John Humphrey Centre for Peace and Human Rights

09/01/2026

Connecting to the land takes many forms, from storytelling and shared discussion to hands-on creation.

Check out our recap of the Land Acknowledgment Educators Network gathering at Fort Edmonton Park's Indigenous Peoples Experience Centre, where educators gathered for a day of learning and reflection:

On August 25th 2026, the Land Acknowledgement Educators Network gathered at Fort Edmonton Park ’s Indigenous Peoples Experience Centre for an inspiring day of hands-on learning and connection led by Elder and Knowledge Keeper Ekti. Guided through a space rich with story, participants learned abo

08/29/2026

Are you a recent immigrant or newcomer to Canada? The JHC and the University of Ottawa invite you to a caring, arts-based space to share your experiences with online violence and discrimination.

Using a human rights lens, poetry, and open discussion, we’ll work together to inform public education tools and push for policy changes that build a safer digital world.

Thursday, October 1, 2026 | 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM

Location: Fauteux Hall (Room 570, 5th Floor), University of Ottawa

Cost: Free (Light lunch provided!)

👉 Learn more and register by following the link below!

We are grateful to the Government of Canada's Digital Citizenship Contribution Program (Canadian Heritage) for their support of this initiative.

The Seen & Safe Truth Telling Circle in Ottawa invites immigrants and newcomers to Canada  to share their experiences of online violence and discrimination. This circle will be held with care, inviting honest stories from those impacted by injustice, discrimination, an

08/27/2026

Commemorating the International Day of Peace

Join us for Echoes of Peace, a commemorative vigil and teach-in designed to bridge historical memory with an urgent commitment to a nuclear weapon-free future. This event is co-hosted with a number of Edmonton-based community partners, and marks the moral centrepiece of our year-long movement of peace.

Monday, September 21, 2026 | 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Edmonton City Hall | 1 Sir Winston Churchill Square

Theme: From Remembrance to Action: Pledge for a Peaceful Future

Program Highlights:
👉Japanese Drumming by Kita no Taiko
👉Curated Hiroshima & Nagasaki poster exhibit
👉Academic and community experts, including Dr. Mojtaba Mahdavi and Hon. Douglas Roche, O.C., discussing the status of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) and modern risks of nuclear proliferation
👉Action & Vigil: Paper cranes, a Peace Tree, and an Edmonton Peace Pledge

Everyone is welcome! This is a come-and-go event.

For more information: jhcentre.org/events/echoesofpeace2026

This event is made possible in part with support from the Government of Canada | Employment and Social Development Canada's New Horizons for Seniors Program.

08/14/2026

Are you ready to lead and make a real difference in your community?

The Peace Builders Project is calling youth aged 16–28 in Edmonton and Prince Albert!

Join a passionate cohort to:
- Over the span of three months, explore your city on an immersive study tour visiting local faith and cultural spaces

- Engage in real conversations about identity and inclusion

- Act by developing collaborative projects to combat hate and foster peace in your community

If you’re passionate about human rights and building bridges, this is for you.

🔗 Find out more and apply now to join the cohort: jhcentre.org/peacebuilders

07/27/2026

International commitments mean very little if they don't change daily life on the ground.

When federal, provincial, and territorial ministers gather on human rights, civil society isn't standing by for superficial consultations that exist to just check boxes. We need a permanent, apolitical infrastructure that bridges jurisdictional gaps and places community expertise at the centre of policy.

Human rights are about housing, dignity, safety, and ensuring no one is left behind in our systems.

Read more from JHC’s Director of Research and Adult Education, Angelica Quesada, on the JHC blog: jhcentre.org/news-and-events/csos2026

07/20/2026

Digital spaces should be safe for everyone.

JHC’s Seen & Safe project centres youth and survivor voices to confront online abuse and tech-facilitated harm.

If you're a young person from in or around Edmonton who identifies as 2STQLGBIA+, we encourage you to join our upcoming Listening Circle.

Connect through art, share your lived experiences, and help shape actionable toolkits and policy recommendations for safer online spaces.

Date: July 25, 2026, from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm
Location: Edmonton. Venue is centrally located and wheelchair-accessible, with gender-neutral washrooms. The location will be provided upon registration.

👉 Learn more and sign up today:

Digital spaces aren't always safe, but your voice can help change that.  The John Humphrey Centre for Peace and Human Rights (JHC) and RARICANow! invite young people in Edmonton who identify as 2STQLGBIA+ to share their experiences with online violence (tech-facilitated gender based viol

07/20/2026

We have a new kind of “weekend warrior” making things happen in Alberta: Kurudi Mashambani are getting things done in Westlock!

Thanks to the forward-thinking generosity of the Town of Westlock, Westlock Terminals, and the Gateway Research Organization, the Kurudi Mashambani (“back to the land”) initiative has secured 5 acres of land. Now newcomer families are cultivating that land with tomatoes, potatoes, beans, peas, corn, garlic, and more — empowering them to move from relying on food banks to becoming the very people who feed our communities.

We look forward to sunny skies and (hopefully!) soft rains upon the land as summer rolls on. Stay tuned for updates as we watch this beautiful partnership grow.

Want to learn more about how you can support the infrastructure needed to help this project blossom to its full potential? Read more on our blog: jhcentre.org/news-and-events/kurudi-mashambani

07/16/2026

Mutual aid is built on partnership, but doing this work together is complex. On one hand, teaming up multiplies impact, shares the emotional load, and builds real community power. However, it can also introduce friction, including navigating different priorities, communication styles, and ideas of how to help.

“Restoring Dignity: A Roadmap for Human Rights and Mutual Aid in Edmonton” is a report from the JHC highlighting the work and challenges experienced by mutual aid workers, with practical recommendations on how to support workers and organizers while inspiring policy change.

Read the report to learn more: ow.ly/lKsp50YFU9K

07/02/2026

There is immense power and strength in a room full of survivors reclaiming their stories.

In a recent reflection, JHC Executive director Renee Vaugeois looks back at the profound, four-day "What Was Lost" Train the Trainers workshop held in Edmonton at kihcihkaw askî-Sacred Land.

Partnering with the Sixties Scoop Indigenous Society of Alberta (SSISA), this sacred space brought Sixties Scoop survivors together to break isolation through connection, storytelling, and art. The intensive training successfully built up a passionate, unified group of individuals equipped to deliver experiential education designed to shift hearts and dismantle racist misconceptions.

True reconciliation is an uncomfortable and deeply nuanced practice, but as grassroots persistence has proven, no one can tell us that mountains can't be moved.

Read more on how vulnerability can become a collective superpower and how these brave advocates are leading the way toward intergenerational healing: jhcentre.org/news-and-events/2026/6/22/moving-mountains-reflections-from-the-what-was-lost-train-the-trainers-workshop