Pathway to Culturally Safe Indigenous Cognitive Health Research Practices

The Pathway to Culturally Safe Indigenous Cognitive Health Research Practices (pathway) covers a variety of topics, including the historical and ongoing impacts of colonization on Indigenous health, ethical Indigenous health research practices, and Indigenous data sovereignty principles.

The pathway is an informal opportunity to access suggested readings, courses, and content created by others that we feel are important. To access the pathway, navigate through the webpages for the five steps, as well as consult the comprehensive document, which lists all suggested resources, organized by pathway step.

Explore Tip

Our advice when going through the pathway is that it is best explored with a group of people. Find a group to navigate the pathway together and appoint a facilitator who will organize meetings to have group reflections on each step. As you move in cycles, continue to progress through the pathway.

There is no need to ‘complete’ all the resources before moving onto the next step. Reflection is vital, and returning to the step again in a cycle is important to deepen your learning (picture a spiral as you return to a step, but move into deeper learning). The process of continued learning is very important.

Circular diagram showing five steps in Indigenous health research: 1. Impacts of Colonization on Indigenous Health, 2. Indigenous Health Research, 3. Indigenous Data Sovereignty, 4. Ethical Research Training, 5. Ongoing Listening, Learning, and Action

The Five Steps are:

Step 1: Establish foundational knowledge on historical and ongoing impacts of colonization on Indigenous health

This part focuses on establishing a foundation of knowledge regarding the historical and ongoing impacts of colonization in Canada and its impacts on Indigenous health.

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Step 2: Explore and engage in webinars and learning modules to enhance knowledge on Indigenous health research.

After establishing foundational knowledge in Step 1, these webinars and learning modules can help enhance your understanding of Indigenous
health research.

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Step 3: Establish an understanding of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Data Sovereignty Principles.

Step 3 of the pathway focuses on establishing an understanding of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Data Sovereignty Principles and how they apply to research.

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Step 4: Complete training on conducting ethical research with Indigenous Peoples.

In Step 4, you are encouraged to enroll in TCPS-2 and Indigenous Community Research Partnerships training, if you have not already completed these courses. These training modules will build on what we’ve learned throughout the pathway in understanding culturally safe Indigenous health research practices.

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Step 5: Continued listening, learning, and action.

The last step is an iterative process where upon beginning Step 5, we encourage everyone to listen and learn in order to continuously build their capacity for inclusive, trustworthy, and community-centered work. In this step, we learn more regarding decolonization and allyship as well as Indigenous perspectives on sex and gender.

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Note

The pathway is a compilation of general resources that may not include locally-relevant information which is critical for partnering with communities in meaningful and respectful ways. We encourage you to seek out and use local resources as much as possible. You may also find it helpful to go back to previous steps to help with reflection on your journey.

This resource document outlines the pathway, providing a comprehensive list of materials to review.