Bison Symposium

Bison Symposium: Restoring Relationships, Restoring the Land

Event Date: Saturday, Sept. 26
Event Time: 9 am-4:30 pm
Event Cost:

• Indigenous Peoples: Free
• General Admission: $10

The Bison Symposium brings together Indigenous leaders, knowledge keepers, conservationists, and community members to explore the cultural, ecological, and spiritual significance of the buffalo.

Invited speakers from the Blackfoot Confederacy and other initiatives come together sharing stories, insights, and experiences from ongoing efforts to return buffalo to their traditional territories and restore relationships between people, land, and one of the most important relatives on the Plains.

A keynote address by PhD candidate Paulette Fox, whose work and advocacy have advanced conversations around buffalo restoration and Indigenous-led stewardship, followed by a screening of acclaimed documentary “Bring Them Home | Aiskótáhkapiyaaya”, which chronicles the movement to return buffalo to Indigenous Nations and highlights the transformative impacts of bison repatriation. Attendees will also get the rare opportunity to hear from Elder Tyson Running Wolf of Amskapi Piikani.

Throughout the day, attendees can explore a bison-themed Indigenous Market, featuring Indigenous artists, makers, and entrepreneurs offering artwork, crafts, and products inspired by buffalo culture and teachings.

Join us for a day of learning, connection, and reflection as we celebrate the buffalo's enduring role in Indigenous cultures and the growing movement to bring them home. Together, we will honour the past, support pathways toward reconciliation, and envision a future where buffalo once again thrive on the Prairies.

A limited number of equity & accessibility tickets for those experiencing financial barriers are available for this event. If you require sponsorship to attend, please inquire through our Equity & Accessibility Program.

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Bison Days at The Confluence

Bison Days is a multi-day, Indigenous-led celebration centred around the bison and held at The Confluence Historic Site & Parkland. Long before this land became the city it is today, Indigenous Peoples gathered at this significant place where the Bow and Elbow rivers meet and traveled the prairies following the bison. The bison has been and remains central to the way of life for Indigenous Peoples. In this place where countless stories and traditions flow together like the rivers, Bison Days honours the deep relationship between Indigenous Peoples, bison and the land.

Events for Bison Days begin with a symposium, a bison-themed Indigenous markets, bison harvest workshops in partnership with the Aboriginal Friendship Centre of Calgary (AFCC), and temporary museum exhibits, closing with a tipi Circle Camp alongside free programming for National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

Get involved: theconfluence.ca/bison-days