Our Commitment to Reconciliation
At Touchstone, reconciliation is an ongoing journey of learning, reflection, relationship-building, and action.
We recognize our responsibility as a community organization to listen to Indigenous voices, learn from Indigenous histories and experiences, and continue strengthening how we support children, youth, adults, and families.
Our work is guided by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action and the principles of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).
What Reconciliation Means at Touchstone
We are working to make reconciliation part of how we learn, provide services, build relationships, and make decisions across our organization.
Listening and Learning
We continue to learn from Indigenous knowledge, histories, cultures, and perspectives. We encourage reflection, cultural humility, anti-racism, and a willingness to listen and learn.
Learning Together
Our staff, students, and volunteers have opportunities to learn more about Indigenous history, colonization, residential schools, reconciliation, and the experiences of Indigenous peoples today. This learning helps us provide services with greater awareness, respect, and understanding.
Building Relationships
We value respectful relationships and opportunities to learn from and work alongside Indigenous communities and organizations. We strive to support approaches that respect culture, identity, choice, and self-determination.
Putting Our Commitment into Practice
Reconciliation is reflected in our organizational planning and in how we continue to strengthen our programs, services, partnerships, and practices.
Learning in Action
Learning is one way we turn our commitment into action. Our team participates in Indigenous-led learning, experiential workshops, and other training and resources that help us better understand Indigenous history, culture, reconciliation, and culturally safer practice.
Some of this learning has included:
- Building Bridges: Through Understanding the Village©
An experiential workshop that explores Indigenous values, the impacts of residential schools, and themes of resilience, healing, and cultural knowledge. - The Blanket Exercise
An interactive learning experience developed by KAIROS Canada with Indigenous partners that explores the history of colonization in Canada, including the residential school system and Indigenous resilience. - Métis Nation BC Training
Learning about Métis history, culture, identity, and governance to strengthen understanding and support more inclusive services. - Foundational Resources
Staff and students are introduced to resources such as the Early Years Indigenous Cultural Safety Resource Guide and the Aboriginal Policy and Practice Framework (BC) to help build cultural awareness and inform their work.
Continuing the Journey
We recognize that reconciliation is not something that is completed through a single training, resource, or initiative. It requires continued learning, listening, reflection, relationship-building, and meaningful action.
Touchstone is committed to continuing this journey and to creating services and spaces where Indigenous children, youth, adults, families, and communities are treated with dignity, respect, and belonging.
Thank you to our funders for their ongoing support for Touchstone Programs and Services
