The Institute for Critical Indigenous Studies (CIS) at UBC is an interdisciplinary hub for research and teaching on Indigenous critical theory. We are committed to robust, culturally attentive scholarship and meaningful engagement with Indigenous communities.
Home to two academic programs, CIS offers degree options in First Nations and Indigenous Studies (FNIS) and First Nations and Endangered Languages (FNEL). Our faculty members specialize in various disciplines, offering a breadth of research and teaching expertise including Indigenous critical theory and politics, arts research, and applied social practices.
Our approach to scholarship is unique from other programs in North America. CIS faculty members, students, and associates take on the lens of critical theory to ethically examine power and knowledge structures, and ways to benefit Indigenous communities and relationships through collaborative, mutually respectful work.
Located on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓-speaking Musqueam people, CIS is committed to our long-standing relationship with the Musqueam. Culturally attentive practices and community engagement steer our work — we foster partnerships with communities that further the wellbeing, capacity, and self-determination of Indigenous peoples locally and globally.
