I volunteered last year to join the Reconciliation Committee of the Royal Society of Canada’s College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists. Through our meetings, I am learning first hand how challenging it is to embed the principles of reconciliation at an institutional level. It is no easy thing, to write a policy or terms of reference that everyone is happy with, that we are confident will safeguard the process of transformation that must happen if we truly adopt the principles of reconciliation as a core part of our mandate. Every word and sentence must be held up to the light, turned over, and examined, to make sure it cannot hide anything undesirable, that the meaning is transparent and as intended. We feel the pressure to balance our fears of doing more harm by acting too slowly or rushing to act.
I learn so much by listening to the thoughts and reflections of the other committee members. Thanks to their insight, I have realised there are times when I have adopted a Western mindset to a problem without being aware of it. I am getting a deeper appreciation of the many ways we can implement change, each of which have their own strengths and weaknesses.
The work of the committee is still in its infancy. Meaningful and sustainable change will and must take time. This blog post is not meant as any kind of formal minutes, but just to document in some small way that this work is ongoing, and I hope similar committee meetings are taking place in organisations throughout the country. Although there is a long road ahead, I am grateful to be involved in this work. I feel inspired at the end of each meeting to keep going on my own journey of reconciliation, both personally and professionally.
