Revitalizing Indigenous Law in Canada

Indigenous peoples actively work to strengthen their communities in the face of significant conflict within and beyond their reserves, settlements and homelands. They regulate their affairs and resolve their disputes by reference to many sources of authority. This presentation considers how Indigenous peoples' use their own legal traditions alongside other standards to search for peace and order in their relations with others. It will provide positive examples of how Indigenous peoples are using their laws to create brighter futures.

John Borrows is a world-renowned law professor at the University of Victoria. He's Anishinabe/Ojibway and a member of the Chippewa of the Nawash First Nation in Ontario, Canada. Dr. Borrows specializes in Indigenous legal rights and comparative constitutional law. He has written and spoken extensively on Indigenous legal rights and traditions, storytelling, treaties and land claims, and constitutional and environmental law. His publications include Recovering Canada: The Resurgence of Indigenous Law, Canada's Indigenous Constitution, and Drawing Out Law: A Spirit's Guide. Dr. Borrows is widely recognized as an authority in the field of Indigenous law, and has received many honors and awards for his work with and for Indigenous peoples in many countries. Dr. Borrows is a recipient an Aboriginal Achievement Award in Law and Justice, a Fellow of the Trudeau Foundation, and a Fellow of the Academy of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada (RSC), Canada's highest academic honor, and a 2012 recipient of the Indigenous Peoples Counsel from the Indigenous Bar Association, for honor and integrity in service to Indigenous communities.