Governance & Relationality in Indigenous Fisheries

To provide Indigenous community leaders and uplifters with an opportunity to learn about fisheries governance and relationality with and alongside a full complement of Indigenous course instructors and staff.

Course Description

From May 5th to 16th (2025), we will be offering a two-week in-person course on Haida Gwaii (at no financial cost to the student). Instructed by Dr. Andrea Reid and Dr. Kii’iljuus Barbara Wilson, with support from a UBC staff and community-based TA each year.

The main pillars of this course are Indigenous languages and laws, principles and ethics, governance and sovereignty, and methodologies and practices as they pertain to Indigenous fisheries and aquatic ecosystems and, critically, their care and maintenance in the truly long term.

This course creates an opportunity for network-building and co-learning across the province of so-called British Columbia and beyond. Students can enrol as graduate students (FISH 506i) and undergraduate or non-degree seeking students (EOSC 448), and we welcome registrants from and beyond UBC. Admission to this course is by application (linked here once posted each year), and given our focus and intentions for this course, priority access is given to BC First Nations.

Applications for the 2025 course are now open. See below to apply.

Please sign up for the CIF newsletter to receive information about future offerings.

Meet the 2025 Team

  • Dr. Ḵii'iljuus Barbara Wilson

    Haida Matriarch

    Co-Instructor

  • Dr. Andrea Reid

    Nisg̱a’a & settler descent

    Co-Instructor

  • Gretchen MacNaughton

    Ktunaxa and settler descent

    Support Staff

  • Tayler Brown

    Haida (K̲ayahl 'laanas), Musqueam, and mixed settler descent

    Teaching Assistant

“This is an old course, with new guidelines. It has an ancestor sitting on the land where we are all sitting.”

– Kii'iljuus Barbara Wilson

Interested In Applying?

Applications for 2025 are open until January 31st, 2025. Please click the button below to apply:

Application decisions will be shared with all applicants by the end of February 2025. Please sign up for our newsletter to receive information about future offerings.

Still Have Questions?

Please direct them to cif@oceans.ubc.ca.

Photo Credits & Gratitude: We hold our hands up in thanks to Nasya Moore, Tolu Amuwo, Marty Clemens, and Michelle Buchholtz.