Our Commitments - Sierra Club BC
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Our Commitments

Our commitment to Indigenous law & governance

Sierra Club BC has undergone a significant institutional transformation over the last few years. Our past work engaged almost exclusively with the Canadian legal system. We now understand the need to expand our engagement with Indigenous governance and legal orders. This affects how we work and everything we do. As we move forward, we strive to increase our capacity to recognize and respect Indigenous law and jurisdiction. We are grateful to our Indigenous teachers, colleagues, allies and friends for their guidance and input as we do this work.

SCBC staff and colleagues have been honoured to partner with the Indigenous Law Research Unit (ILRU) at the University of Victoria. ILRU facilitates law revitalization within Indigenous communities and produces educational resources to support Indigenous and non-Indigenous people in better understanding Indigenous legal orders.

Our organization is committed to learning, unlearning and reimagining our relationships with Indigenous laws as we begin to see ourselves living in a multi-jurisdictional landscape, with as many legal orders as there are Nations. We are developing capacity for all our staff to humbly and meaningfully engage with Indigenous laws and the communities they govern, as settlers on Indigenous territories.

Our commitment to caring for all people

Sierra Club BC is transforming our organizational culture in a manner consistent with our goals of creating a welcoming and nurturing space for all. In line with this process:

  • We are committed to emphasizing diversity, equity and inclusion in our staff hiring and retention practices and Board member recruitment.
  • We strive to create a welcoming and supportive environment for new hires and new Board members that is inclusive and values diverse knowledge systems, cultures and ways of seeing.
  • We are committed to inviting and incorporating staff and Board perspectives and lived experiences into the co-design of organizational policies and practices that support institutional change, and create a work culture that centers equity, ensuring each individual is respected and valued.
  • We actively seek out charitable partnerships and working relationships with Indigenous and people of colour-led communities, groups and organizations.
  • We invest in educational opportunities for our Board of Directors and staff to grow our collective understanding of Indigenous law and governance, as well as other knowledge systems and life experiences.
  • We invest in creating dialogue and mutual learning opportunities with our supporter base to ensure that we grow together as an organization.
  • We commit to allocating money in each annual budget to continue this work, and appropriately compensate Indigenous people, people of colour, and others who share their knowledge, experiences and time to help us undergo this transformation.
  • We are committed to paying a living wage to all staff and contractors.

Photo Credits: Mya Van Woudenberg