Bachelor of Arts in Indigenous Governance

About this programme

Affect the self-determination and governance landscape, in the North and beyond. Our programs give you the skills, experience and knowledge to make real change. When you meet Colesen Ford, you instinctively know that something very profound is happening in the North. At first, you may be taken with his exuberant energy. Or maybe the way he isn’t afraid to push back against systemic issues. But, when you start to understand more, like that he’s a graduate of the first ‘made-in-Yukon’ degree, from Canada’s first university North of 60°—and that he’s part of the first generation that has never lived under the Indian Act—it all starts to sink in. “The generation our ancestors talked about—Youth who would be living, breathing and exploring the Final Agreements—is here,” he said. Since graduating in 2021, the 21-year-old Kluane First Nation Citizen has been enthusiastically contributing his new knowledge to his Youth Councillor and communications coordinator roles in the Kluane First Nation. “Yukon is going to be an economic hub in the West. Full stop. Our Final Agreements are for all Yukoners and Canadians. Without the IGD, I wouldn’t have gotten that [full understanding] if I had left the Yukon.” The Bachelor of Arts in Indigenous Governance aims to build northern leadership capacity by providing students with the values, knowledge and skills to work collaboratively within the unique governance landscape of the North. The program focuses on northern issues, and western and Indigenous worldviews. Using an Indigenous lens, students will analyze the evolution of Indigenous self