qaχayɛ mɛtštəm means many working together to accomplish something. These words capture the spirit and purpose of a new Tla’amin Service Model – a guide to deliver care, programs, and services in the Tla’amin way.
The teachings here are not new, rather our mission was to transcribe the wisdom of our ancestors and respected Tla’amin Elders into a useful tool for today.
Why a Tla’amin Service Model?
Tla’amin qaymɩxʷ come from a rich history of well-being that was produced through relationship with the territory, and maintained through the passing on of teachings about how to exist in right relations with the environment and people, and teachings about how to raise the next generations to do the same. This kept us well for literally thousands of years.
Settlers coming here and imposing colonialism – stealing our land, kidnapping our children – created ruptures in our social fabric. This is a relatively short time ago, and we carry the legacy of that disruption in our relationships today. We continue healing by drawing on our teachings, investing in the restoration of our well-being, and addressing our trauma and patterns of behaviour.
The 2016 Tla’amin treaty clarified our relationship with other governments and created new space and opportunity for Tla’amin to centre Tla’amin teachings in service redesign.
Going Back To Go Forward
We know that delivering our own programs and services to our loved ones in our own ways is key to the healing work needed to move forward.
With that in mind, the Tla’amin Service Model is modelled on a χa:p̓, a baby basket. The process of preparing, weaving, and caring for a baby basket carries the wisdom of our ancestors needed today as we design made-in-Tla’amin services and recover from colonialism.
Our future is partly about restoring how things were, but also about bringing that into the present, recognizing that we’re all here to stay. qaχayɛ mɛtštəm helps everyone involved to better understand who we are and what we care about as Tla’amin qaymɩxʷ in our service delivery.
Explore the Service Model
This Service Model outlines the concepts we hold in our hearts and minds as we plan, design, and deliver services; as we relate to one another in service delivery; and as we make decisions, monitor progress, and evaluate services. Each phase of making a χa:p̓ has something to teach us about how we can approach programs and services – Visit each of these pages to read more or view our qaχayɛ mɛtštəm poster.
