TRINA COOPER-BOLAM

I have dedicated much of my career to transforming the legacy of Indian residential schools, previously holding senior roles at both the Aboriginal Healing Foundation and the Legacy of Hope Foundation. These organizations played an instrumental role in supporting the healing process and advocating for change in the way Canada addresses the impacts of residential schools.

 

Currently, I am a Banting Postdoctoral Researcher at Concordia University, where I focus on research-creation that combines immersive virtual storytelling with survivor-driven interpretation and memorialization of residential school sites. My work builds on the award-winning exhibition Reclaiming Shingwauk Hall, which I co-curated, and my ongoing research project Storied Transformations, which brings together students and survivors to create land-based narratives for monumental 3D projections.

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My academic and professional focus lies in critical and praxiological museology, particularly in the context of difficult knowledge and commemoration. In 2014, I contributed to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s final report with my article “Healing Heritage: New Approaches to Commemorating Canada’s Indian Residential School System,” which influenced the TRC’s commemoration-focused Calls to Action. This work ultimately led to changes in national funding programs for heritage designation, commemoration, and memorialization. In 2018, my article “On the Call for a Residential Schools National Monument,” published in the Journal of Canadian Studies, sparked dialogue within the Department of Canadian Heritage on socially-engaged processes of monument creation. This work played a key role in initiating the $20 million Residential Schools National Monument project and contributed to the development of a UNDRIP-informed Indigenous engagement strategy for the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

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In addition to my research and writing, I actively advise on Commemorate Canada, the federal commemoration program, and serve on the Commemoration Advisory Committee for the City of Ottawa. My professional experience also includes curating and designing exhibitions focused on Indigenous history and experiences. Throughout my career, I’ve received numerous accolades, including the Senate Medal (2020), the Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship, and the Ontario Historical Society’s 2018 Indigenous History Award, along with recognition from the Shingwauk Residential Schools Centre. My work continues to bridge the gaps between academic research, community engagement, and commemoration, always with the goal of promoting healing and understanding.