Decolonizing Finance: Zuzana Duris on Accounting, Reconciliation, and Cultural Safety

Finance often lives behind the scenes and can appear disconnected from larger shifts in organizational direction and transformation. In reality, finance structures relationships through aligning budgets with practice, regulating how resources are exchanged, and shaping how we think about accountability and what priorities matter. 

In this way, finance departments and professionals are essential to the work of decolonization and reconciliation. They hold power and agency to reshape relationships, the responsibilities we carry through them, and how fiscal accountability includes the work of reconciliation and decolonization.

This could involve: 

• Adapting or generating new practices of accountability that center cultural safety (i.e. ensuring Elders are paid honouraria appropriately and in cash were needed).

• Ensuring budgets are aligned with organizational commitments to reconciliation or to recommendations outlined through the Truth & Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Calls to Action.

At LPC, we are on our own learning journey with respect to cultural safety, decolonization and reconciliation. For Zuzana Duris, Manager of Finance at LPC, this learning has invited a deeper understanding of how finance connects to this work.

“Finance is often such an administrative, behind-the-scenes area, so these questions encouraged me to think more deeply about the connection between my work and the broader values at LPC.” - Zuzana Duris, Manager of Finance, LPC

Finance is not separate from reconciliation

Finance and accounting professionals are trained to think about accuracy, compliance, efficiency, reporting, and risk. These skills are essential. But Zuzana’s learning journey at LPC has expanded how she understands the systems behind those practices.

When reflecting on what decolonization, cultural safety, and reconciliation had to do with her work, Zuzana shared:

“Over time at LPC, I began to understand that financial systems are never completely neutral. The way organizations allocate resources, define accountability, build policies, and make decisions can either support or limit relationships, equity, and community wellbeing.”

Budgets are more than operational tools; they show what an organization values. Similarly, financial policies shape who has access, who experiences barriers, and how trust is built and maintained. 

It is important to recognize that financial instruments have been an important instrument of colonization. In his book Colonialism's Currency: Money, State, and First Nations in Canada, 1820-1950, Dr. Brian Gettler details how financial processes were essential to practices of colonization and the control of Indigenous peoples. This included control measures that were applied in a discriminatory way to Indigenous veterans payments, to limit and further control their use of funds (Gettler 2021). Forms of systemic racism like this reflect and uphold racist ideas that Indigenous people cannot be trusted with money.

Engaging in the work of reconciliation within the context of finance means understanding how financial instruments structure relationships. It also means being intentional about supporting relationships grounded in cultural safety, respect and support of Indigenous sovereignty.

Numbers tell a story

In accounting, numbers are often treated as objective. But to really understand the story numbers are telling us, we need to be critical of their context. We must reflect deeply on how systems of power shape what is tracked, the meaning we make and how we act on that information. 

“Numbers tell a story, but the systems behind them are shaped by human decisions, priorities, and power structures.” - Zuzana Duris, Manager of Finance, LPC

It is important to recognize that financial systems have complex histories. Budgets carry particular assumptions. Accountability processes reflect decisions about power, authority, access, and trust. These systems can either uphold the status quo or help create more culturally safe and equitable ways of working.

This means that finance professionals have an important role to play in asking better questions in collaboration with their teams, including: 

• Who benefits from this policy?

• Who might be burdened by this process?

• Does this budget reflect our stated values & commitments with respect to reconciliation?

• Are our timelines realistic and respectful?

• Are we creating barriers for communities, Elders, Knowledge Keepers, or partners? How can we address these barriers to strengthen relationships and trust?

• Are we practicing accountability in ways that build trust and shared respect or that uphold mistrust and unjustifiable surveillance?

  
  

Moving through discomfort with humility

Learning about decolonization and cultural safety can bring up discomfort, especially for professionals who are new to these conversations or who come from different cultural, educational, or professional backgrounds.

For Zuzana, one of the challenging parts of the journey was navigating the fear of getting it wrong.

“Coming from a different cultural and educational background, I sometimes worried about saying the wrong thing or not fully understanding the context” 

Many professionals feel this way. The fear of making a mistake can sometimes lead people to stay quiet, avoid the work, or leave the responsibilities of reconciliation to others. But cultural safety and reconciliation are not about perfection. They are about humility, responsibility, listening, learning, and continuing to show up.

This realization helped Zuzana move away from worrying about perfection and toward embracing learning as an ongoing journey. For her, humility has become an important part of professional growth, recognizing that there is always more to understand and that meaningful change often begins with listening. 

That same spirit applies here. The work for finance professionals is less about getting it right and more about reflection and stepping into the discomfort of uncertainty.

What finance professionals can do now

For accountants, bookkeepers, CFOs, finance managers, and operational leaders, reconciliation may not always feel connected to the day-to-day responsibilities of the role. But Zuzana offers a clear place to begin:

“Reconciliation and decolonization are ongoing processes, not checklists. Finance professionals can start by reflecting on how their systems, policies, and decision-making processes affect relationships, access, and trust within organizations and communities.”

Reconciliation in finance might look like reviewing payment processes to ensure they do not create unnecessary hardship. It might mean asking whether contracts, procurement practices, or reporting requirements reflect reciprocity and respect. It might mean building budgets that make space for relationship-building, cultural protocols, accessibility, community engagement, and fair compensation for Indigenous knowledge and expertise.

It may also mean slowing down enough to understand the impact of financial decisions before they are finalized. 

These shifts can help finance professionals move beyond transactional thinking and toward relational accountability.

The work of decolonization touches every part of an organization

Decolonization is not only a conversation for facilitators, educators, executives, or front-facing teams. It belongs in every part of an organization, including the systems that manage money, resources, policies, and accountability.

Finance has a powerful role in shaping our shared future.

When finance professionals approach their work with humility, transparency, and care, they help create the conditions for trust. When they question inherited systems and examine who those systems serve, they contribute to meaningful change.

Zuzana’s reflections remind us that the work of reconciliation is not always loud or public. Sometimes it happens in the quiet spaces of an organization, where decisions are made, resources are allocated, and systems are built.

"I still see myself as a learner in this work. What has stayed with me is the understanding that every role has the ability to contribute to reconciliation. We may not all contribute in the same way, but we all have a responsibility to reflect on how our work impacts others and how we can support more respectful and equitable relationships." 

References

1. Crevier, M. (2021, June 8). Money and colonialism in Canada: An interview with Brian Gettler. Toynbee Prize Foundation. https://toynbeeprize.org/posts/an-interview-with-brian-gettler/

2. Gettler, B. (2020). Colonialism’s currency: Money, state, and First Nations in Canada, 1820–1950. McGill-Queen’s University Press.