Participants

In total, Wave 1 of the Justice Canada-led engagement included 26 virtual meetings with participants from every province and territory across the country. More than 700 people attended the dialogues, representing a variety of Indigenous communities, organizations, nations, governments and interest groups. Attendees included Indigenous legal experts and scholars, court workers, as well as individuals with lived experience. In addition to these voices, representatives from provincial and territorial governments and federal departments including Indigenous Services Canada, Public Safety and Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada also observed many of the conversations to gain deeper insights into the needs and barriers facing Indigenous people.

Participation was solicited through email invitations sent to organizations and individuals that had a stakeholder relationship with Justice Canada, with invitees encouraged to forward the email to those they felt should be in attendance. Two dialogue sessions were originally planned for each distinctions-based group and region—one session on Theme 1 and another session on Theme 2. However, the schedule and structure of the sessions continued to evolve to meet the needs of participants.