Last month, I found myself standing in front of an art installation at the Vancouver Art Gallery. The piece, created by Indigenous artist Demian DinéYazhi, featured three unapologetic statements glowing in neon:

We deserve dignity over solidarity

We desire survival over statements

We demand resources over acknowledgements

In that moment, the weight of those words hit me hard. We’ve all heard so much about reconciliation, seen so many gestures, but this installation cut through all the noise. It was a call to action – direct, unflinching, and urgent. And it got me thinking: as September 30th, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, approaches, is the business community really doing enough? Are we stepping up in a meaningful way?

For too long, we’ve relied on words – statements of solidarity, land acknowledgements, corporate pledges that make us feel warm and fuzzy but do little to address the real needs of Indigenous communities. It’s time we move beyond symbolic gestures. The business community in Canada must recognize its role in reconciliation and take bold, decisive steps to be part of the solution.

We can no longer pretend that the trauma inflicted by the residential school system and the broader policies of colonization are distant history. This isn’t about what happened hundreds of years ago – these are recent scars, still felt by generations today. The last residential school closed in 1996. Survivors and their families are still living with those scars; consequences of a system designed to strip them of their identity, culture, and dignity.

As business leaders, we have immense influence. We shape public perception, create economic opportunities, and set the tone for what is acceptable in our society. The question we must ask ourselves is: Are we using that influence to contribute to reconciliation, or are we stuck in a cycle of well-intentioned but ultimately performative actions?

The days when businesses could remain neutral on social issues are over. It seems that the business community in Canada is ready to have real, sometimes uncomfortable conversations about its role in reconciliation. But the truth is, we need to do more than just issue statements of support – we need to be willing to act, invest, and make real change.

Supporting Indigenous communities is not just the responsibility of governments or charities – it’s on all of us. That means moving beyond land acknowledgements in email signatures and putting resources where they matter, in ways that make a tangible difference. Things like investing in Indigenous-led enterprises, hiring Indigenous employees and involving them in decision-making, implementing the Truth & Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action, and using September 30th as a day of meaningful action rather than just reflection.

There’s no more hiding behind good intentions. Reconciliation demands more. It demands that businesses stop treating this as someone else’s problem and recognize the power they hold in shaping the future.

The question is no longer “should we act?” but “how bold are we willing to be in our actions?”

As September 30th approaches, I urge every business leader to reflect on what side of history they want to be on. We cannot change the past, but we are responsible for what comes next.

The time to act isn’t tomorrow or next year. It’s now.

Photo: Extractive Industries by Demian DinéYazhi, Vancouver Art Gallery. Image credit: Kristi Searle.

Full resolution image available for download here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PzeKslWMIrKTqEFS3T06UbfgXcPkHJKq/view?usp=sharing

Kristi Searle is the CEO of Peoplebiz Consulting, a leading HR firm, based in Vancouver. A proud Métis business leader with over 30 years of experience, Kristi has worked with Indigenous organizations, employers, and governments across Canada to drive meaningful change.