Collaborating with Indigenous Peoples and communities

Who are we? The Indigenous Cognitive Health Program (ICHP) supports the development and implementation of Indigenous-centered dementia research in ways that platform Indigenous perspectives, priorities, and knowledge. Through its collaboration with the Dementia Research Support Hub, the ICHP promotes awareness of Indigenous ways of knowing, self-determination, and data sovereignty in order to disseminate culturally appropriate Indigenous health research practices throughout the CCNA.

To build your team’s capacity to conduct culturally safe Indigenous health research, it is recommended that you:

1. Understand the historical and ongoing impacts of colonization on Indigenous health. 
   1. The ICHP website contains a comprehensive compilation of resources on these topics.  
   2. The National Collaborating Centre for Indigenous Health offers a wealth of resources related to the health and wellbeing of Indigenous Peoples.
   3. It also may be worth visiting the Indigenous Health Data and Aging Research page at McMaster University. 
   4. A range of cultural safety courses are available, including one from San’yas.
2. Apply wise Indigenous health research practices, such as Indigenous data sovereignty.
   1. Foundational texts on Indigenous health research methodology include Research is Ceremony by Shawn Wilson and Decolonizing Methodologies by Linda Tuhiwai Smith.
   2. A recent webinar series, produced by the ICHP in partnership with Maamwesying North Shore Community Health Services and Noojmowin Teg Health Centre, may also prove helpful. 
   3. For more information about conducting research in partnership with Indigenous communities, we recommend this free course from Queens.
   4. The First Nations Information Governance Centre (FNIGC) also offers a course on the First Nations data governance principles of Ownership, Control, Access, and Possession (OCAP®). 
3. Take the time required to work in a good way.
   1. Trusting and meaningful relationships between researchers and community members takes time – it is best to plan accordingly.
   2. Likewise, meaningful research partnerships with Indigenous communities begin at the project design stage (identifying a topic, defining a research question, choosing the methodology and methods) and encompasses the entirety of the project, up to and including knowledge translation and the dissemination of results – again, its best to leave time for collaboration and coordination.