The Geomedia Laboratory at Concordia University (Montreal) was established in 2011 within the Department of Geography Planning and Environment. This lab was born from the convergence of two growing domains: (1) geospatial technologies with the development of the geoweb; and (2) emerging mapping practices in domains such as literary studies, film studies, oral history, and in the humanities in general. The main goal of this lab is to further explore these emerging cartographic practices and to contribute to the development of new mapping applications. The work of the Geomedia lab is supported by Concordia University and funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), as well as by the Fonds de Recherche du Québec – Société et Culture (FRQSC) and by the CANARIE Canada.
Geography, as a profession and cartography as a tool and discipline, have played and continue to play an active role in shaping the settler colonial enterprise in what is now so-called Canada, subjecting Indigenous Peoples to ongoing colonial and racist violence, and land dispossession. The Geomedia lab, which is part of Concordia University, is located on unceded Indigenous lands. Tiohtià:ke/Montréal is historically known as a gathering place for many First Nations. We thank the Kanien’kehá:ka Nation who have and continue to care for lands and waters on which we conduct our research, teaching and practice. By making this Land Acknowledgement, we respect the past, present and future jurisdiction of the Kanien’kehá:ka Nation in Tiohtià:ke and commit to nurturing our ongoing relationships with Indigenous and other peoples within the Montreal community.