Great Moments: Indigenous research partnerships

Community-driven research a success

Fostering strong community connections and respecting Indigenous priorities in research are the two most important things post-secondary institutions can do when partnering with Indigenous communities. And the successes of UVic’s reciprocal, community-driven research model in Indigenous research can be seen in the longstanding and well-recognized relationships UVic researchers have built with First Nations communities across Canada.

The international reputation of ethnobotanist Dr. Nancy Turner has grown from her work with Indigenous knowledge holders, documenting and preserving their critically important botanical and environmental knowledge, and helping communities protect the traditional ecosystems that sustain them. Similarly, since 1998 the Stó:lõ Nation has invited UVic historian Dr. John Lutz to bring students to their community as part of an ethnohistory field school, exploring and documenting histories of local interest and relevance. On completion, the research is recognized as part of the heritage of the band, and also enhances academic knowledge of the community’s history.

Building new paths to dialogue and understanding has also defined UVic’s law program, which has fostered partnerships that have brought it to the forefront of legal scholarship in treaty rights and Indigenous legal traditions.

This spirit of respectful cooperation infuses and informs the many other collaborative research partnerships UVic researchers undertake, which benefit academic and Indigenous communities alike.

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