Expert alert: National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

Sept. 18, 2025
For Immediate Release

WATERLOO — On Sept. 30, Canadians honour the lost children and survivors of residential schools, their families and communities. Wilfrid Laurier University experts are available to discuss topics related to the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, including Indigenous rights, colonialism and the ongoing impacts of residential schools.

The following list includes experts who are available to speak at this time but does not represent the full breadth of expertise that exists at Laurier. For a more comprehensive inventory of Laurier’s faculty researchers, please consult the Experts at Laurier database.

Darren Thomas — Indigenous land, resource management, rights, and laws

Percy Lezard — community Indigenous health; gender-based violence, particularly with MMIWG2S; Indigenous knowledges; gender diverse identities

Ryan Neepin — anti-colonial and decolonization practices; Indigenous education; teacher preparation

Ciann L. Wilson — Indigenous community health and well-being; Child Welfare; social determinants of health; anticolonial and decolonial theoretical frameworks; transnational Indigenous practices

Melody Morton Ninomiya — Indigenous determinants of health; research in Indigenous contexts; community and public health

Alex Latta — Indigenous rights, natural resources and conservation; Indigenous environmental stewardship in Canada’s North