Disconnection and the yearning for connection have long propelled my writing.
As a settler Canadian, I am currently exploring my implication in disconnecting the Indigenous peoples of this country from their home lands.
Heather Menzies
Seeker
Probing the ancestral roots of disconnection first took me to Scotland.
Reconnecting with my ancestral land and dispossession from it prepared me for the work I’m doing now.
Writer
Reconciliation challenges everyone, not just governments & institutions. Meeting my Treaty Kin is my story of taking on this challenge: grappling with colonialism’s hold on my own thinking & opening my eyes to the healing potential of reconciliation, including reconciliation with the earth.
Speaker
I have spent decades speaking authoritatively to large national and international audiences.
Increasingly, I am drawn to the connections of smaller groups and talking circles.
Heather’s Blog
Taking the Reconciliation Challenge
Check out this essay I wrote for the Ottawa Citizen about the breakthroughs that occurred once I busted myself out of the colonial thinking boxes in my mind.
Prologue to Meeting my Treaty Kin – A Journey Toward Reconciliation
When the TRC released its calls to action in 2015, I took some action of my own. I discovered that an 1827 treaty had legitimized my great great grandparents settling in traditional Nishnaabe territory, in present-day Southwestern Ontario, in 1832. Checking out what...
Our Long Struggle for Home: The Ipperwash Story
It's been quite the journey these past four years -- learning about my treaty heritage and the responsiblities associated with it. As part of this, I worked with some Nishnaabe members of the Stoney Point Reserve as they told their story of reclaiming their ancestral...
Heather Menzies awarded Order of Canada
Heather Menzies awarded Order of Canada to honour her contributions to public discourse.
His Excellency presents the MEMBER OF THE ORDER OF CANADA insignia to Heather Anne Menzies, C.M.
Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, presided over an Order of Canada investiture ceremony at Rideau Hall, on Wednesday, May 7, 2014. The Governor General, who is chancellor and Principal Companion of the Order, bestowed the honour on 35 Members and 10 Officers.
The Order of Canada was created in 1967, during Canadas centennial year, to recognize a lifetime of outstanding achievement, dedication to the community and service to the nation. Since its creation, more than 6 000 people from all sectors of society have been invested into the Order.
Photo Credit: MCpl Vincent Carbonneau, Rideau Hall, OSGG.
I am listening and trying to learn what healing our treaty relations with each other and the earth might mean. I am sharing this journey with you, building on Reclaiming the Commons praised by Noam Chomsky as “an admirable, even noble vision”.
Heather Menzies received the honour of the Ottawa Book Award for Non-Fiction.
Jury Statement:
“In this eloquent memoir written from the heart, Menzies takes the reader on a fascinating trip to the Scotland of her ancestors to examine and retrace life on the Scottish Commons.
With a light and at times poetic touch, she offers her insights into how the venerable wisdom of sharing and caring for the land might be applied today.
A unique combination of memoir and manifesto, Reclaiming the Commons urges us to become participants in changing our world for the common good.”
~ Dr. Richard T. Clippingdale, Suzanne Evans and merilyn simonds
Read more about the city’s Book Award and Announcement.
Ottawa Citizen featured the winners, so read more.