Dear CES NS members and blog subscribers,
Although Indigenous History Month is usually an invitation for all Canadians to celebrate, this June has begun with mourning and nationwide calls to end genocide in Canada, both of which are echoed within the newly released MMIWG action plan.
As president of CES Nova Scotia, Andrealisa is honored to coauthor this blog post with Vanessa Nevin of Sipekne’katik First Nation. Vanessa is Director of Health at the Atlantic Policy Congress of First Nations Chiefs. She chairs the Atlantic Indigenous Evaluation Stewardship Circle, which is a community of practice to support Indigenous-led evaluation, and is a founding member the nascent Canadian Hub of the Blue Marble Evaluation Network.
In the spirit of gratitude for CES members and additional partners who have worked to improve the Canadian Evaluation Society’s capacity for decolonization and anti-racism, as well as in the spirit of urgency to build on these accomplishments to accelerate system transformation toward equity and sustainability, we would like to highlight some noteworthy CES milestones and links:
Coming Soon: CES online course and member PD on TRC in Evaluation
2021 Active Reconciliation, DEI, and Sustainability Values integrated to address decolonization, anti-racism, and ecological protection as interrelated priorities for evaluators.
2020 CES NS Bylaw on Nation to Nation relationship with Mi’kmaq First Nations under Peace and Friendship Treaty- Protocols to be drafted in collaboration with Atlantic Canada Indigenous Evaluation Stewardship Circle
2020 DEI Training Required for CES Executive, promoted to all members Recorded Webinar and Self-Study with Reflection Questions on Institutionalizing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
C2019 Two-Eyed Seeing Award to Elders Albert and Murdena Marshall
2019 and 2020 Think Tanks on Indigenous Evaluation, facilitated by Larry Bremner and Nicole Bowman with CES NS and First Nations and Inuity Health Branch, Atlantic Region.
2018 ESS Pilot for decolonizing feedback from Atlantic Indigenous participants with CES NS, FNIHB Atlantic, and Mi’kmaq Native Friendship Centre.
C2018 Recorded Plenary Sessions on TRC, OCAP, Indigenous Rights and the Anthropocene and Core Competency Revisions to include reciprocity, TRC and wellness of natural systems.
2017 Our Journey Together Compilation of TRC Resources from Atlantic evaluator collaboration
2016 CES National Commitment to Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action
Perhaps the greatest benefit of CES membership is the ability to work with colleagues to create learning opportunities and influence our field. We encourage all CES NS members to register for our Annual General Meeting on Wednesday, June 16 for an update on strategic planning and opportunities to support action. Following the AGM, members are invited to a “Resource Swap” of any learning materials that you’d like to recommend to colleagues on any aspect of professional development, including sources outside the evaluation field.
In the meanwhile, be kind (to yourself too!) and stay safe,
Vanessa Nevin
Chair, Atlantic Indigenous Evaluation Stewardship Circle
Andrealisa Belzer, Credentialed Evaluator
President, CES Nova Scotia
Banner image source: https://www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca/eng/1100100013251/1534874002459
