Good morning. I am Dene zah Akile Ch’oh,Edward John.
I come with good feelings in my heart; I wish to acknowledge our relatives and friends the Coast Salish peoples, in whose ancestral lands we gather and where we begin this important Conversation about who we are and our connections and relationships to and with each other.
And I wish to thank the organizers of this Conversation for the opportunity to offer a few words of welcome to each of you on behalf of the First Peoples –the Indigenous Peoples of this great and beautiful land. I am deeply honoured and humbled.