Cultural Services Request
If you are interested in hosting an elder or knowledge holder in your class, please consider the following.
When inviting an elder or knowledge holder you will need to:
- Requests should be made at least 3-4 weeks in advance.
- Consider their transportation to and from the event. This may also include providing a parking spot close to the event and/or meeting them at the parking lot with means of transporting them should they need support i.e., accessibility needs.
- Meeting them upon arrival in a predesignated spot.
- Ensuring they are cared for until their departure: i.e., making sure they are supplied with water/tea/coffee, washroom locations and breaks, sometimes a small snack may be provided during their stay, anything they may need to support them while they are here helping us!
- Accompanying them at the end of event to their vehicle.
You are responsible for covering the guest’s compensation. It is best to discuss this with a member of the Indigenous Education team.
Gift giving is not mandatory but it is a common practice in many Indigenous cultures and so you may consider that in your preparations as well. Gifts should not be considered compensation. Some ideas are preserves, blankets, syrups, medicines, something handmade, a gift from your culture, etc.
This is not an exhaustive list, and every guest will have varying needs. For this reason and others, it is mandatory to meet with a member of the Indigenous Education team after submitting a request.
The Indigenous Education Team is here to support you with these processes and will be in touch after the request is submitted. Should you have any questions or concerns or ideas you want support with, please reach out to the team via indigenous@cotr.bc.ca