Life-changing ways of knowing

For decades, Indigenous research pathologized the people it purported to study, often treating Indigeneity itself as a problem to solve, and dismissing centuries of complex Indigenous expertise, knowledge and methodologies.

Indigenous students and faculty are even now underrepresented in academia, and it can be challenging for them to present and share the ways of knowing they learned from Elders.

Vanessa Watts is amplifying Indigenous expertise and voices, and supporting Indigenous students in higher education. She’s leading efforts to centre Indigenous knowledge in research, working with communities, organizations and Knowledge Keepers on issues of local and national importance in a fast-changing world.