Melq'ilwiye: Coming Together — Intersections of Identity, Culture, and Health for Urban Aboriginal Youth

Abstract

The goal of this exploratory community-based participatory action research project was twofold: to determine how urban Aboriginal youth identify their health needs within a culturally centred model of health and wellness, and to create new knowledge and research capacity by and with urban Aboriginal youth and urban Aboriginal health-care providers. A mixed-method approach was employed to examine these experiences using talking circles and a survey. The study contributes to anticolonial research in that it resists narratives of dis(ease) put forth through neocolonial research paradigms.A key focus was the development of strategies that address the aspirations of urban Aboriginal youth, laying foundations upon which their potential in health and wellness can be nurtured, supported, and realized. The study contributes to a new narrative of the health of urban Aboriginal youth within a culturally centred and culturally safe framework that acknowledges their strong connection to their Indigenous lands, languages, and traditions while also recognizing the spaces between which they move.