Grant: Travel Awards - Institute Community Support

Colonization, as a historical and contemporary process, is at the root of health inequities experienced by Indigenous peoples in Canada. To improve the health status of Indigenous peoples, embracing effective approaches to health promotion requires decolonizing practices. Decolonization does not mean a complete rejection of all Western knowledge. Rather, it is about centering Indigenous concerns and worldviews within a health promotion context. This presentation is based on a peer-led, community-based action research project by and for Indigenous youth on the pow-wow trail in southern Ontario. The research illustrates how moving away from conventional public health approaches and towards a decolonizing approach can empower Indigenous people, and improve Indigenous peoples' health outcomes. Quantitative data was collected using an offline iPad survey administered to 154 Indigenous youth in southern Ontario aged 16 to 25. The aim of the survey was to quantitatively test the feasibility and cultural appropriateness of an Indigenous youth lead, sexual health promotion intervention in powwow settings, and evaluate the appropriateness of the strategy. The survey responses were exported to SPSS for statistical analysis, including examining means, frequencies, and standard deviations. This project provides preliminary evidence that supports decolonizing public health approaches that encompass Indigenous ways of knowing and doing, implemented by and for Indigenous peoples in a local context. By acknowledging colonization, this presentation demonstrates why and how moving away from a conventional public health approach can improve Indigenous peoples' health. Decolonizing health promotion that is centered around Indigenous ways of knowing, can transform understandings and outcomes of Indigenous peoples' health and wellbeing in Canada, and internationally.