Learning to be a Good Relative
We are committed to centring Indigenous learning and methodologies through building capacity among researchers to create genuine and mutually beneficial relationships with Indigenous community partners.
Current Project
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Circumspect Awareness and Navigation of Outcomes and Expectations (CANOE)
The CANOE project helps guide non-Indigenous researchers in building stronger, more thoughtful relationships with Indigenous communities. Through co-created workshops and hands-on training, CANOE encourages researchers to reflect on whether their work should involve community engagement and how to do so in a good way. With guidance from Indigenous partners and CIEDAR’s Advisory Council, participants learn about ethical research practices, community expectations, and the importance of consent and collaboration, working towards reducing harm caused by outdated or colonial research approaches and creating space for lasting partnerships.
Lunch and Learn with EDI&I
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The Lunch & Learn series, co-developed by CIEDAR and EDI&I work to promote equity in research activities within CoVaRR-Net. The series does not merely promote principles of co-creation, but actively demonstrates them. For instance, CIEDAR and EDI&I actively integrated Indigenous research methods and diverse ways of knowing with Western research methodologies in their planning sessions to cultivate transformative engagement.
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Each of the four days of the Lunch and Learn event was visually recorded via graphic recording. View them here.
Building Bridges Collaboration
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In August 2024, CIEDAR collaborated with Building Bridges, a program that aims to decolonize learning and drive societal change by drawing from Indigenous teachings. Dr. Kimberly Huyser presented on the River of Life Exercise and implored listeners to explore their positionality—traits and experiences that have shaped their identity.
Introduction to Positionality and Health Equity 101
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At the CoVaRR-Net Spring 2023 Meeting, Dr. Kimberly Huyser presented alongside CoVaRR-Net EDI&I Associate Director Claire Betker to present on the concept of positionality, which highlights the importance of dialogue and stories within Indigenous communities. Dr. Huyser led conference participants in an exercise called “Drawing your River of Life”.
Dr. Huyser and Dr. Betker also spoke about an aspirational definition of health equity, which not only means equitable access to healthcare, but also equitable opportunities for people to reach their full health potential without being disadvantaged by social, economic, or environmental factors.
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Watch Dr. Huyser’s and Dr. Betker’s presentation here.
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At the CoVaRR-Net Spring 2023 Meeting, the CIEDAR team and EDI&I executives acted out a skit that simulated an interaction between a non-Indigenous research team and an Indigenous community review board. This entertaining, educational skit showed common mistakes health researchers make in presenting research applications to Indigenous communities. It provided context as to why researchers must build relationships with individual communities prior to starting a project and allow time to establish effective research collaborations. The simulation also offered pointers about how best to establish successful research collaborations with Indigenous communities.
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Watch the skit presentation here.