UW Athletics and Recreation unveiled its Indigenous-inspired logo, designed by professional artist, Kyle Joedickie, a Cayuga Turtle Clan member of the Six Nations of the Grand River. This effort was in conjunction with the Office of Indigenous Relations.
In a video by UW Athletics unveiling the logo, Joedicke said, “The importance of this logo for the Indigenous community both on and off campus is visibility. It’s recognition, and it’s respect really, for the contributions that Indigenous people have made on our Western culture throughout history.”
In his design, Joedicke said that meaning in the logo has to do with the iconography of the Woodland school of art, a genre of painting among First Nations and Native American artists from the Great Lakes area. This art style emphasizes vibrant colours, outlines and X-ray views.
“When you look at it from afar, what you see is kind of the community of the University of Waterloo as a whole, but when you get up closer to the design, you start to see a little bit more of the intricacies that are woven into the community,” Joedick said.
In creating this new logo design, Joedickie worked closely with Indigenous knowledge keeper at UW, Elder Myeengun Henry. Roly Webster, the director of athletics and recreation at the UW, also helped to make the new logo a reality.
The W store is carrying and selling merchandise with this new logo, announcing that 10 per cent of the sales will go to the Indigenous Student Development Fund, with an additional 10 per cent going to the Warriors Equity, Diversion and Inclusion Funds within Warriors Athletics.
