First and Foremost

I would like to begin by acknowledging that I am grateful to live in New Westminster, which is located on the traditional and unceded territory of the Qayqayt (key-kite) First Nation. This land is also part of the broader ancestral territories of the Coast Salish peoples.

My work primarily takes place across the Greater Vancouver area, and in doing so, I respectfully acknowledge the unceded traditional territories of the Musqueam (mus-kwee-um), Squamish (skwa-mish), and Tsleil-Waututh (slay-wah-tuth) Nations.

As my work also connects me to people and partners across what we now call Canada, I want to extend my gratitude and respect to all First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples—the original stewards of the lands and waters from coast to coast to coast.

I am committed to my own journey of learning, unlearning, and reconciliation, and I am thankful for the opportunity to live and work on these territories.

I recognize that colonization has caused deep and ongoing impacts, and that land acknowledgements are only one step in a lifelong commitment to truth, reconciliation, meaningful relationship-building, and respectful action. I honor the Elders past and present, and all Indigenous Peoples whose enduring presence, knowledge, and stewardship continue to guide us toward a more just future.

As a facilitator, I bring my whole self to the work. My perspective is shaped by my life as a spoken word artist and my personal journey of learning about my own distant Cherokee ancestry, and the traditions of the Indigenous peoples around me. 

It is important for me to state that I was raised in an Indigenously ignorant, "white privileged", Christian, settler tradition.  While I feel a strong connection to my distant Indigenous/First Nations ancestry, I realize my life "experience" is not that of an Indigenous person, raised in an Indigenous Family and Community.  I am not a member of a First Nations community and do not speak for any Indigenous peoples or as a holder of Traditional Knowledge.

The themes in my workshops are offered from my position as a guest and a student, honoring the public sources, Elders, Knowledge Keepers and close friends from which I have learned and am learning, and with deep respect for the Indigenous peoples of Turtle Island.

All My Relations.

Steve Miller

My Philosophy: A Pledge for Respectful Integration

This document is my mission and my binding code of conduct. It outlines the philosophy I adhere to and the promises I make as a facilitator who seeks to respectfully integrate Indigenous and Western knowledge systems.

My Mission: Two-Eyed Seeing (Etuaptmumk)

My mission is to foster healing and connection by respectfully weaving two worldviews. I honor the essential insights of Western clinical models (such as the stages of trauma recovery) while being wholly guided by the profound, holistic wisdom of Indigenous knowledge systems.

I embrace the Mi'kmaq principle of "Two-Eyed Seeing" (Etuaptmumk). I will learn to see from one eye with the strengths of Western knowledge, and from the other eye with the strengths of Indigenous wisdom. I commit to using both these eyes together for the benefit of all.

My Code of Conduct: A Sacred Promise

To fulfill this mission, I commit to the following non-negotiable principles in all my work:

1. I Act as a Humble Guest. I acknowledge that not only am I a guest of this land, as a facilitator, I am a guest in a knowledge system that is not my own. I will act with the profound humility, respect, and protocols required of a guest at all times.

2. I Uphold "Nothing About Us Without Us." I will never attempt to teach Indigenous ways, lead ceremonies, or speak for Indigenous peoples. My role is to build relationships, humbly invite Elders and Knowledge Keepers to be the leaders in that space, and compensate them respectfully and gratefully for their time and sacred wisdom.

3. I Commit to Being Local and Specific. I reject a "pan-Indian" or "cherry-picking" approach (e.g., using practices from different Nations out of context). I commit to learning from and building relationships with the specific Indigenous Nations whose land I am on. All my work will be grounded in local protocols.

4. I Respect Worldviews, Not "Tools." I understand that Indigenous principles are not "tools" to be "used" or "leveraged." They are part of a deep, holistic, and spiritual worldview based on relationship. I pledge to treat them as such, not as optional add-ons to a Western model.

5. I Practice Embodied Acknowledgement. I believe a Territorial Acknowledgement is a non-negotiable action, not a rushed script. I commit to researching the land I am on, its Treaties, and its stories. I will open my work by grounding myself and my participants in a real, embodied relationship to the land beneath our feet, acknowledging it as our first teacher.

6. I Honor the Land as Healer. I recognize that healing happens in relationship with the land. I will adapt my "Safe Place" exercises to guide participants to connect with a real place on this land (a park, a river, a tree, the sky) as a teacher, an anchor, and a relative.

7. I Create Based on "All My Relations." I believe my workshop container is not a mere social contract, but a sacred agreement to honor "All My Relations" (Wahkootowin). I will guide the circle to understand that we are not a group of isolated individuals, but a community. That we hold each other's stories as sacred relatives, understanding we are interconnected with the land, the water, each other, our ancestors, and our future generations.

8. I Embrace Holistic Healing. I am guided by the core Indigenous principle of holistic balance. I will design my work to nourish all four aspects of the self: the Mental (thought), the Emotional (heart), the Physical (body), and the Spiritual (our connection to all things).

9. I Witness Story as Sacred Medicine. I understand that in oral cultures, stories are sacred. They hold history, law, and healing. When a participant is invited to speak, they are not just "sharing" or "processing." They are making medicine for themselves, for the circle, and for their ancestors. I commit to holding this space as an act of sacred witnessing.

This is my code of conduct. This is my promise.

Steven Glenn Miller