Lheidli: Where the Two Rivers Meet

This is a collaboration between the Aboriginal Gathering Place (link: https://www.ecuad.ca/on-campus/agp) and the Health Design Lab (link: https://research.ecuad.ca/healthdesignlab/about/) at Emily Carr University of Art + Design (ECUAD) and the Director of Aboriginal Education at the College of New Caledonia (CNC), and funded through a Systems Change Grant from the Vancouver Foundation. The overall goal of this project has been to shift how the next generation of health professionals’ views Indigenous health and support an environment where Indigenous peoples consistently access culturally safe and appropriate care, feel comfortable using the healthcare system, and experience better health outcomes. The exhibit and related publication (which will be available by donation at the gallery), are the result of a 3-year pilot project to develop and test the Cultural Connections Workshop Model for cultural safety education. Grounded in Indigenous ways of knowing, the 3-day workshop aims to create a culturally immersive space for the purpose of shared learning and mutual benefit by bringing together health science students with Indigenous community members. Participants interact with one another through sharing circles and through making — using arts and material practice to facilitate dialogue and relationship building.