Decolonizing mental health
Join a prominent UBC speaker who will share valuable insights at a webinar about the vital subject of supporting Indigenous mental health and well-being. Dr. Cash Ahenakew, who is the Canada Research Chair in Indigenous People’s Well-Being, will explore the complexities and relationships among the various levels of trauma that Indigenous peoples and communities experience in western-based societies.
Attend this transformative session to learn how we can decolonize health-related research and practices while rejuvenating Indigenous health practices. Dr. Ahenakew will share approaches and appropriate practices to address this from individual and community perspectives including traditional practices, as well as share comparisons between western diagnostics and traditional practices. He will also deliver a short neuro-decolonization mindfulness type of practice with the audience, share resources about Indigenous mental health and wellness, and teach others how to engage in a caring and respectful way with Indigenous people.
Moderator
Lerato Chondoma (she/her) — Associate Director, Indigenous Research Support Initiative (IRSI)
Speaker
Dr. Cash Ahenakew (he/him/his) — Canada Research Chair in Indigenous People’s Well-Being and Associate Professor, UBC Faculty of Education
Tuesday, October 17, 2023
12:00pm–1:00pm PT
Online
Open to everyone. Registration is required.
REGISTER NOWQuestions? Please contact alumni.events@ubc.ca.
Moderator & Speaker Biographies
Lerato Chondoma
Lerato Chondoma hails from the Batuang Clan of ba ha Moletsane from Lesotho in Southern Africa and lives as an uninvited guest on the unceded, occupied territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people. She is the inaugural associate director for the UBC Indigenous Research Support Initiative. She has over 18 years of experience in anti-racism, community-based research, economic and social development with Indigenous communities, policy development, and employment equity law. Additionally, she is a member of the Board Executive for the Canadian Black Policy Network and previously served as vice-chair for the Racial and Ethno-Cultural Equity Advisory Committee (2021-2022) that advises Vancouver City Council. She has a BCom and an LLB from Rhodes University in Grahamstown, South Africa, and an MBA from SFU’s Beedie School of Business.
Dr. Cash Ahenakew
Cash Ahenakew, PhD, holds the Canada Research Chair (CRC) in Indigenous Peoples’ Well-Being (CIHR) and is a member of the Ahtahkakoop Cree Nation. He has devoted his career to seeking ways in which local knowledge and practices can contribute to the resurgence of Indigenous wisdom, knowledge, education, well-being, and healing practices. As a CRC, Dr. Ahenakew focuses on decolonizing health-related research, practices, and education, as well as revitalizing Indigenous health practices.
His research and experience bring together Indigenous and non-Indigenous academics, health practitioners, and community members from the North and South to advance community-based participatory research and collaborative inquiry, alongside trauma-informed education. Together, their goal is to develop a culture-centered, critically grounded, and trauma-informed approach. By integrating Indigenous healing practices and land-based orientations with contemplative practices and bodywork, they aspire to contribute to healing and well-being approaches.
We acknowledge that UBC’s campuses are situated within the traditional territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wu7mesh (Squamish) and səl̓ilwətaɁɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), and in the traditional, ancestral, unceded territory of the Syilx Okanagan Nation and their peoples.
THIS PROGRAM IS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE PRESENTING PARTNERS OF FORWARD: THE CAMPAIGN FOR UBC
WITH ONGOING SUPPORT FROM THE ALUMNI UBC PILLAR PARTNERS
