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Conference Asbtracts
(Lightning Round Presentations at the bottom)
Fostering and Strengthening Connections: Building a National Indigenous Youth Mental Health and Wellness Network
Gage Sabattis, Clifford Ballatyne, Naomi Epp, Carolyn Melro
The purpose of this workshop is to envision how we can gather and collaborate as a national network, share strengths, and identify challenges we can collectively work towards. The ACCESS Open Minds Indigenous Youth Mental Health and Wellness Network supports health service delivery and system transformation for and with Indigenous youth, family members and carers, Elders, and Knowledge Holders through research and evaluation. The workshop will have two parts: 1. What do you or your organization do to support Indigenous youth? Or what supports do Indigenous youth need or desire?; and 2. What can our network focus on to help support your initiative to meet the needs of Indigenous youth, particularly in urban settings? We will have a young adult and a community advisors lead this arts-based workshop with support from staff and researchers to share briefly about our network and how folks can be involved. We want to gather to explore the ways that cultural connection serves as a cornerstone for building resilience, providing a sense of belonging, purpose, and strength derived from ancestral knowledge and practices. Focusing on cultural connection involves examining various elements such as language revitalization, traditional arts and crafts, storytelling, and land-based activities. Each of these components plays a crucial role in reinforcing identity and fostering a strong sense of self. We hope to foster an inclusive space through an art activity where sharing of examples of integrated culturally based supports with evidence-base clinical care and identify beneficial network activities to help support participants work.
Weaving diverse perspectives on community-driven research: Co-creating research with, by and for Indigenous Peoples
Holly Reid, Monty Montgomery
Addressing the health-related needs of Indigenous communities requires understanding the unique, intersectional and historically rooted experiences influencing Indigenous health and well-being. Research often fails to include the community of interest in the research development process, which is a vital aspect of the research journey. Thus, research related to the health and well-being of Two-Spirit and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (2S/LGBTQ+) Indigenous Peoples has often been designed, conducted and mobilized with minimal, if any, input from those with experiential knowledge. This session will highlight how our community-based study demonstrates respectful research relationship building and fostering multi-directional learning through research priority-setting with 2S/LGBTQ+ Indigenous Peoples, and which shaped the collaborative development of a doctoral study. Methods: Métis sash weaving as metaphor will ground this community dialogue session, where we will share about our 4-year research process in partnership with two Indigenous-led organizations to explore the experiences of 2S/LGBTQ+ Indigenous Peoples and will invite others to share their experiences related to community-based research. Objectives: 1) Evoke thoughtful discussion and knowledge exchange among attendees related to the process of co-creating community-driven research; 2) Engage attendees in storytelling about the joys and challenges of community-based well-being research; and 3) Discuss key considerations for how to design and conduct research that is responsive to a community of interest’s unique, intersectional well-being needs. Outcomes: This session will foster a welcoming and inclusive space for attendees to discuss and reflect on how to develop and undertake research that is self-determined by and with community.
Truths for Changing Futures: Indigenous and Newcomer Youth Finding Threads of Connection
Carla Hilario, Caroline Foster-Boucher, Josephine Wong
We wish to share knowledge co-created from our project, Truths for Changing Futures. The purpose of the research project is to co-design strategies with Indigenous and newcomer youth to advance decolonization and social change, and to explore how newcomer youth can contribute to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) of Canada. Our work draws from postcolonial and critical race theories that engage with the reality of Canada as a land that is still colonized. Using community-based participatory research, critical design methods, and foresight strategy, we engaged Indigenous and newcomer youth in Alberta and British Columbia identifying key elements of reconciliatory futures for Canadian society. In our presentation, discuss the ways in which our work can weave together Indigenous-newcomer community, culture and knowledge, and contribute to the social innovation and research experimentation needed to identify Canada’s strategic foresights towards reconciliation, decolonization and health equity.
Decolonizing Conceptions of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Melanie Nelson, XiaoYing Zhang, G. Thomas Schanding, Jr.
Co-Authors: Makayla Freeman, Aly Moscovitz
Western psychiatric frameworks, particularly the DSM-5, have significant limitations in conceptualizing and diagnosing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among Indigenous Peoples in Canada. Western models, rooted in individualistic and event-focused paradigms, inadequately capture the collective, intergenerational, and systemic nature of trauma arising from ongoing colonial violence. Many Indigenous worldviews emphasize relationality, land-based wellness, and holistic healing that are deeply connected to mind, body, spirit and heart. Indigenous Focusing-Oriented Therapy (IFOT), as practiced by some Indigenous Peoples, such as the Wet’suwet’en Nation, exemplifies culturally grounded healing approaches that emphasize holistic wellness and community interconnectedness, conceptualizing trauma as a source of strength, and survivance as a “Trauma Wisdom Tree” rather than pathology. Centering the Wet’suwet’en Nation’s adaptation of IFOT, we explore how healing practices grounded in traditional governance, land (yintah) connection, and ancestral wisdom address historical trauma while fostering intergenerational resilience. We critique the DSM-5’s marginal treatment of culture and argue for a decolonized, Indigenized approach to mental health that honors Indigenous ways of knowing, being, and healing. Finally, the paper outlines pathways for beginning reconciliation, including deconstructing colonial structures in psychotherapy, supporting Indigenous self-determination in mental health services, and increasing Indigenous methodologies in mainstream education and practice.
Wood smoke Impact on the Lung by Dose (WILD) Study
Shayna Uhryn
Wildfire seasons are increasing in duration and intensity, with millions exposed to smoky air annually. Wildfire smoke is enriched in small particles, known as fine particulate matter (PM2.5, or particles less than 2.5 microns in width), which float in the air for up to thousands of miles and are inhaled into the lung. There is evidence of lung health effects in populations exposed to wildfire smoke, however how different concentrations of smoke affect lung health is poorly understood. I will link two clinical studies in the UBC Air Pollution Exposure Lab (APEL) that together test a range of wood smoke (a recognized surrogate for wildfire smoke) concentrations. After two hours of controlled human exposures to wood smoke PM2.5 at concentrations of 500μg/m3 (study 1), 300μg/m3 or 100μg/m3 (study 2), each observed in Canada during annual wildfire seasons, I will examine effects on lung function and inflammation. I will align the protocols across studies and use statistical methods to compare differences in response by concentration. Not only will my study extend knowledge as to how smoke affects lung health, but it will also provide a basis by which to develop and test targeted interventions aimed at reducing the lung health impacts of this increasingly relevant exposure.
Beading is Medicine: weaving our health and wellness into traditions
Teia Miron-Maracle
The Aaniish Naa Gegii team offers a tool to guide conversations about wellness tools as well as a Wellness Resource Hub. Our resource hub focuses on collecting and providing culturally relevant resources for the wellness of Indigenous children and youth. Through the work within the resource hub, we have held workshops to support Indigenous wellness. In the approach of these workshops, they follow a decolonial framework that involves artistic forms of creative freedom (ex: foraging, bag making, rattle making, colouring, and drawing. The use of indigenizing wellness is a an essential [critical?] component of our work. We are proposing a workshop titled “Beading is Medicine: weaving our health and wellness into traditions.” Through this workshop, attendees will have a chance to bead a medicine wheel brooch while learning the importance of Indigenous wellness relating to Medicine Wheel Teachings, which are rooted in the ACHWM mission and values. The Medicine Wheel teaching is one we carry through all stages of life and seasons. It is from this teaching that we can ground ourselves in the root beliefs of First Nation values.
Epistemic wellbeing in times of uncertainty: How can we care for Indigenous Knowledges?
Lindsay DuPré Fiddler, Aaron Derrickson, Shawn Wilson
Indigenous paradigms have developed over millennia, carefully tested and honed by Indigenous peoples seeking to understand our place within the cosmos. The living Knowledge systems underlying these paradigms have allowed our communities to live in balance with the territories that sustain us, bridging our physical and spiritual worlds through the rigour of Indigenous Science. Through this dialogue focused session, Indigenous scholars Shawn Wilson (Opaskwayak Cree), Aaron Derrickson (Syilx), and Lindsay DuPré (Métis) will examine wellbeing in the context of epistemic relationships. The first half of this 90 minute session will include an introduction and conversation where they will consider: What does a thriving Indigenous Knowledge system look, sound, and feel like? How are rapidly changing environments exacerbating threats of epistemicide? And, what does it mean to be in good relationship with Indigenous Knowledge? The audience will then be welcomed into this conversation through a series of discussion activities facilitated by the three speakers. Participants will walk away with 1) a clearer understanding of the distinct needs and responsibilities of Indigenous epistemic relationships, and 2) ideas about how Indigenous methodologies can be applied in ways that protect the integrity and sustainability of Indigenous Knowledge systems.
We Walk Together: Exploring what connection to land, water, and territory means for health and wellness with BC First Nations Knowledge Keepers and youth
Leena Hassan, Elyse Big George
Co-Authors: Krista Stelkia, Anita Manshadi
Through the screening of three films (47mins total) from the FNHA-led We Walk Together research gatherings, we hope participants are uplifted by the teachings and experiences of the Elders, Knowledge Keepers and youth from communities in the Vancouver Coastal, Fraser Salish and Northern regions of BC and feel a sense and connection to the land, water and territory. We hope it inspires and illuminates conversations regarding their connections to their home territory and ways First Nations communities can monitor and advocate for progress around community access to land, the health of the land and action by governments and other decision-makers in supporting Indigenous land stewardship alongside Indigenous communities.
Yukon Strategy for Patient Oriented Research
Piper Fordham, Sylas Itsi
In the Yukon, the health disparities faced by Indigenous communities are not just statistics, they are lived realities. This community-led initiative gathers perspectives from Indigenous Peoples and healthcare providers on how traditional healing such as plant medicine, ceremonial practices, and culturally based nutrition can be meaningfully integrated into Yukon healthcare systems. Rooted in Indigenous ways of knowing and being, the project strengthens Indigenous voices while informing policies grounded in community-identified strengths and needs.This work builds on the project Access to Care: Impact of Cultural Services Provided at the Dawson City Community Hospital, a collaboration between Indigenous researcher, Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in, and Gu Nähtsey. That study showed how Indigenous-led approaches and cultural humility could support systemic change.Now expanding into Whitehorse, this next phase is led by Yukon First Nations youth Sylas Itsi and Piper Fordham, in partnership with the Yukon First Nations Health Program and the Kwanlin Dün Health Centre – Natsékhi Kų̀. The aim is to increase access to culturally safe, holistic care at Whitehorse General Hospital and beyond. Guided by Elders, Knowledge Keepers, youth, and healthcare professionals, the project uses storytelling, questionnaires, and relationship-building to shape healthcare policy and practice.Grounded in reconciliation, this work seeks to restore trust, address systemic inequities, and support healing, spiritually, emotionally, mentally, and physically for all Indigenous Peoples in the Yukon.
Indigenous Cancer Research in Canada
Peter Hutchinson
TBC
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Amplifying Indigenous Community Voices: A Program for Healing on and with the Land, from Incarceration and Criminalization
Denica Bleau, Jean Brown, Illyana Christian
Settler-colonialism has severely impacted Indigenous communities and people through the creation of prisons and incarceration. Trauma, as a result of incarceration and criminalization, has disrupted Indigenous communities through separating families, prohibiting culture and tradition, and effecting holistic wellness. Elders heed the advice to return to the Land to reconnect with ourselves and our healing. Land, plants and species are teachers and guides for how to love ourselves, our Nations and the Land, while providing emotional and spiritual healing and rejuvenation. The Splatsin community recognizes the importance of returning to the Land, in order to heal trauma that is a result of settler-colonial incarceration and criminalization. This presentation will focus on sharing a Land-based Healing Program Framework, which has been created by the Splatsin community and continues to be adapted by other Indigenous people in Canada who have been directly impacted by incarceration, or have been incarcerated. The Land-based Healing Program Framework is intended to be adapted and altered to fit other Indigenous Nations needs, while amplifying Indigenous voices and modalities of traditional healing.
PIHTIKWÊ: VISITS WITH FIRST NATIONS PSYCHOLOGISTS
Alanaise Ferguson
Co-Author: Holly Graham, Brenda Restoule
Psychologists to mobilize and share Indigenous Knowledge related to trauma repair, recovery from addictions, community survivance, and care across Indigenous communities in Canada. Our goal is to provide listeners with access to conversations about the lived experiences of First Nations psychologists and leaders in the mental wellness field. We will discuss how that relates to challenges and successes in navigating and working within systems of care, as well as strength-based and cultural approaches to healing for Indigenous people. The podcast episodes will discuss topics related to 1) Holistic strength-based approaches to care; 2) Challenges and successes in the field; 3) Personal perspectives and experiences; and 4) Analysis of the systems of care. This project centers the voices of Indigenous experts and leaders working in the mental wellness field to promote collective learning and mobilize knowledge to support Indigenous well-being. This podcast series is developed by the Healing from Trauma and Reducing Addictions group, part of the Network Environments for Indigenous Health Research (ON NEIHR) Program. Situated in 10 sites across Ontario, the ON NEIHR is demonstrating how health systems should move away from Western biomedical treatment of Indigenous medical illness to holistic, culturally based interventions instead (which include sacred aspects of healing: physical, spiritual, emotional, and mental dimensions). This program is funded by the Government of Canada, through the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). This group is led by Dr. Holly Graham (University of Saskatchewan), Dr. Brenda Restoule (First Peoples Wellness Circle), and Dr. Alanaise Ferguson (University of British Columbia-Okanagan). Acknowledgements: pihtikwê is produced by David McGuffin of Explore Podcast Productions. Graham McGuffin - production assistant. Our theme music is Kâkike, written and performed by Fawn Wood, an award winning Cree-Salish musician and songwriter.
Grass Roots Language Revitalization: Pathways to Language Work as a Living Practice
Abigail Cunningham, Cheyenne Cunningham, Kaitlyn Cunningham, Leah Meunier, Lilly Teare-Cunningham
Throughout our work, we continuously strive to bridge the gap between our hÉ™nÌ“qÌ“É™mí nÌ“É™mÌ“ speaking nations via academic programs, language gatherings and cultural activities. In 2022, we formed the xÊ·É™lmÉ™xÊ·qÉ™n cultural society (XWCS). Within XWCS, we share traditional and cultural knowledge through language activities and share those teachings amongst the greater public. Our main goal has been to create accessibility and foster reconnection. We understand that language is culture and culture is healing. It is important that we reclaim our power through practicing our xÊ·É™lmÉ™xÊ· ways of living and knowing. This work leads us to create stories, how-to guides, games, and other hÉ™nÌ“qÌ“É™minÌ“É™mÌ“ resources. Our collective is comprised of hÉ™nÌ“qÌ“É™minÌ“É™mÌ“ teachers, hÉ™nÌ“qÌ“É™minÌ“É™mÌ“ language learners, Elders and Knowledge Keepers from multiple nations. Our goal is to aid in the intergenerational transmission of hÉ™nÌ“qÌ“É™mí nÌ“É™mÌ“ in whatever ways we can. While we struggle with the absence of fluent speakers in this work, we’ve fostered relationships with Elders in our neighbouring nations and sister-dialect communities in order to continue on the work of language revitalization in a collective effort. The partnerships we continue to create guide us in our language revitalization work, to establish relationships based on reciprocity and the continued revival projects within our languages.
Weaving diverse perspectives on community-driven research: Co-creating research with, by and for Indigenous Peoples
Taylor Sounding Stone
For my presentation, Indigenous ways of knowing and being are my guide. As tradition dictates, I will begin with a smudge offered in the spirit of grounding and gratitude where I’ll acknowledge my ancestors, the land the conference is on, and all our relations. The atmosphere created by the conference should be calm and welcoming, where silence is as sacred as speech, and where everyone feels seen and heard. My presentation will center on my story, my narrative, and how it’s guided me through this life. I will share an entire episode of the TV show I host on APTN called ‘Yukon Harvest’ and after that I will discuss some of the behind-the-scenes information before opening the floor to questions. Utilizing rhetoric and conference submission vernacular, I hope to create an experience that honors intergenerational knowledge, encourages vulnerability, nurtures healing, and explores the insight gained from boots-on-the-ground, hands-on, land-based learning.
Working with Families while they Navigate Two Worlds
Melanie Nelson, Cherie Baker, Adam Williams-Fakhari
We hope to share some information about work we have done supporting families, but the majority of the time, we hope to engage in discussion with the group. Cherie will share from the perspective of parents and community members, Adam will share from the perspective of youth, and Melanie will share some of the work she and the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Ta7lnewÌ“ás Education team have done together. We hope to get feedback regarding how to use western and Indigenous approaches when working with families. We hope the room will be set up with round tables, so there can be small-group discussions. If that is the case, it does not matter how many people attend. We will not formally record discussions or responses, we will only take notes. The work Melanie presents will provide information for participants to react to and for the discussion to build upon. Quotes from community members will be shared.
Wellness as Resistance: Co-Creating Support Plans Rooted in Culture, Care and Connection
Jen Ashlee
This participatory workshop invites attendees into a hands-on exploration of decolonizing wellness planning for Indigenous youth navigating behavioral, substance use, and emotional challenges within Western systems of care. Rooted in Indigenous knowledge systems, this session guides participants through the process of co-creating safety and support plans that reflect the wholistic needs of youth — including their spiritual, emotional, mental, and physical wellbeing. While the planning frameworks shared in this session are grounded in youth care, participants will also be invited to reflect on how these same practices can be used to care for themselves. We will explore how wellness planning can be a personal act of resistance and reclamation — tending to our own spiritual, emotional, and cultural needs while working in systems that often disregard them. Drawing from lived experience, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and trauma-informed Indigenous relational practice, the workshop will weave together storytelling, values-based reflection, visual tools, and real-world examples. Attendees will learn how to co-create personalized, culturally aligned plans that honour the dignity, autonomy, and spirit of both the youth they support and themselves. This session is intended for frontline staff, caregivers, clinicians, and community helpers seeking to engage in relational, reflective, and restorative wellness practices — for others and for themselves.
Lightning Round Presentations
Exploring Mental Health Services and Supports for Indigenous Boys and Men: A Scoping Review
Naomi Epp
I am a Red River Métis woman from Treaty One, Homeland of the Red River Métis. The inspiration behind my work lies within my experiences working at a federal prison in Canada with Indigenous male offenders. I engaged in deeply powerful conversations with many men and with Elders continue to affect me profoundly. I observed the complexities of maintaining cultural practice within a federal institution. I noticed the assumptions made about the men residing there, which were built into processes like Gladue-informed interviewing, parole decisions, programming and daily interactions. In a population concentrated with individuals who have both suffered from and perpetrated violence, the cycle of abuse became a poignant reflection point for me. I am driven to find ways to co-develop mental health services and supports with and for Indigenous boys and men through culturally grounded approaches. Our scoping review identifies existing mental health and wellness services, supports and interventions tailored for Indigenous boys and men, examines their impacts and outcomes, and explores key themes prominent or absent in the literature. Eligible literature includes studies focused on mental health services, supports and interventions for Indigenous boys and men between the ages of 9 to 30 in Canada. Peer-reviewed articles exploring, testing, or describing a broad range of services, supports and interventions were included, as well as grey literature. Ultimately, this work aims to inspire others to consider how our Indigenous boys and men thrive, and how we can continue to uplift them.
Relationality, Land, and Resistance: Findings from the Kelowna Urban Indigenous Youth Project
Gabrielle Legault
The Kelowna Urban Indigenous Youth (KUIY) Project challenged dominant narratives about urban Indigenous identity through participatory research that centred youth voices and Indigenous methodologies. This presentation shares findings from a community-based project involving Indigenous youth aged 19-29 in Kelowna, who engaged in Talking Circles, cultural practices, Ceremony, storytelling, and collective analysis of their experiences. The research reveals three interconnected dimensions of Indigenous youth wellbeing: identity navigation in colonial contexts, cultural reconnection as healing and resistance, and community belonging as foundation. Youth experiences with Land connection, Ceremony, Traditional arts and teachings, revealed these practices as living, dynamic systems rather than static preservation activities. Importantly, healing and identity development occurred through collective engagement and mutual support, reflecting Indigenous concepts of relationality where individual wellbeing emerges through interconnected community relationships.
Indigenizing Health Research Ethics in British Columbia: Co-Create Wise Practices & Distinctions-Based Ethical Protocols
Andrew Caldwell
Co-Authors: Krista Stelkia
Ethical protocols and frameworks are critical to ensure health research with Indigenous peoples is culturally safe, respectful, and collaborative. Current ethical frameworks are often structured within a Western view and use pan-Indigenous approaches. In Indigenous health research, there is a critical need to develop distinctions-based (nation-based) ethical frameworks that are grounded in Indigenous ways of knowing. This study explores the perspectives of research ethics partners, including Indigenous communities, collectives, and organizations (ICCOs), Indigenous health researchers, and research ethics boards, on gaps, barriers, and experiences in Indigenous health research ethics processes. The study aims to advance Indigenous health research ethics protocols and frameworks in BC, that are culturally safe, grounded in Indigenous knowledge systems, and are distinctions-based. This presentation will provide an overview of Indigenous health research ethics in BC, share the current phase of the study, including preliminary findings from a scoping review and expected outcomes.
‘Healing our Youth Home’ research approach: Weaving Métis youth voices into life promotion and upstream suicide prevention
Logan Burd
Weaving Métis youth voices into life promotion and upstream suicide prevention - Youth suicide is a complex problem in Canada, with Indigenous youth overrepresented in suicide attempts and deaths. In 2021, Métis youth in British Columbia were more likely than non-Métis youth to have considered suicide (24% vs. 17%) and attempted suicide (8% vs. 5%). Increased risks related to suicidality are a downstream manifestation of the historical and ongoing impacts of colonial violence perpetuated by suicide research that prioritizes deficit-based, risk-focused approaches while excluding Indigenous knowledges and upstream, life-promoting solutions. Métis knowledges, which includes life promotion as a central tenet, are absent in the suicide research landscape. Métis knowledge systems view children and youth as the heart of the community, “very special…they are everybody’s future,” positioning them as leaders to respond to growing calls for strengths-based, youth-driven life promotion approaches and upstream suicide prevention. This doctoral research, currently at the proposal stage, aims to explore: How can Métis understandings of life promotion inform upstream youth suicide prevention? Through three objectives: 1) co-create shared conceptualizations of life promotion; 2) identify equity-oriented and systems-focused indicators to monitor and evaluate life promotion; and 3) generate recommendations for upstream youth suicide prevention. My worldview as a Métis youth, including my community roles and the teachings passed down from my ancestors and mentors, have positioned me to develop the ‘Healing our Youth Home’ (HYH) research approach. My abstract submission will centre on sharing and expanding on the HYH research approach, a youth-led, participatory-action, metaphor-inspired qualitative research approach developed through community-embedded relationships, Métis knowledges, and equity science.
Not “Too-Sick”: Centering Two-Spirit & Indigiqueer (2SIQ) Wellness in BC
Jimmy Chokmeesuk, Xiaoying Zhang
Two-Spirit and Indigiqueer (2SIQ) people have long held sacred roles in many Indigenous communities, carrying teachings that resist colonial erasure. Yet in so-called “British Columbia,” 2SIQ individuals continue to be denied accessible, affirming, and culturally grounded wellness services due to systems rooted in settler colonialism, cisheteropatriarchy, and systemic racism. These intentional systems of exclusion and control drive disproportionately high rates of suicidality, substance use, depression and anxiety. Many also face exclusion from settler queer and transgender spaces due to racism and from some Indigenous spaces due to colonial impositions of gender and sexuality. Drawing from national and local reports, including the MMIWG2S+ Calls to Action and Two-Spirit Health Legislation Project, we identify key barriers, such as lack of provider training, pathologizing diagnostic practices, and inadequate insurance coverage. Grounded in the Musqueam Four House Post framework, this poster repositions 2SIQ wellness as a rights-based imperative upholding Indigenous self-determination, cultural resurgence, and collective healing. As settlers, we hold responsibility to support 2SIQ leadership, practice accountability, and propose four policy changes. (1) establish 2SIQ peer navigator roles at Trans Care BC; (2) mandate Indigenous gender diversity and suicide prevention training for providers; (3) expand First Nation Health Benefit coverage for traditional healers and practices; and (4) increase access to resident Elders within 2SIQ-affirming and culturally grounded primary care. We urge all governments and service providers to support 2SIQ and Indigenous-led healing, culturally grounded care and shared decision-making to transform colonial mental health and gender-affirming care systems into rights-based, land-based public healthcare.
Mental health needs and supports for Métis youth: A review
Kylee Hagley, Kristy Kowatch
Co-Author: Karen LaRocque
A review - Indigenous people around the world experience health disparities in comparison to non-Indigenous people and overcoming them requires an understanding of culturally and community-specific knowledge. First Nation, Métis, and Inuit advocates have identified that developing culturally wise treatments is a priority for enhancing mental wellness for children and youth. Few of the cultural treatment resources have focused on embedding Métis culture. In collaboration with Les Filles de Madelaine Secretariat Inc., a need to develop Métis specific mental health services has been noted. This review focused on compiling knowledge about the current state of literature for Métis specific mental health and services among children and youth under the age of 30. A comprehensive search of 13 databases identified 532 sources. Search terms included Métis, mental health related terms, and youth. Grey literature searches were also included. By bringing together online knowledge sources, including academic, community-based content, and grey literature, we are aiming to capture as much information as possible about the current state of Métis youth mental health and well-being. This review will provide a narrative overview of Métis specific mental health needs, current practices of culture as intervention, as well as practical strategies for service providers and developers. These findings will be used in collaboration with Les Filles de Madelaine Secretariat Inc. to improve mental health services within Saskatchewan. Implications for future research, programing, and supports will be shared.
Threads of Learning: From ‘Perfect Stranger’ to Relational ‘Not So Perfect Stranger’
Jihye Kim
Co-Author: Johanna Sam
In Early Childhood Education, nearly one-third of educators in Canada are immigrants or racialized. Yet many enter the field with little preparation to engage with Indigenous knowledges or the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action. The current BC certification policy does not require Indigenous education for internationally trained educators, leaving a significant gap in relational responsibility. At the same time, early learning rooted in Indigenous ways of knowing is foundational to lifelong wellbeing. In this session, I reflect on my journey as a racialized settler and educator who once positioned myself as a “perfect stranger” (Dion, 2007), disconnected from Indigenous realities. I now understand myself as “not so perfect” a stranger (Dion, 2024), already in relationship. I offer this reflection not as expertise, but as a guest seeking to listen and learn: How might racialized settlers engage in ways that honour Indigenous wellbeing with respect, reciprocity, and care?
More Than a Method: Reflections on Indigenous Research, Refusal, and Reclaiming Space in the Academy
Keyara Brody
This presentation explores the lived experience of navigating health research as an Indigenous person within western academic institutions. Drawing from my graduate research on traditional wellness in urban settings for Indigenous youth, I reflect on the methodological choices made, the intentional refusals, and the centring of Indigenous ways of being, knowing and doing. Instead of following typical western academic timelines, this work was grounded in connections to Land, culture and community and moved at a pace that honoured these relationships. I will speak to the tensions and challenges of working in systems not built for us, and how this research became a space of both resistance and renewal. Ultimately, this work foregrounds Indigenous sovereignty, not only in research, but in the choices around how we carry stories, who we are accountable to, and how we claim space in colonial institutions.
Co-creating a wellness app for young children and caregivers: Aaniish Naa Gegii
Mylène Michaud
Co-Author: Nancy L. Young
Indigenous leaders have been using the Aaniish-Naa-Gegii: The Children’s Health and Well-being Measure (ACHWM.ca) with children as young as 4 years. The ACHWM is a tablet-based self-reported measure that assesses health and well-being from the perspectives of Indigenous children aged 8 to 18 years. We sought to improve on this process. The aim of this project was to adapt the ACHWM for children aged 4.0 to 7.9 years. Because of their young age, this project works with child-caregiver pairs. Step I – Identification of New Items We applied Rash analysis to an existing data set (n=402 respondents) with permission from the communities that own this data. We identified 41 ACHWM items that clustered together and focused on wellness. These were reviewed and resulted in a provisional version of 25 items for a young child version of the ACHWM. Step II – Expert Evaluation of Item Content: Five experts in child development and Indigenous perspectives reviewed the provisional version to evaluate each item’s age-appropriateness and importance. We challenged the experts to identify items that were missing. They modified 3 items to simplify them for a younger audience. For example, ‘’I am physically fit…’’ became ‘’I am healthy…’’ Step III – Feedback from child-caregiver pairs: Cognitive debriefing interviews are conducted with child-caregiver pairs to explore their understanding of the items and fine-tune the items. We are in the final stages of transforming the item content into the ACHWM App so that it can be used efficiently by communities to support young children.