Land acknowledgement

CARFAC Ontario's office is situated on the traditional lands of the Wendat, the Anishinabek Nation, the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, and most recently, the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nations, in a place now called Toronto — derived from the Kanienkeha word “Tkaronto,” meaning, “where the trees stand in water.”

Our work takes place across this province, called “Ontario,” from a Wendat word meaning “great lake”. The province as it is currently demarcated is home to over 130 first nations. 

CARFAC was initially founded in 1968 as CAR (Canadian Artists' Representation), on the ancestral lands of the Anishnabek, Haudenosaunee, Wendat, Attawandaron, and Lenape peoples, named by English settlers as London.

We reflect on the knowledge that the organization’s founders were all settlers, and that historically, our work has not made consistent, concerted efforts to include and champion the voices and needs of Indigenous artists.

Looking forward, we are committed to carrying out our work with greater and more meaningful engagement with Indigenous artists, as well as with the numerous other communities who have been previously underrepresented in our work and membership.