizing that these are all interconnected parts of the sacred Earth.