ACCT Land and Cultural Acknowledgement

Land and Cultural Acknowledgement 

At the Association of Cooperative Counselling Therapists (ACCT), we acknowledge that our cooperative exists and operates across many Indigenous territories throughout Canada. Although our postal address is located on the unceded ancestral lands of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and səlil̓ilw̓ətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, our organization has no physical office, and our members, staff, and volunteers live and work in many regions, including across western provinces where counselling is not yet provincially regulated.

We recognize that all of our work takes place on the traditional territories of Indigenous Peoples—lands that were often taken without treaty, consent, or compensation. As a professional community of counsellors and psychotherapists, we are committed to increasing our understanding of the historic and ongoing harms of colonization, and to building practices that are rooted in respect, cultural humility, and reconciliation.

We also honour the diverse cultural identities, healing traditions, and lived experiences that shape our cooperative. Many of our members are immigrants, descendants of settlers, or part of diasporic communities whose lives intersect with the histories of migration, resilience, and cultural disconnection. Our commitment to equity and inclusion calls us to recognize both privilege and oppression in our field—and to continually re-examine how we practice, govern, and serve.

As part of our commitment, we:

• Encourage ongoing learning about Indigenous worldviews, cultural safety, and anti-oppressive practice
  
  
• Recognize and support diverse approaches to healing and leadership
  
  
• Create space for member dialogue and lived experience to shape our governance
  
  
• Strive to promote ethical, inclusive, and community-informed psychotherapy
  
  
• Support the regulation of counselling in all provinces while advocating for approaches that honour diversity and accountability
  
  

We invite our members, partners, and the public to walk with us in cultivating a cooperative culture of respect, reflection, and repair.