Implementing Options Bytown’s Reconciliation Action Plan

 By Molly Damiani

Hello Everyone! My name is Molly Damiani. I am a 2nd-year student in the MDP program. I completed my field placement in Ottawa, Ontario, with Options Bytown. Options Bytown is a supportive housing provider that helps people get out of shelters into stable, permanent housing. Last year Options Bytown produced a Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP). My field placement was focused on implementing components of this plan. 

Over the course of my placement, I supported a series of RAP deliverables. Early on, I worked on a grant application to make the common spaces more welcoming to Indigenous partners, organizations and community members seeking support from the two main housing facilities in the city. Later, I proposed communications and activities for National Indigenous Peoples Day and the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. In my final weeks, I drafted a land acknowledgement guidelines document and developed a positionality statement for the organization and accompanying activity for staff. Finally, I put together a draft of a monitoring and evaluation plan for the RAP working group to utilize in their year one assessment of the RAP.

I feel fortunate to have been embraced by such a compassionate, motivated, and open-minded team throughout this placement. I am genuinely excited to follow their reconciliation journey and see how it unfolds. Upon my departure, they were in the process of hiring a coordinator responsible for the ongoing support of the RAP. It is fantastic to see a whole position devoted to this work, and it will undoubtedly help them to maintain momentum and meet the objectives they have set out for themselves. The Ottawa community is beginning to recognize them as leaders in this space, and many other housing organizations are subsequently exploring how they, too, can incorporate a RAP in their workplaces.

 

Exploring Cultural Connections and Advocacy: My Field Placement with the Manitoba Inuit Association

 By Alice Egbedeyi, 1st year MDP student

As a Master's in Development Practice (MDP) student, my field placement with the Manitoba Inuit Association (MIA) has been an incredibly enriching experience. Located in the heart of Winnipeg, MIA is an Indigenous non-profit organization dedicated to advocating for the unique needs and evolving requirements of the Inuit living in Manitoba. My role within this organization was the Research and Development Officer and the projects I've been involved in have allowed me to gain valuable insights into the complexities of community development and cultural preservation.

My workplace at the Manitoba Inuit Association

 One of the central aspects of my role at MIA has been contributing to their ongoing housing project initiatives. This involved extensive research to provide evidence-based support for grant applications addressing the housing needs of the organization's community members. Through this project, I've gained a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by the Inuit community in Manitoba and the importance of secure and adequate housing.

Apart from the housing project, I've also been privileged to support cultural appreciation programs within the organization and engage in community outreach activities. These experiences have allowed me to connect with the Inuit community on a personal level, gaining insights into their rich cultural heritage and the chalenges they face.

In action, engaging with community

One of the most rewarding aspects of my field placement has been the opportunity to directly implement the academic knowledge and skills I've gained to my work with MIA. The MDP program provided me with a solid foundation in development practice, and applying this knowledge in a real-world context has been immensely rewarding.

In conclusion, my field placement with the Manitoba Inuit Association has been a transformative experience. It has allowed me to immerse myself in the Inuit culture, engage in meaningful advocacy work, and apply the principles of development practice to make a positive impact in the community. This experience has reinforced my commitment to working towards sustainable development and social justice, and I am grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the vital work of the Manitoba Inuit Association.

Field Placement – Waapihk Research

By Eric G. Lewis

My name is Eric; I am a Liberian and a first-year student in the MDP program at the University of Winnipeg. As a newcomer to Canada who is excited to learn about Indigenous peoples and their cultures, I chose to do my first field placement at Waapihk Research. As an Indigenous research organization, Waapihk conducts research in health and education and performs economic analysis and budgetary planning for First Nations organizations. The outcomes of Waapihk's work inform policy formulation, which subsequently contributes to the improvement of Indigenous people's health and overall well-being.

 

My three-month stay and active engagement at Waapihk as a summer student enabled me to learn about pertinent issues Indigenous peoples face in Canada. Working specifically on the education file, I appreciate the understanding I acquired from researching First Nations education system and the challenges Indigenous people faced in acquiring former education. Part of my role on the education file was designing a data entry template and subsequently entering, analyzing, and producing a comprehensive report on a Waapihk 2022 survey on First Nations education.

 

A second responsibility during my field placement with Waapihk was to research and gather information about school nutrition program. I used the data collected to draft a blog post on the importance of school nutrition program. Given my motivation to learn about Canada's school nutrition program, I conducted a case study examining one of Canada's very successful school nutrition programs benefiting First Nations children in the country's northwestern Territories, the Yukon. My case study also looked at a school nutrition program that pushed the government of Tanzania to enact a school nutrition program policy. As a result of the success of a rural school nutrition program in Tanzania, the government of the east African country enacted and launched the national school nutrition program that made school feeding mandatory in public schools.

 

Eric at the Waapihk office

First Nations Waste Minimization

By Mohamed “Mo” Crossman-Serb, 1st year MDP student

Taanshi, my name is Mo (he/him), I am a Libyan-Metis who was born and raised in Winnipeg on Treaty 1 and the homeland of the Red River Metis. This summer I am lucky to do my local field placement at the First Nations Waste Minimization (FNWM) team at the Green Action Centre. FNWM works to support First Nation community initiatives at reducing waste such as increasing recycling, composting programs and community awareness. My role for the summer is the community engagement coordinator.

This role has me doing a multitude of tasks. I develop and deliver school presentations on waste minimization for both urban and in-community First Nation students. Promote and distribute Protecting Mother Earth for the Next Generation Activity Booklets. Developing the 2023-2024 RISE Webinar series, we ran our first one in June on an introduction to waste minimization. I was also lucky to work on the ground with the pathfinder team, going to landfills in communities across the province to help with their vital work.

The position had me travel to six different First Nation communities so far across Manitoba where I made new relationships and saw many friends from previous travels. I look forward to staying on with the team on a part-time basis over the school year!

 

Procurement

By Daniel Nychuk, 1^st year MDP Student

My name is Daniel Nychuk. I am a Métis man born the youngest of three siblings and grew up on a family farm in Osborne, Manitoba. I have a background in business as I completed my Bachelor of Commerce Honors degree in Accounting and Finance from the Asper School of Business.

 This summer, I had the opportunity to work for the Indigenous Chamber of Commerce (ICC). The ICC represents businesses and organizations that are Indigenous-owned and managed that provide support or services to our community and play a significant and relevant role in the economic development of this Province. The ICC performs many functions to foster the growth of the Indigenous business community. The ICC also represents non-Indigenous entities that provide support or services to our community, and we acknowledge that Manitoba businesses recognize the value of working as a collective on critical issues concerning Indigenous business initiatives.  

 My role as the research and Procurement Intern was to help co-develop and implement a strategy for the ICC to become a procurement Centre for excellence for our members and all Indigenous Businesses. Before I began my term at the ICC, I was very unfamiliar with the importance of procurement, especially to Indigenous businesses. Throughout my term, I expanded my knowledge of the current procurement practices and policies and now know why my role was put into place at the ICC. I am excited to see what the future holds as the ICC takes on more of a role in procurement. Overall, this has been a fantastic experience, and I am happy to say that I have taken a role to continue working during the fall term. 

Daniel Nychuk (centre) at an ICC event

 

My Last Goodbye/blog

By Ricky Harper, 2nd year MDP student

For my final field placement in the Master’s In Development (MDP) program, I, Rick Harper, worked at the National Collaborating Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCCID). As a research assistant, I worked under the guidance of Claudyne Chevrier.  Together, we worked on developing a knowledge synthesis for Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (ITK). ITK is the national voice of 70,000 Inuit people. The knowledge synthesis focuses on Core Competencies for Inuit Cultural Safety and it will be an additional tool for ITK addressing tuberculosis in Inuit communities.

Some of my tasks were to research and find resources pertaining to the topic. I then compiled the resources into a spreadsheet for review. In addition, my contributions will be included in the final report for ITK.

As my final quote, I will say, “I am glad to have been a part of this organization (NCCID) even if it was for just a moment as this was the highlight of my time at MDP. Meegwetch.”

 

Reflections on KidsAction Coaching

By Md. Abul Kashem, 1st year, MDP student

My name is Md. Abul Kashem, and I was born and raised in coastal Bangladesh. I graduated with a Master’s in Sociology from the University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. I am doing my first field placement with the University of British Columbia, Kelowna campus, on the KidsAction Coaching program. 

KidsAction Coaching's approach is a holistic model. It provides personalized, child-centered coaching and resources for physical activity practice at home for children with neurodevelopmental and/or intellectual disabilities (NDID), such as improved motor skills and cognitive and social development. This evidence-based approach also promotes social interaction and a sense of community among children and families.

The objective of this project is to assess different ways for KidsAction to thrive in diverse communities and to develop a model that outlines the key steps and strategies that can be used with other Indigenous and rural communities. With an Indigenous-inclusive approach and a framework for developing and sharing knowledge that involves community members at all stages of the process, the project provides whatever is required to facilitate historical and cultural understanding, such as training, resources, and activities that are relevant to Indigenous recreation. The project also collaborates closely with provincial and community-level project partners.

My job here is to review the documents for the project through an Indigenous lens. As a preparation for my field placement, I have done 12 hours of training on cultural competency (Truth Shows Itself) conducted by Indigenous Elders. I have also completed the TCPS-2 course and additional courses for the workplace. I am also responsible for the environmental scanning of the KidsAction Coaching program in the interior BC areas. All the preparatory work and the assignment given to me have created an excellent opportunity to enrich  my  realm  of  knowledge  that  would  be  helpful  and  able  to  manage  this  type  of project/program. As time has passed, I've realized just how difficult it can be to work with NDID. I'm hoping the experience in the field will give me the confidence I need to work with Indigenous children at the NDID. In conclusion, it has been an honor and privilege to work with  the  KidsAction  Coaching team  at  UBCO,  Kelowna,  BC.  I  am  grateful  to  the  MDP program for helping me secure this placement.

Kashem with Dr. Lise Olsen, Researcher Co-Lead, KidsAction Coaching, Associate Professor, School of Nursing (Faculty of Health and Social Development), UBC Okanagan, Kelowna Campus