ABSTRACT
At the heart of reconciliation is decolonization: a re-centering of Indigenous perspectives in all areas of society, including the environment. Each community is at a different stage in their understanding of their watershed and the issues related to their protection and each individual is at a different stage in their understanding of reconciliation and what it means to decolonize. The application of the Reconciliation in the Watershed program to the climate justice movement may not seem readily clear. KAIROS launched the Reconciliation in the Watershed workshop series in 2017. Reconnecting people with their local watershed is a core objective of the Reconciliation in the Watershed program. The Reconciliation in the Watershed program builds on years of KAIROS’ watershed education and Indigenous rights work, but is also influenced by the Watershed Discipleship movement. In contrast, a watershed map of continental North America shows larger variegated shapes, which follow the contours of the landscape – coasts, mountain ranges, arctic, prairies, and desert.
