TORONTO, May 25, 2016 –Environmental justice (or injustice) issues underlie many of the environmental challenges Indigenous peoples in Canada face daily, but proposed solutions seldom include their voices. To help change that, York University is bringing scholars and Indigenous peoples together Thursday to talk about environmental justice issues and the policies and laws needed to address them from an Indigenous perspective.
The Indigenous Environmental Justice Knowledge Sharing Symposium will include the voices and experiences of Indigenous peoples as they engage directly in knowledge-sharing to help participants better understand the core concepts of Indigenous environmental justice.
“Canadian conceptions and practices of justice have routinely failed, and continue to fail, Indigenous peoples,” says organizer Deborah McGregor of the Faculty of Environmental Studies and Osgoode Hall Law School. “Environmental justice is no exception.”
Environmental justice usually pertains to the inequitable distribution of the costs and benefits of environmental degradation. In Canada, it is a constant undercurrent for most environmental challenges faced by Indigenous peoples.
The symposium will look at the following questions:
- What does environmental justice mean in Canada and what are the necessary criteria to achieve it?
- What is the role of Indigenous law, justice and knowledge in understanding Indigenous environmental justice?
For a list of speakers and topics, click here.
WHAT: Indigenous Environmental Justice Knowledge Sharing Symposium
WHEN: Thursday, May 26 from 9am to 7:30pm
WHERE: Helliwel Centre, Ignat Kaneff Building, Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, Keele campus (building 32 on map)
York University is known for championing new ways of thinking that drive teaching and research excellence. Our 52,000 students receive the education they need to create big ideas that make an impact on the world. Meaningful and sometimes unexpected careers result from cross-discipline programming, innovative course design and diverse experiential learning opportunities. York students and graduates push limits, achieve goals and find solutions to the world's most pressing social challenges, empowered by a strong community that opens minds. York U is an internationally recognized research university – our 11 faculties and 24 research centres have partnerships with 200+ leading universities worldwide.
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Media Contact:
Sandra McLean, York University Media Relations, 416-736-2100 ext. 22097 / sandramc@yorku.ca
