Tipi and Teaching Lodge permanently added to U of T Mississauga campus

University of Toronto Mississauga students and staff helped raise a permanent Tipi and Teaching Lodge on campus.

The tipi and lodge went up today (Sept. 13) on Principal’s Road, a quiet treed area, away from the centre of campus that leads to the Principal’s residence.

All students were invited to help raise the structures in a one-day event on campus, said Jessica Tabak, special project officer, Indigenous Initiatives UTM.

David Lundberg of Sewn Homes, a company that makes authentic, traditional tipis and lodges, brought the two structures to the campus, and led the students and staff in raising them.

The lodge is new but the tipi was located near soccer fields close to the main buildings on campus last year. Tabak said they chose to move it to this new location as it is much quieter.

“It feels more intimate, private…you can hear the birds,” she said.

The Tipi will be used for traditional, sacred ceremonies and requires traditional protocol while using it. It has capacity for 21 people.

The Teaching Lodge is not bound by the same formalities and will be used as a teaching environment or for special events. Around 24 people can fit in the lodge.

The lodge has wood stove to provide heat through the winter months. And the Tipi has a ceremonial fire pit.

Both structures will be used by Indigenous and non-Indigenous UTM students.