Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action

• The Ministry of Children and Family Development is working in consultation and collaboration with Indigenous communities as they determine the pathways forward to Indigenous jurisdiction over child and family services. Examples of legislative changes include:
  • Passed the Indigenous Self-Government in Child and Family Services Amendment Act, affirming Indigenous communities' rights to govern child and family services. (November 2022)
  • Amended the Adoption Act and Child, Family and Community Service Act (CFCSA) to enable joint decision-making and dispute resolution under Indigenous law. (April 2024)
  • Strengthened privacy protections and removed barriers to Indigenous jurisdiction in child welfare legislation under the CFCSA. (February 2024)

We call upon the federal, provincial, territorial, and Aboriginal governments to develop culturally appropriate early childhood education programs for Aboriginal families.

• First tripartite memorandum of understanding signed on early learning and child care for First Nations: The First Nations Leadership Council and the governments of British Columbia and Canada gathered to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to support the self-determination of First Nations in British Columbia and advance First Nations’ jurisdiction in relation to early learning and child care. (September 2024)
• Building new child care where Indigenous families need it most: Indigenous children and their families are benefiting from new child care spaces close to home, with early learning programming that strengthens their cultural traditions and languages. Through the ChildCareBC New Spaces Fund and the federal Child Care Infrastructure Fund, more than $74 million was provided to First Nations, local governments and school districts to create almost 600 new child care spaces. (August 2024)

We call upon the federal government to enact an Aboriginal Languages Act that incorporates the following principles:

1. Aboriginal languages are a fundamental and valued element of Canadian culture and society, and there is an urgency to preserve them.
2. Aboriginal language rights are reinforced by the Treaties.
3. The federal government has a responsibility to provide sufficient funds for Aboriginal-language revitalization and preservation.
4. The preservation, revitalization, and strengthening of Aboriginal languages and cultures are best managed by Aboriginal people and communities.
5.  Funding for Aboriginal language initiatives must reflect the diversity of Aboriginal languages.

• Funding to support First Nations languages, heritage, arts and cultures programming: B.C. announced $15 million per year in Budget 2025 for the First Peoples’ Cultural Council. (March 2025)
• Since 2018, B.C. has committed $160 million to support First Nations languages, arts, cultural heritage and traditional knowledge.

We call upon post-secondary institutions to create university and college degree and diploma programs in Aboriginal languages.

• Invested $2 million to develop the Indigenous Language Proficiency/Fluency Degree Framework: enabling the co-development of post-secondary programs in Indigenous languages. (March 2021)
• Committed $23.4 million over three years to support First Nations-mandated institutes and fluency degrees via the StrongerBC: Future Ready Action Plan. (July 2023)

We call upon all levels of government to enable residential school Survivors and their families to reclaim names changed by the residential school system by waiving administrative costs for a period of five years for the name-change process and the revision of official identity documents, such as birth certificates, passports, driver’s licenses, health cards, status cards, and social insurance numbers

• Fees waived for legal name changes: Residential school survivors or their family member or an individual impacted by the Sixties Scoop are eligible to receive a legal change of name through the Vital Statistics Agency, including a waiver of legislated fees (updated May 2024).
• Recognition and registry of Indigenous names: The Ministry of Citizens’ Services undertook engagements to understand the needs of Indigenous people who wish to register an Indigenous name, and to explore options for how to include names. These findings contributed to the development of materials for consultation with Nations to set priorities and develop solutions. (May 2023 – October 2024)

• Established 15 physical Indigenous Justice Centres (and one virtual centre) in partnership with the BC First Nations Justice Council: These centres provide culturally appropriate legal support for Indigenous people involved in criminal and child-protection matters. (February 2025)
• Launched a cross-ministry Indigenous Justice Secretariat: The Secretariat works with partners to lead transformative change needed to reduce the overrepresentation of Indigenous Peoples in the justice system, as outlined in the BC First Nations Justice Strategy. (April 2023)

We call upon federal, provincial, territorial, and municipal governments to fully adopt and implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as the framework for reconciliation.

• Passed the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (Declaration Act), legally recognizing the human rights of Indigenous Peoples. The Declaration Act mandates the alignment of provincial laws with the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and requires the development of an action plan in consultation and co-operation with Indigenous Peoples. (November 2019)
• Released the Declaration Act Action Plan, developed collaboratively with Indigenous Peoples: The plan outlines 89 specific actions across all areas of government to be initiated over five years (2022–2027). Annual reporting details work underway. (March 2022)

In keeping with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, we call upon the federal government, in collaboration with Aboriginal organizations, to fund the establishment of Indigenous law institutes for the development, use, and understanding of Indigenous laws and access to justice in accordance with the unique cultures of Aboriginal peoples in Canada.

• New Indigenous law wing supports learning Indigenous legal traditions: Students at the University of Victoria (UVic) law school now have a dedicated space to learn Indigenous laws and legal traditions with the opening of the new Indigenous law wing, which provides a culturally relevant hub for students, faculty and community members to share knowledge and engage in dialogue around Indigenous history and law. (November 2025)

We call upon the federal, provincial, and territorial governments, in consultation and collaboration with Survivors, Aboriginal peoples, and educators, to:

1. Make age-appropriate curriculum on residential schools, Treaties, and Aboriginal peoples’ historical and contemporary contributions to Canada a mandatory education requirement for Kindergarten to Grade Twelve students.
2. Provide the necessary funding to post-secondary institutions to educate teachers on how to integrate Indigenous knowledge and teaching methods into classrooms.
3. Provide the necessary funding to Aboriginal schools to utilize Indigenous knowledge and teaching methods in classrooms.
4. Establish senior-level positions in government at the assistant deputy minister level or higher dedicated to Aboriginal content in education.

• New graduation requirement ensures students expand their knowledge about Indigenous perspectives, histories, cultures: Effective the 2023-24 school year, all students working toward a B.C. Certificate of Graduation in English or French must successfully complete at least four credits in Indigenous-focused coursework. Developed in collaboration with the First Nations Education Steering Committee, the coursework focuses on learning about the experiences, cultures, and world views of Indigenous Peoples, which is an important part of reconciliation and will help prepare students for the rest of their lives. (September 2023)

We call upon all chief coroners and provincial vital statistics agencies that have not provided to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada their records on the deaths of Aboriginal children in the care of residential school authorities to make these documents available to the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation.

• March 2014: the Province transferred BC Coroners and Vital Statistics records (1879–1984) to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) at a Bentwood Box ceremony. These records are now housed at the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR) and the Royal BC Museum (RBCM).
• Records post-1984 remain accessible to First Nations upon request. RBCM is working to digitize and transfer remaining records to the NCTR.

We call upon the parties engaged in the work of documenting, maintaining, commemorating, and protecting residential school cemeteries to adopt strategies in accordance with the following principles:

1. The Aboriginal community most affected shall lead the development of such strategies.
2. ii. Information shall be sought from residential school Survivors and other Knowledge Keepers in the development of such strategies.
3. iii. Aboriginal protocols shall be respected before any potentially invasive technical inspection and investigation of a cemetery site

• B.C. continues to support First Nations-led strategies to investigate, protect, and commemorate former Indian Residential School and Indian Hospital sites.
• March 2023 — Provided $800,000 to Williams Lake First Nation to purchase the former St. Joseph’s Residential School site, securing permanent access for cultural and commemorative purposes.
• Since September 2021, B.C. has provided $10 million to 20 First Nations and Tribal Councils, supporting work at all 18 Residential School sites and three Indian Hospital sites in the province.
• September 2021 — Provided $1.5 million to the First Nations Health Authority and Métis Nation BC for immediate wellness and cultural supports, with federal funding continuing this work.

We call upon provincial, territorial, municipal, and community archives to work collaboratively with the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation to identify and collect copies of all records relevant to the history and legacy of the residential school system, and to provide these to the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation.

• 2022 — Provided $425,000 to the UBC Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre to work with the Royal BC Museum (RBCM) and BC Archives to enhance access to provincial residential school records, including private collections from the Oblates of Mary Immaculate and the Sisters of St. Ann.
• RBCM signed an MOU with the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR) in 2022 to release records once digitized to NCTR standards.
• As of August 2024 – 40% of residential school records have been digitized and uploaded to the NCTR.
• The BC Archives continues to digitize approximately 7,000 records annually, making them publicly accessible.

We call upon the federal government, in collaboration with Aboriginal peoples, to establish, as a statutory holiday, a National Day for Truth and Reconciliation to honour Survivors, their families, and communities, and ensure that public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential schools remains a vital component of the reconciliation process.

• A day to honour and remember children who attended residential schools: B.C. formally recognized National Day for Truth and Reconciliation by enshrining Sept. 30 in B.C. law to honour the strength, dignity and advocacy of residential school survivors and remember the children who never came home. Sept. 30, 2023, marked the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation to be observed as a statutory holiday in B.C. (March 2023)