“What is the Spirit of this Gathering?” Indigenous Sport Policy-Makers and Self-Determination in Canada

Abstract

In this article, I examine how the process of Indigenous participation in policy-making pertaining to the development of federal sport policy in Canada is connected to Indigenous forms of self-determination. By conducting semi-structured interviews with six Indigenous sport policy-makers, I investigate how their respective thoughts, experiences, and actions shape their perspective on self-determination. My analysis shows that a focus on relationships was at the center of the interviewed Indigenous sport policy-makers’ approaches to the promotion of Indigenous self-determination. Furthermore, the relational nature of Indigenous policy-makers’ identities was also central to their pursuit of self-determination. The promotion of family and community type relationships with government representatives could be used as an outcome of policy-making, in addition to traditional policy directives.