Publications

We have many resources that you may find useful, whether you are taking first steps towards understanding reconciliation and decolonization, or if you are figuring out how to move from understanding to action.

Books

Settler: Identity and Colonialism, 2nd edition – Fernwood Press, 2025

The second edition of the landmark book, originally released in 2015, is expanded and updated to reflect the many changes from the past decade.

What people are saying:

Shauneen Pete, Royal Roads University

“While my own thinking and practice as an educator was greatly transformed by the first edition, this one takes it to a new level. The new edition is current and deeply grounded in the theoretical, and social movement changes that have occurred since the original version was published. The authors expose how settler colonialism permeates the political landscape today and demonstrate in depth that settler colonialism is far from over, morphing as Indigenous peoples confront it. This updated version will continue to serve as a central resource in my teaching and leadership work.”

Paulette Regan, author of Unsettling the Settler Within: Indian Residential Schools, Truth Telling, and Reconciliation in Canada

“A thought-provoking critical analysis of how settler identity and colonialism manifests across the political spectrum in contemporary Canada. Informed by the works of Indigenous scholars and activists, the authors argue that relationships to land are foundational to both Indigenous and Settler identities. Packed with fresh conceptual insights, personal experiences, political strategies, and practical tools for Settler Canadians engaged in the decolonization process. A must-read that will unsettle you, inspire you, and generate much-needed critical hope for working collaboratively with Indigenous Peoples to build a decolonial society based on truth, justice, and accountability.”

David MacDonald, author of The Sleeping Giant Awakens: Genocide, Indian Residential Schools, and the Challenge of Conciliation

“A much-needed update to a classic, groundbreaking text, including important distinctions around region and racialization.”

Karl Hele, Mount Allison University

“An excellent exploration of Canadian Settler constructs and ways to decolonize … aimed at redefining relationships to lands and peoples.”

Jeffrey S. Denis, author of Canada at a Crossroads: Boundaries, Bridges, and Laissez-Faire Racism in Indigenous-Settler Relations

Settler offers a concise, critical analysis of Canada’s settler-colonial present and its devastating impacts on Indigenous Peoples. Drawing on current examples and amplifying Indigenous scholars’ voices, Battell Lowman and Barker highlight the complexities of Settler identities and the responsibilities of all Settlers to move beyond symbolic gestures or modest reforms. Instead, they begin to chart an unsettling yet hopeful path toward radical decolonial change and the creation of equitable, sustainable relationships with Indigenous Peoples and the lands we call home.”


Making and Breaking Settler Space: Five Centuries of Colonization in North America – UBC Press, 2021

Making and Breaking Settler Space proposes an innovative, unified spatial theory of settler colonization in Canada and the United States. In the process, it uncovers systemic weaknesses that can inform the decolonization efforts of resurgent Indigenous nations and settler activists alike, and argues for relationships founded on solidarity and shared acknowledgment that the settler project is a failed one.

Video & Audio

“Oh Canada: Discussing Canadian Pride with Nuance” – NCTR Dialogues series (2025)

Emma Battell Lowman and Adam Barker in discussion with Sandra Bender of the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation on what it means to be Canadian, the problems of nationalism, and being honest about our country.

“We Need to Talk About Settler Colonialism” – Borders Talk podcast (2024)

Hosted by Border Studies academics Zalfa Feghali and Gillian Roberts, Adam Barker and Emma Battell Lowman discuss the importance of understanding borders as settler colonial creations.

“Learning With Syeyutsus Speaker Series: Making and Breaking Settler Space” (2023)

Adam Barker, along with Emma Battell Lowman, discusses the work behind his book “Making and Breaking Settler Space” with the ‘Learning with Syeyutsus Speaker Series,’ hosted by Nanaimo-Ladysmith School District 68 and supported by UBC Press.

Articles & Chapters

“Indigenous Resurgence” (2024)

In The Handbook of Indigenous Public Policy edited by Sheryl Lightfoot and Sarah Maddisson (Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing, pp.352-372).

“The Spaces of Dangerous Freedom: Disrupting settler Colonialism” (2016)

In The Limits of Settler Colonial Reconciliation: Non-Indigenous People and the Responsibility to Engage edited by Sarah Maddisson, Ravi da Costa & Tom Clark (Sydney, AU: Springer).