Promote and support formal Indigenous stewardship of public green spaces in the City of St. John’s, such as parks and gardens.

First Light and Parks Canada advance Indigenous land stewardship

First Light is working with Parks Canada to advance Indigenous-led research and explore approaches to Indigenous land stewardship. This work includes identifying opportunities for Indigenous land-based healing, strengthening relationships with the land, and caring for public green spaces. Grounded in Indigenous knowledge and community priorities, the partnership will help shape culturally meaningful stewardship initiatives.

First Light Gathering of Voices explores connection to land

In June 2026, First Light held its Summer Gathering of Voices, a seasonal feast with community members, policy makers and invited guests sharing their stories and sharing a meal. Participants shared stories – documented in the event’s Message from the Gathering – about Land, their connection to it, and their experiences of Land in urban areas. Overall themes of what was shared included:

• the relationship that urban Indigenous attendees have to the Land is reciprocal and intertwined with their identities,
• that urban Indigenous connection to Land requires deliberate intention, and
• that reconciliation must be demonstrated through action, not symbols.

These themes point to the importance of initiatives – like the project described above by Parks Canada, with its intentional focus on Indigenous land stewardship –that reduce the barriers urban Indigenous people may face in connecting with the Land.