2026 IFRC Research Symposium

The Indigenous Futures Research Centre’s (IFRC) annual research symposium returns January 29 and 30 at 4TH SPACE. Now in its fourth year, this essential gathering brings together faculty, students, and alumni to share their work with the Concordia community through panels, workshops, performances, and artist talks.

Guided by the theme, “Practicing the Future”, this year’s symposium considers how Indigenous research and research-creation can actively shape the futures we envision.  It offers a moment to exchange ideas, imagine new avenues, and cultivate intergenerational and relational forms of knowledge-sharing. The symposium fosters community-building across disciplines, creating a space where we not only imagine the future but intentionally practice it.

Designed to spark interdisciplinary exchanges and highlight current research, this gathering reflects on the continued emergence and growth of Indigenous scholarship. It celebrates trailblazing accomplishments while foregrounding new and evolving perspectives on Indigenous methodologies. Now in its fourth iteration, this symposium has become an essential event where IFRC faculty and student members alike share their work with one another and with the greater Concordia community.

SCHEDULE:

Thursday, January 29:

9:45 – 10 am: Welcome: Ohen:ton Kariwa’te’kwan by Prof. Hannah Claus

10 – 11 am: Panel with Office of Community Engagement

12 – 1 pm: Lunch break

1 – 2:30 pm: Panel on First People Studies

2:30 – 4 pm: Panel – Indigiqueer

4 – 5 pm: Keynote with Suzanne Kite

Friday, January 30:

1 – 2:30 pm: Panel on Indigenous Pedagogy

2:30 – 3 pm: Break

3 – 5 pm: Workshop with Alicia Ibarra-Lemay and Natasha Blanchet-Cohen

  January 29-30, 2026

4TH SPACE