Inaakonigeng ige-zhiwebiki’ba: Self-determining our path on the future of Indigenous STBBI research with the Feast Centre

Abstract

The future of Indigenous STBBI (sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections) research must address the unique needs of diverse First Nations, Inuit, and Métis (FNIM) communities across Canada. This requires the expansion of culturally responsive research approaches centred on FNIM ways of being, knowing, and doing. The Feast Centre for Indigenous STBBI Research (Feast Centre) is dedicated to expanding the use of FNIM research methods in response to the unique needs of distinct Indigenous communities and foregrounds the voices of Indigenous Peoples living with or affected by STBBI. Indigenous Peoples in Canada experience higher rates of STBBI compared to other populations, and this is linked to significant health disparities, meaning that conventional public health approaches are not meeting the needs of Indigenous communities. Canada’s colonial health policies sustain health disparities through a lack of culturally responsive approaches to STBBI prevention, treatment, and care. In this article we examine Indigenous STBBI initiatives foundational to the Feast Centre by focusing on the outcomes of a CAAN Communities, Alliances & Networks–led national Indigenous community consultation, the findings of the project’s Indigenous HIV and AIDS scoping review, and vital theoretical insights from Indigenous STBBI literature. We provide key recommendations that emphasize culturally responsive approaches to STBBI research that strive to meet community-identified needs while cultivating the inherent strengths of FNIM communities. We envision these key recommendations within the theoretical framework of Indigenous futurisms in ways that reconceptualize Indigenous STBBI research through cultural strengths and offer guidance for the direction of future research.