Our Journey
With the launch of the ISP on September 14, 2020, UBC became the first university in North America to commit to implementing the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), thus taking a human rights-based approach to its Indigenous strategic framework.
Arriving at this historic milestone is part of a long and arduous journey. Created by and governed under provincial legislation, UBC has been, and in many respects continues to be, a colonial institution. And while the university has taken steps to advance engagement with and inclusion of Indigenous peoples since the early 1970s, it wasn’t until 2009, when the first Aboriginal Strategic Plan was created, that UBC began to define the path it would take on its reconciliation journey.
Today, we honour the contributions of a multitude of Indigenous people who have provided the vision, fortitude and leadership to reach this place. But we also recognize that the journey of reconciliation is far from over; there is work yet to be done to actively advance the human rights of Indigenous peoples on campus, in BC, in Canada and across the world.
Learn more about the historical context for the ISP.
Visit the timeline of UBC’s progress.
We honour, celebrate and thank the xʷməθkʷəy̓ əm (Musqueam) and Syilx Okanagan peoples on whose territories the main campuses of the University of British Columbia have the privilege to be situated.