What action on Indigenous law could mean for everyone – UM Today

Inaugural interdisciplinary conference open to community

September 13, 2023 —

When the Canadian government released their National Action Plan to align federal laws with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), leadership in UM’s Faculty of Law saw an opportunity to create community dialogue.

“Traditionally, the Faculty of Law has been sort of an ivory tower where they focus on their own discipline,” says Leo Baskatawang, Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Law. “With the emergence of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and the goal of reconciliation, it’s opened up an opportunity to expand those horizons.”

“Many other disciplines have lots to share which are relevant to law including Indigenous studies, political studies, sociology, human history, education and even the health sciences as well. The idea behind our new journal, the Interdisciplinary Journal of Indigenous Inaakonigewin (IJII), is to hear what other academic disciplines have to say about law, specifically, how laws in different fields of study impact Indigenous peoples.”

In order to make those voices heard, the Faculty of Law is developing an academic conference, which will be hosted at Robson Hall on Sept. 22. The conference is free and open to everyone in the community at UM and beyond.