Peter Shokeir | [email protected]
A new outdoor exhibit will recognize Indigenous partners and their ongoing connection to the lands that are now administrated by Parks Canada.
The exhibit is now under construction on the Information Centre lawn, also known as Athabasca Park, and is expected to open in the spring or summer of 2022.
“It’s all about raising that level of awareness,” said Mark Young, Indigenous affairs manager with Parks Canada.
“When it comes to Indigenous peoples, we find that knowledge is quite low. I think that’s the first thing is we want to work together to develop interpretive materials and foster a better understanding of what Indigenous connections are to Jasper National Park.”
Jasper National Park has been working with representatives from over 20 Indigenous partner communities for over a decade to conceptualize, design and construct this exhibit.
According to Young, partners identified that public awareness and understanding was “exceptionally low” when it came to Indigenous connections to the area and the forced removal and exclusion of Indigenous people from the land that became Jasper National Park.
“The idea for creating a federal exhibit about these connections and experiences was born out of these discussions,” Young said.
The exhibit will include landscaping, walkways, furniture, lighting, artwork and a bronze sculpture of a globe with an eagle on top.
“When you come into the exhibits, the entry panels will pretty much tell you what this exhibit is about and some of the key messages that Canadians might have a low understanding about,” Young said.
Lisa Shepherd with the Métis Nation British Columbia is one of representatives from the Jasper Indigenous Forum and sits on the Indigenous Exhibit Working Group.
“Jasper gets so many people coming and visiting the land, and most of the people who come to visit are unaware of the history and the many, many different Indigenous people who were there on that land,” Shepherd said.
“I think it’s a story that is past time to be told. It’s very exciting that this is happening.”
Shepherd described the process as a long one, which was necessary in order to be inclusive of all Indigenous partners with ties to the land, and would culminate in a beautiful exhibit.
“I would say that every design element that was taken into consideration has been done in a really respectful way to make sure that we include all the voices of the Indigenous communities,” she said.
“It’s been really inspiring seeing how it’s all come together.”
The northern half of Athabasca Park will be closed over the next six months for the construction of the exhibit.
Occasional sidewalk closures may also occur along Connaught Drive, adjacent to the site.
Parks Canada is planning to have a formal opening ceremony next year as conditions allow and will provide additional construction updates as the project proceeds.
