Glenlyon Norfolk School Students Honoured in the NCTR’s Imagine a Canada Program

Two GNS students were selected as one of 15 groups from across Canada this year as part of the National Truth and Reconciliation Centre’s Imagine a Canada program. Anne Yu and Linnea Wolf’s collaborative artwork entitled “Art for Action” illustrates the 94 Calls to Action. 

The honourees attended a powerful honouring ceremony at the Canadian Museum of Human Rights in Winnipeg, Manitoba, on May 23, 2025. Anne and Linnea presented their art piece and spoke about its meaning.

“In our piece Art For Action, we read all 94 Calls to Action and interpreted them in our own way to create a visual representation of the meanings behind each one. We created this art piece to promote reconciliation and raise awareness about the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action. After further research, we discovered that only 13 of the 94 calls have been completed in the last 10 years. This made us realize that awareness is the first step to reconciliation and that simply reading the calls is a small step that we can all take. We hope to see a future Canada where each of the calls to action has been properly addressed and acted upon.”

A residential school survivor and Anita Neville, the Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba were among the notable dignitaries who spoke at the event, highlighting the significance of reconciliation. Before the ceremony, Anne and Linnea participated in a virtual learning and listening activity, receiving instruction directly from Indigenous Elders, Survivors and Knowledge Keepers. The students learned more about how to engage and lead difficult conversations, how to be a reconciliation leader and how to plan future projects effectively.

GNS MYP Art Teacher, Ms. Sarah Keppler, encouraged them to apply to this annual initiative. Anne shares that she was inspired to participate as “I think it’s important to help raise awareness for something really important like truth and reconciliation.” She had the idea of depicting each of the Calls to Action (CTAs) individually and shared this idea with Ms. Keppler. Anne recruited Linnea to join the project, and they were also inspired by the stylings of Canadian artist Maud Lewis. The 94 Calls to Action are the actionable policy recommendations put forward by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 2015, meant to aid the healing process.

Both Anne and Linnea put a lot of thought and consideration into each one of the squares. In addition, they read all 94 CTAs in their entirety. Ms. Keppler shares that “I think the process of reading through the CTAs is something that many people don’t do and it’s an incredibly meaningful process.” 

Anne and Linnea were also very invested in the process of how exactly to depict each CTA, planning out the piece meticulously. They spent many hours at lunch and after school working on it in addition to class time. Ms. Keppler called it a very strong submission and was thrilled to hear that Anne and Linnea were selected. 

The ceremony itself was an optimistic and inspiring experience, with youth from all over Canada coming together to share their ideas. Students from Yukon to Newfoundland explained how they imagined Canada could be better, sharing their visions for the future. 

For Anne, one of the highlights was hearing from her fellow honourees: “I think it was really cool to see the other artists and their concepts. I learned a lot about more Indigenous stories and what they experienced in residential schools. It was really informative.” The importance of the location was not lost on any of the attendees who had a chance to tour the museum to learn more about global affairs and human rights across Canada and around the world.

Ms. Keppler is deeply inspired by the piece and hopes it has a lasting impact on the GNS community. “It shows that art can make a difference and that it can communicate important ideas and inspire change and new ways of thinking. Art can influence how others interact with the world or how they might strive towards making the world a better place.” 

Middle School Principal Mr. Russ Marston sums it up perfectly: “The students put their creativity and activism to such good use!” 

Well done, Anne and Linnea!