Please Note: By registering, you are committing to attend all three sessions to ensure a cohesive learning journey for everyone involved. We appreciate your dedication and enthusiasm!

Registration for this 3 week series closes November 5 and materials will be shared ~5-6 days before each class.

About this webinar:

The narrative on Canadian history is from the “Settler” perspective that justifies legislation to establish a new system of government designed to dominate Indigenous peoples and implement Eurocentric ideologies of imperialism, empirical and patriarchal philosophies. Canadian documentation omits or denies genocide acts and the intergenerational harm or negative impacts on the Indigenous peoples from colonial policies.

In this mini-series course, the instructor will provide participants with information to become aware of the Indigenous perspective and narrative on the history of Turtle Island, as well as Indigenous philosophy or Natural Law, wâhkôhtowin when confronted with the immigration of settlers from other countries. The information in the weekly courses and reading material may expand participants’ comfort zones and require critical thinking or “higher-order thinking skills.” Participants should be able to synthesize the pre-reading articles with the required three (3) ACTS OF RECONCILIATION and material presented each week into the development of their own Indigenous Allyship framework for their social work practice and personal values.

Speaker Bio:

Brenda St. Germain holds a Master of Social Work, with Indigenous Specialization. She has focused her academics and career into Indigenous initiatives or projects addressing community development, research, informed trauma, addictions, and social policies. Brenda’s social work practice has evolved into a decolonized practice that aligns with reconciliation through challenging Eurocentric frameworks such as, changing the narrative from colonial versions of “Aboriginal or Cultural Awareness and Blanket Exercises” into workshops that create an awareness and understanding from the Indigenous perspective on impacts and influences from Canada’s colonial history. The intention of the Truth & Reconciliation Commission stated in the TRC Summary Report (2015) is for Canadians to “produce the necessary social, cultural, political, and economic change that benefits Aboriginal peoples and all Canadians” (p. 210): a transformative social change through the TRC 94 Calls to Action.

A few highlights of Brenda’s career include advocating, creating and implementing the initial Aboriginal Social Work Committee as the founding chairperson into the organizational structure of ACSW under the HPA in 2003. She was the Indigenous Co-chair of Edmonton’s EndPoverty Initiative, an Indigenous advisor to several organizations, instructor in various colleges on subjects ranging from social work, trauma to addictions and homelessness, including extensive voluntary work in non-profit agencies for women, seniors, and marginalized groups.  She has Train-the-Trainer certification in Anti-Racism Response Training and facilitates workshops on reconciliation, diversity, and racism.  She is currently completing an Indigenous Community Assessment on Homelessness and Housing in Red Deer as an independent Indigenous community member.

REQUIRED READING

Choate, P., and Tortorelli, C. “Attachment Theory: A Barrier for Indigenous Children Involved with Child Protection.” Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19, 8754. pp. 1-20.  https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19148754  Accessed 06-October-2024.  (20 pages)

Lahousen, T., Unterrainer, H.F., and Kapfhammer, H-P.  “Psychobiology of Attachment and Trauma – Some General Remarks From a Clinical Perspective.” Frontiers in Psychiatry, V. 10, Article 914, December 2019: pp. 1-15, doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2019.00914  Accessed 06-October-2024.  (15 pages)

Root. D. “MSIT No’Kmag: An Indigenous Framework for Understanding Children’s Social Emotional Attachment.” Journal of Indigenous Wellbeing Te Mauri – Pimatisiwin, V5, Issue 1, Article 2, May 2020: pp. 16-27.  Accessed on 06-October-2024. (11 pages)

Indigenous Ally Toolkit (2019). https://reseaumtlnetwork.com/en/publication/ally-toolkit/ 

SUGGESTED READING

Root, D. “Indigenous Families: Fostering Attachments Our Way.” 2018. (Master’s thesis, Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax, Canada). Retrieved from https://ec.msvu.ca/server/api/core/bitstreams/9cb943d3-8e0a-402a-b0cb-a149444712b0/content   Accessed on 06-October-2024.

Please Note: By registering, you are committing to attend all three sessions to ensure a cohesive learning journey for everyone involved. We appreciate your dedication and enthusiasm!

Registration for this 3 week series closes November 5 and materials will be shared ~5-6 days before each class.