Advancing Truth and Reconciliation involves many actions, and it can begin with the small choices you make in your everyday routine. One meaningful step is creating opportunities to amplify Indigenous voices and engage with resources, both community-led and allied, that deepen our shared commitment. Spanning literature, film, and educational courses, these resources offer an accessible entry point to listen, unlearn, and show support.

In collaboration with Sarah Jacknife*, here is our curated recommendation of  books, podcasts, courses, and screen media to help deepen your understanding and actively support the path toward reconciliation.

Add these to your TBR (To be read); Non-Fiction

• 21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act by Bob Joseph
  An essential guide that breaks down the oppressive history and lasting impacts of Canada's Indian Act, offering practical insights on how dismantling it paves the way for Indigenous self-determination.
• Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer
  A poetic blend of botany, Indigenous traditions, and personal reflection that explores how understanding the natural world can restore our reciprocal relationship with the Earth.
• The North-West Is Our Mother by Jean Teillet
  A comprehensive history of the Métis Nation written by a descendant of Louis Riel, detailing their battles for land rights, sovereignty, and recognition from the 18th century to the modern day.
• Elements of Indigenous Style: A Guide for Writing By and About Indigenous Peoples (2nd Edition) by Gregory Younging
  A foundational style guide that offers practical protocols for writers, editors, and publishers to ensure culturally appropriate, respectful, and accurate representation of Indigenous peoples.
• Held by the Land: A Guide to Indigenous Plants for Wellness by Leigh Joseph
  A practical guide to plant medicine and ethnobotany that teaches readers how to identify, forage, and respectfully use native plants for holistic health and wellness.

Sarah's recommendations:

• Talk Treaty to Me: Understanding the Basics of Treaties and Land in Canada by Sara Komarnisky and Crystal Gail Fraser - An accessible and essential guide that untangles the complex history, legal realities, and modern significance of treaties, offering practical steps everyone can take toward reconciliation.
• The Knowing by Tanya Talaga - A deeply personal and meticulously researched investigation that follows Talaga's search for her missing great-great-grandmother, uncovering a harrowing broader history of government- and church-sanctioned violence against Indigenous families in Canada.
• Truth Telling: Seven Conversations about Indigenous Life in Canada by Michelle Good - A sharp, uncompromising collection of essays exploring the human cost of colonialism, the reality of broken treaties, and how true reconciliation depends on restoring land and sovereignty to Indigenous peoples. 

Storytelling

• The Break by Katherena Vermette
  A powerful multi-generational story following an Indigenous family in Winnipeg's North End navigating trauma, resilience, and community support in the aftermath of a violent crime.
• Bad Cree by Jessica Johns
  A chilling paranormal thriller that follows a young Cree woman plagued by terrifying, realistic dreams that begin bleeding into her waking life, forcing her to return home to confront her past and family grief.
• Cold by Drew Hayden Taylor
  A darkly comedic and mysterious story that weaves together a deadly plane crash in the Canadian wilderness, an ancient Indigenous creature, and a murder investigation led by a disgraced professor and a First Nations officer.
• Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley
  A gripping YA thriller about an eighteen-year-old Ojibwe woman who goes undercover for an FBI investigation into a lethal new strain of meth threatening her tribal community.
• Treat Them as Buffalo by Blair Palmer Yoxall
  An anti-western historical novel set during the 1885 North-West Resistance, following a twelve-year-old Métis boy and a coalition of women searching for young boys mysteriously disappearing from their community.
• Nămwayut – We Are All One: A Pathway to Reconciliation by Chief Robert Joseph
  A moving memoir and framework that traces Chief Joseph’s journey from residential school survivor to global peacebuilder, demonstrating how embracing our shared humanity can guide us toward true reconciliation.
• "Indian" in the Cabinet: Speaking Truth to Power by Jody Wilson-Raybould
  A candid political memoir detailing former Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould's experiences navigating federal politics, standing up for the rule of law, and driving systemic change.
• Becoming a Matriarch by Helen Knott
  A raw and deeply personal memoir that explores grief, intergenerational healing, and the transformative journey of stepping into the leadership legacy of the women who came before.

Sarah's recommendation:

Making Love with the Land: Essays by Joshua Whitehead
A vulnerable and hybrid essay collection blending body, land, language, and memory to explore what it means to exist as a Two-Spirit, Oji-Cree storyteller navigating trauma and identity. 

For Your Commute; Podcasts

• Residential Schools by Historica Canada
  A three-part documentary podcast hosted by Shaneen Robinson-Desjarlais that examines the history, systemic impact, and enduring human legacy of Canada’s residential school system.
• Matriarch Movement by Shayla Ouellette Stonechild
  An empowering interview series centering Indigenous women, non-binary, and Two-Spirit leaders as they share stories of healing, reclamation, and social justice.
• Unreserved by CBC
  Hosted by Rosanna Deerchild, this long-running show serves as a radio community space highlighting Indigenous culture, arts, politics, and lived experiences across Turtle Island.
• Auntie Up! by Makwa Creative
  A candid, unfiltered talk show hosted by Kim Wheeler and Jolene Banning that dives into hot topics, politics, and pop culture from an unapologetically Indigenous woman's perspective.
• First America by Rebecca Nagle
  An investigative history series hosted by Rebecca Nagle that re-examines the founding of the United States through the lens of Indigenous sovereignty and military resistance.
• Settle Down produced by Omar Mouallem at Haq Story Studios
  A roundtable business podcast featuring Indigenous women entrepreneurs sharing candid stories, hurdles, and practical insights on building generational wealth and navigating corporate spaces.
• APTN News InFocus by APTN
  A live current-affairs show hosted by Melissa Ridgen that hosts deep-dive discussions on critical news issues, policies, and social challenges impacting First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities.

Sarah’s recommendation:

2 Crees in a Pod hosted by Amber Dion and Terri Cardinal
creates space for Indigenous resurgence and stories. Honoring Indigenous helping practices and education.

Continue your Learning; Courses.

• Indigenous Canada by the University of Alberta
  A massive open online course (MOOC) hosted by Faculty of Native Studies professor Dr. Tracy Bear and narrated by Dan Levy that explores Indigenous histories, key legal frameworks, and contemporary settler-Indigenous relations.
• Land Back by Yellowhead Institute
  A foundational Red Paper report authored by Shiri Pasternak and Hayden King that critiques resource extraction and land dispossession in Canada, offering a framework for meaningful Indigenous consent and jurisdiction.

For the whole Family; Kid Friendly Books

• When We Were Alone by David A. Robertson
  A gentle, award-winning picture book that follows a young girl learning about her grandmother’s experiences at a residential school and how children found subtle ways to preserve their culture and identity.
• Antiracist Baby by Ibram X. Kendi
  A colorful board book featuring nine accessible, foundational steps to empower parents and young children to actively recognize, talk about, and confront racism.
• Little You by Richard Van Camp
  A tender, poetic picture book celebrating the unconditional love, wonder, and joy that a newborn child brings to their family and community.

To Watch

• Bones of Crows directed by Marie Clements
  An epic historical drama that follows the life of Cree matriarch Aline Spears as she navigates the trauma of Canada's residential school system, wartime service as a code talker, and a lifelong fight for justice and survival.
• Tea Creek directed by Ryan Dickie
  A powerful documentary showcasing Indigenous food sovereignty activist Jacob Beaton as he transforms his British Columbia farm into a training hub to revitalize traditional agriculture and heal historical land loss.
• Angry Inuk directed by Alethea Arnaqua-Baril
  An insightful documentary challenging international anti-sealing campaigns by centering Inuit hunters and showing how the traditional seal harvest is essential to Arctic food security, culture, and economic survival.
• Little Bird directed by Jennifer Podemski and Hannah Moscovitch
  A deeply moving drama series following Bezhig Little Bird, a First Nations woman adopted into a Jewish family, as she searches for her birth family and confronts the painful legacy of the Sixties Scoop.
• North of North directed by Stacey Aglok MacDonald and Alethea Arnaquq-Baril
  A comedy-drama series following a young Inuk mother navigating love, work, and community dynamics in a small Arctic town as she works to reinvent herself.
• Reservation Dogs created by Sterlin Harjo and Taika Waititi
  A critically acclaimed, groundbreaking comedy-drama series following four Indigenous teenagers in rural Oklahoma who scheme, steal, and save up money to make their way to California.
• Boy directed by Taika Waititi
  A charming and heartwarming coming-of-age film set in 1984 New Zealand about an 11-year-old Māori boy whose idealised fantasies of his absent father are put to the test when the man unexpectedly returns home.

Sarahs recommendation: 

• Gather directed Sanjay Rawal - A uplifting documentary celebrating the Indigenous food sovereignty movement, following Native American chefs, scientists, and environmental activists who are reclaiming traditional foodways to heal their communities.
• Nîpawistamâsowin: We Will Stand Up directed by Tasha Hubbard - A powerful documentary centering on the 2016 killing of Colten Boushie and his family’s fight for justice, exposing the deep systemic racism embedded within Canada's legal system.

"Reconciliation is not a single action, but a continuous journey of learning and engagement. Pick a resource from this list to begin, share what you learn with your community, and let these diverse perspectives inform your everyday actions toward systemic change and mutual respect." says Jacknife. 

* Sarah Jacknife is a Metis Cree policy nerd, educator, and advocate for Indigenous inclusion. A proud member of the Elizabeth Metis Settlement, Sarah is the Founder and Managing Director of Jacknife Consulting Ltd., an Indigenous woman-owned firm specializing in Indigenous policy, research, education, and knowledge translation. Her work helps organizations understand complex Indigenous challenges and apply those insights to policy, education, and decision-making.

Sarah holds a Master of Public Policy and is a sessional instructor at the University of Calgary's School of Public Policy, where she teaches Indigenous policy. Beyond the classroom and her consulting work, she writes regularly, with her work published in Policy Options, The Hill Times, The Globe and Mail, CBC, and the Calgary Herald.

Sarah lives as a guest in Calgary (Mohkinstsis) on Treaty 7 territory with her partner and fur buddy.