A surge in Indigenous women engaging in field research in the North is sparking a wave of female scholars, according to researchers. Nicole Redvers, an associate professor at Western University and Deninu Kue First Nation member in the N.W.T., noted a significant rise in female Indigenous students pursuing advanced degrees in recent years.
Statistics Canada reports a rise in Indigenous women enrolling in post-secondary education in Canada between 2016 and 2021, with more holding bachelor’s degrees or higher. However, specific data on Indigenous women involved in field research in the North is not readily available.
Redvers advocates for a centralized university in the North to better monitor such trends across all territories. She attributes the growing interest in Indigenous women in research to factors like geopolitical focus on the Arctic, new funding opportunities, and increased visibility of female Indigenous researchers, which was previously challenging.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s calls for action highlighted education and funding disparities affecting Indigenous students and researchers. Redvers emphasizes that the impetus for change lies with Indigenous individuals driving transformation, rather than solely relying on institutional efforts.
PhD student Ashley Ens, a member of the Nihtat Gwich’in in the N.W.T., emphasizes the historical role of Indigenous women as knowledge keepers. She underscores the shift towards acknowledging Indigenous methodologies, community knowledge, and responsibilities within academic spaces led by female Indigenous researchers.
By integrating traditional knowledge and involving community members in their work, northern researchers are fostering community trust, notes Redvers. Laurie-Ann Lines, a senior researcher at the Institute for Circumpolar Health Research in Yellowknife, applauds the increasing presence of Indigenous female graduate and post-doctorate students, attributing this progress to collaboration with elders and community members in research.
Lines, a Yellowknives Dene First Nation member, recalls the scarcity of Indigenous academic mentors when she entered academia in 2015. She now spearheads the Northwest Territories Network Environments for Indigenous Health Research, a collaborative initiative involving elders, researchers, community members, and learners in the N.W.T., reflecting the evolving landscape of research in the North.
The evolving research paradigm in the North, as noted by Lines, is shifting towards research conducted with and by Indigenous communities, signaling a departure from past research practices that marginalized Indigenous perspectives.
