BU professors to celebrate prestigious $2.5 million SSHRC Partnership Grant

Brandon University invites interested members of the community to a night of celebration for a research project on sustainable post-secondary education for Indigenous communities in remote locations. The project, “Mino Bimaadiziwin: Reconciliation in Action,” brings together researchers from BU and the University of Manitoba and was recently awarded a prestigious Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Partnership Grant in the amount of $2.5 million.

This research project closely follows the call to action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, to “ensure that Aboriginal peoples have equitable access to jobs, training, and education opportunities in the corporate sector, and that Aboriginal communities gain long-term sustainable benefits from economic development projects” and also aligns with BU’s commitment to First Nations, Métis and Inuit communities. It will bring postsecondary education into communities that lack programming due to their remote location.

First Nations students participating in the project will be able to attend entry-level certificate programs on sustainable housing design, Indigenous food systems and adult education in their communities. Rather than learn entirely from a classroom, students will directly address the systemic problems in their communities through supported projects-based learning, building 12 sustainable houses in Island Lake, Manitoba, over the six years, and introducing food security programs to alleviate the problem of unreliable food access in the region.

For more information on the research project, see ecohealthcircle.com.

Please join us at 7:30 p.m., in He Oyate Tawapi (Ceremony Room) in the Health Studies Building and meet community representatives from Wasagamack and Garden Lake, and Dr. Shirley Thompson, Project Leader, from the University of Manitoba, and Dr. Wilder Robles (Rural Development), Dr. Patricia Harms (History) and Dr. Serena Petrella (Sociology), Brandon University partners.

The ceremony will be followed by a wine reception and refreshments.