To create space for the inclusion of Indigenous concepts, cultures, and people in the Cultural Infrastructure Plan, Arts Habitat is currently partnered with Naheyawin. As an Indigenous-led consulting group, their goal is to help organizations and communities build capacity for abundance, kindness and reinvigorate the spirit of treaty by implementing Indigenous principles into everyday processes and business practices.
We commit to learning and understanding barriers Indigenous artists face regarding arts space. As a partner organization listed in Connections and Exchanges: A 10-Year Plan to Transform Arts and Heritage in Edmonton, we are working to ensure Indigenous people are supported in revitalizing and participating in cultural traditions locally that reflect their connections to ancestors, the land, and living traditions. The stewardship Naheyawin offers is helping Arts Habitat build compacity to support artists with accessible and appropriate space for the arts. Naheyawin has brought together a diverse group of artists from the various Indigenous communities to create a dynamic group known as the Voices Circle.
The Voices Circle acts as an advising and convening body for Arts Habitat to make recommendations to create future opportunities and remove Indigenous artists’ barriers in relation to art space. As a group, we know that it would be impossible to have a complete and accurate representation of the various Indigenous communities. For this reason, we are focusing on achieving long-term impacts that will support arts spaces and experiences that are welcoming, safe, and respectful of all.
Arts Habitat strives to ensure all Edmontonians feel a sense of belonging and connectedness to peoples, places, and stories. We are excited to be active participants in the open dialogue rather than silent observers as we continue to build a strong working relationship.