Saturday, May 6, 2023 — 1:30pm – 3:00pm 
The Blue Cabin (Steveston) 

On May 6 we witnessed The Language the Land Remembers, conversation with Faith Sparrow-Crawford and Salia Joseph from Host Consulting, and the first session for Other Sights‘ Foreshore Immersive.

From Faith and Salia:
“The Language the Land Remembers speaks to a re-ordering of affairs in our own territory, where we are foregrounding the ways that MST people speak to our territories and the way that our lands speak back. The centering of the languages that the land remembers, the design forms, the tongues, the belongings we come from that show our families, our lineages, our character. We intend to speak about the creation of Host Consulting on the grounds of celebrating our ways of being on our own territory so that our ancestors are surrounded by what they recognize, so that our littles ones and everyone in between know that they are home. This process requires pushing through decolonization as metaphor, and signaling allyship into something different. A new version of the old and breathing life in the future of our territories.⁣”

 

Salia Joseph is from the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh and Snuneymuxw First Nation’s on her father’s side and is British and Jewish on her mothers. Salia is a graduate from the First Nations and Indigenous studies program from the University of British Columbia. Salia is a Squamish language learner and is the executive director of The Sníchim Foundation which is a Sḵwx̱wú7mes language and culture non-profit. In addition to her language work Salia is the co-owner of Host Consulting Inc.

Faith Sparrow-Crawford is from the Musqueam Indian Band in Vancouver, BC. She was raised in her community by generations of storytellers and artists, surrounded by a rich culture and oral histories that instilled in her a passion for the arts. Faith graduated from the University of British Columbia in 2017 with a major in First Nations and Indigenous Studies, focusing her degree largely on Indigenous new media. After graduation, she worked for her nation helping to further their self-governance and writing their constitution founded on their traditions, protocols, and oral histories. In 2019, Faith co-founded of Salish Locations Inc., a film location liaison company that focuses on creating representation for Indigenous peoples in the film industry on their own lands. Faith also co-founded Host Consulting Inc. in 2020.

 

Host Consulting is a public art consultancy founded by members of the three Host Nations of Vancouver – Faith Sparrow-Crawford from Musqueam, Salia Joseph from Squamish, and Jade George from Tsleil-Waututh. Hosts’ mandate is to work towards greater representation of MST peoples on MST lands and to create futures where MST folks can see themselves reflected in their own territory. Learn more about Host Consulting.