Mount Royal University hosting Treaty Law School

Posted: August 13, 2025

A four day Treaty Law School being held at Mount Royal University Aug. 14 to 17 will bring together treaty law advocates with a national focus on the history of treaties and treaty-making with the Crown, addressing critical gaps.

The Treaty Law School provides a forum for treaty talks based on sovereignty. It also initiates research and preservation for Treaty Leadership and governance archives.

Media is welcome to attend. The event begins with a pipe ceremony at a tipi erected on the East Gate lawn of MRU on Thursday, Aug. 14 from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. and continues in Ross Glen Hall with a grand opening ceremony.

Topics include a wide range of laws related to treaties governance, leadership and governance, pre-Confederation treaties, sovereignty and much more. Attendees will include: Treaty People; Treaty partners and allies; Treaty leadership (elected, hereditary, community); Treaty advocates; lawyers; students and academics.

See the full schedule of events.

“Our history of governance must have a place in our education today. In a Treaty Law School, we are creating space for our inherent governance frameworks as our Ancestors stipulated. In a school of Indian Treaty Law thought, the focus is on governance frameworks as our Ancestors stipulated before and at the time of Treaty. Today, we seek this alignment with our inherent principles of nationhood and sovereignty.”

— Evelyn Poitras, Indigenous business and Economic Development Chair, MRU

“We are honoured to be hosting the Treaty Law School at Mount Royal University. The conference has been organized by our Ptarmigan Chair of Indigenous Business and Economic Development, Dr. Evelyn Poitras, who has gathered together important voices from across Canada for this event. The discussions and presentations at the Treaty Law School will become part of the archive that Dr. Poitras is creating to document and preserve the history and future of Indigenous governance in Canada. Her work will make a significant contribution allowing dissemination of this knowledge to communities across the country.”

— Kelly Williams-Whitt, Dean of Business, Communication and Aviation

Event: Treaty Law School
Date: Aug. 14 to Aug. 17
Time: See schedule
Location: Mount Royal University, 4825 Mount Royal Gate S.W.
Parking: Please park in EA loading zone

For further information or to arrange an interview, please contact:

Evelyn Poitras, Indigenous business and Economic Development Chair
Bissett School of Business, Entrepreneurship, Marketing, and Social Innovation
epoitras@mtroyal.ca
780.614.7576

Peter Glenn, Director of Communications
mediarelations@mtroyal.ca
403.463.6930