Research focused on social, environmental and biological factors that influence health.
Current Research Projects
Indigenous connections with the Land are essential and critical to cultural identity, sovereignty and well-being. The intergenerational loss of this connection and the harmful effects of colonial policies related to residential schools, foster care and the inequities in the Canadian health system has impacted the health and wellness of Inuit, Dene and Cree youth. Land-based learning and healing programs are opportunities for youth to reclaim and strengthen cultural practices and connections. The Land holds tangible evidence (archaeological sites and artifacts) of the thousands of years of Inuit, Dene and Cree presence along the coast of the Hudson Bay at Churchill, MB. The narratives, knowledge, evidence and experiences that cultural heritage retains can have a role in a strength-based approach for youths’ repossession of the Land. This research will specifically explore what role cultural heritage and archaeological sites on the coast of Hudson Bay can have as part of Land-based programs.
Funding Agencies
Inadequate housing conditions contribute to an array of respiratory infections, tuberculosis, chronic illnesses and mental illness. The research of Dr. Linda Larcombe at the University of Manitoba with Northlands Denesuline and Sayisi First Nations in northern Manitoba is focused on re-envisioning housing design for promoting health.
Funding Agencies
There is a critical need to understand the journey that northern MB First Nations people living withHIV are navigating. Understanding the broad context (social, biologic, economic) of how northern First Nations come to be tested for HIV and how they negotiate treatment and care is essential knowledge for planning and implementing interventions that are culturally appropriate and have the potential for safely engaging northern marginalized populations in HIV care. Hearing and sharing the stories about the barriers, facilitators and resilient ways that northern First Nations approach HIV testing, treatment and care is a critical health priority for a number of reasons: (1) the increasing rates of HIV infection and disease in Indigenous (First Nation, Inuit and Metis) peoples of MB; (2) the complex nature of HIV testing and care; (3) the remoteness of these communities and lack of access to health services and social supports; (4) limited understanding of the barriers and enablers to implement current best practices of HIV testing and care for northern Manitoban First Nations people; and (5) a perceived lack of integration of First Nation cultural ways of knowing and healing practices with western medicine practices. We use two-eyed seeing methods to hear and learn how northern First Nations people negotiate the HIV care cascade as they look after their own health. The goal of this research is to use these lived experiences to build capacity in northern First Nation communities and develop culturally safe actions and interventions that will engage northern First Nations people in HIV testing, treatment and care.
Funding Agencies
