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Identity/Citizenship/Kinship Declaration

This postdoctoral fellowship is aimed at helping advance the careers of individuals who are underrepresented in the public policy landscape – namely, Indigenous, Black and other racialized scholars. The IRPP requires applicants to declare that they meet the criteria associated with these categories, to ensure the funds are being directed in the spirit of this fellowship.

Information collected will be stored in a password-protected digital file inside the Institute and shared only with members of the selection committee.

The submission of information in a declaration deemed to be false or misleading will result in termination of the fellowship appointment.

Black and other racialized applicants (non-Indigenous)

Please provide a signed and dated declaration describing how you identify as Black and/or racialized. Racialized, or “visible minority” under the Employment Equity Act, refers to “persons, other than Aboriginal [Indigenous] peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour.” The visible minority population, as described by Statistics Canada, consists mainly (but not exclusively) of the following groups: South Asian, Chinese, Black, Filipino, Arab, Latin American, Southeast Asian, West Asian, Korean and Japanese. (Please note that the terms currently used by Statistics Canada and the Employment Equity Act are currently under review by the federal government.)

Indigenous applicants

Several institutions have recently undertaken work on verifying Indigenous citizenship or kinship, including First Nations University, the University of Manitoba, the National Indigenous University Senior Leaders’ Association, the University of Saskatchewan, and Queen’s University. We have drawn the following requirements from frameworks and recommendations developed by those institutions, and in partnership with the Indigenous members of the IRPP’s fellowship advisory committees.

Requirements

Please provide at least one of the following document(s):

  • “Certificate of Indian Status” issued by Indigenous Services Canada that is current and not expired;
  • A valid membership card from the Manitoba MĂ©tis Federation; or a valid membership card from one of the Metis Settlements of Alberta or the Northwest Territory MĂ©tis Nation; or a certified copy of a MĂ©tis Nation Citizenship card from one of the four provincial affiliates of the MĂ©tis National Council (MĂ©tis Nation of Ontario including “complete citizenship” confirmation letter from the MNO Registrar, MĂ©tis Nation Saskatchewan, MĂ©tis Nation of Alberta, MĂ©tis Nation British Columbia);
  • Certified copy of a Inuit Enrollment card, or a beneficiary card/proof of enrolment associated with Land Claim Agreements in the claim regions of Nunatsiavut, Nunavik, Nunavut and Inuvialuit;
  • Citizenship identification issued by a First Nation that has a modern Treaty and/or self-government agreement; and/or documentation that indicates membership in a band when the individual does not have a Certificate of Indian Status.

If an applicant lacks the necessary documentation listed above, they must provide a signed and dated declaration detailing their current lived experiences and continued connection/kinship with an officially recognized and rights-bearing Indigenous community, Nation or People. This declaration should encompass specific details about the First Nation, Inuit or MĂ©tis group, including their treaty, scrip, land claims, and geographical territory or area. (Rights bearing pertains to the Indigenous nation or collective holding constitutional rights under section 35, encompassing Aboriginal or Treaty rights in their territory.)

The Institute may also request references from a member of the community who has a personal history with the applicant.

More generous cash-transfer benefit would improve access to essentials, says IRPP report
More generous cash-transfer benefit would improve access to essentials, says IRPP report