Call for Papers – Treaty 6 at 150: Reading the Land, Reckoning the Past

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Call for Papers – Treaty 6 at 150: Reading the Land, Reckoning the Past

A NiCHE and SHFS Series

Proposal Deadline: 8 May 2026

Series publication beginning in August 2026
SHFS Saskatchewan History & Folklore Society Logo

“Canada clearly understood the treaties to be the mechanism whereby it obtained exclusive jurisdiction over land and resources. This was never the First Nations understanding.” – Javed Sommers1

August 2026 marks the 150th anniversary of the signing of Treaty Six between the Crown and First Nations in the territory. It covers large parts of present-day Alberta and Saskatchewan. The treaty included standard terms like land surrender, reserves, farming support, education, and annuities, but also unique provisions such as a “medicine chest” and a famine relief clause.2

The treaties marked a definitive federal push to forcibly contain and manage Indigenous land use, shifting away from Indigenous-led seasonal land stewardship, to government-controlled agricultural and extractive uses. The implementation of the reserve system played a major role in this process. 

As James Daschuk powerfully demonstrated in Clearing the Plains, Indigenous leaders across the prairies, including those that signed Treaty Six, hoped that the treaties would protect their people and help them deal with the onslaught of diseases, such as smallpox, and increasing hunger, largely due to the depletion of bison herds. On the other side of the treaty-signing process, this help was nowhere to be found.  

To mark the 150th anniversary of Treaty Six (and the Indian Act), NiCHE and the Saskatchewan History and Folklore Society (SHFS) invite submissions of 500 – 2,000 words that explore the environmental impact of Canada’s treaties in this particular region of the country. 

An extension of our From Coulees to Muskeg: A Saskatchewan Environmental History Series, accepted submissions will be published on our website and considered for publication in SHFS’s Folklore magazine.

We invite submissions on any environmental topic related to the history of the Treaty Six territory, including:

  • Agriculture and Agricultural Assimilation
  • Resource Extraction (mining, forestry, etc.) 
  • Seasonality
  • Indigenous Ingenuity
  • Biodiversity Loss 
  • Food sovereignty
  • Water 
  • Natural Resource Governance 
  • Recreation and conservation 
  • Climate 
  • Forestry and Wildfires
  • Reconciliation

Please submit a 150-word proposal and a 100-word bio using THIS FORM by 30 June 2026. Accepted proposals will be notified on a rolling basis. The series will begin publication in August 2026.

Submit Proposal to Treaty 6 at 150
  1. Javed Sommers, “Legislating Broken Promises: Canada’s Natural Resources Transfer Agreement Today,” Network in Canadian History and Environment (NiCHE), 19 June 2023, https://niche-canada.org/2023/06/19/legislating-broken-promises-canadas-natural-resources-transfer-agreement-today/. ↩︎
  2. Bob Beal, “Treaty 6,” Indigenous Saskatchewan Encyclopedia. Accessed 1 April 2026. https://teaching.usask.ca/indigenoussk/import/treaty_6.php ↩︎
Feature Image: This plan depicts lands associated with Big River I.R. 118A (Canada Lands #06608). The lands depicted in this plan are associated with Big River First Nation. “854 CLSR SK. Plan, Indian Reserve No. 118A, Addition for Big River Indians of Reserve no. 118. Treaty 6, Saskatchewan. [cartographic material].” 1908. Library and Archives Canada.

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Jessica DeWitt

NiCHE Editor-in-Chief, Social Media Editor at Jessica M. DeWitt: Editing and Consulting
is an environmental historian of Canada and the United States, editor, project manager, consultant, and digital communications strategist. She earned her PhD in History from the University of Saskatchewan in 2019. She is an executive member, editor-in-chief, and social media editor for the Network in Canadian History and Environment (NiCHE). She is the Managing Editor for the Chacruna Institute for Psychedelic Plant Medicines and Associate Editor for Environmental Humanities. Closer to home, she is the President of the Saskatchewan History and Folklore Society, a Coordinating Team member of Showing Up for Racial Justice Saskatoon-Treaty Six, and a Conservation Advisory Committee member for the Meewasin Valley Authority. She focuses on developing digital techniques and communications that bridge the divide between academia and the general public in order to democratize knowledge access. You can find out more about her and her freelance services at jessicamdewitt.com.

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