Webinar Summary
Indigenous Engagement in Child Health Research: Principles and Guidance explores Indigenous perspectives on children, community engagement and ethical research relationships. The webinar introduces key considerations for engaging children, parents/caregivers and communities in Indigenous child health research, including Indigenous ways of knowing, relational approaches, balancing individual and community perspectives and creating respectful spaces for different knowledge systems to come together.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:
Describe Indigenous perspectives on children, including the importance of children’s voices and their connection to family, community, culture and relationships
Recognize the importance of meaningful engagement with Indigenous children, families, caregivers and communities in child health research
Identify key considerations for respectful and ethical Indigenous engagement, including balancing individual and community perspectives and creating space for Indigenous and Western knowledge systems
Meet the Speakers!
Professor Malcolm King is a citizen of the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation (Ontario). Since October 2017, he has served as Professor of Community Health and Epidemiology at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) and Scientific Director of the Saskatchewan Centre for Patient-Oriented Research (SCPOR). He is the co-lead of Pewaseskwan (the Indigenous Wellness Research Group) and serves as Indigenous lead or co-lead on several national health research networks, including ENRICH, IMPaCT, RareKids-CAN, AVA, CHFA and BHI. Prof. King continues to teach and research in Indigenous health, with a particular focus on wellness and engagement. From 2009 to 2016, he led the CIHR Institute of Aboriginal Peoples’ Health as its Scientific Director, spearheading the development of a national health research agenda aimed at improving wellness and achieving health equity for First Nations, Métis and Inuit in Canada. He was honoured with the Award of Excellence in Research and the National Aboriginal Achievement Award for Medical Research in 1999. In 2016, he was elected as a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences. In November 2021, he was inducted as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, and in June 2025, he received an honorary Doctor of Laws from York University.
Dr. Alexandra King is a citizen of the Nipissing First Nation (Ontario). She currently co-leads Pewaseskwan (the Indigenous Wellness Research Group) with her husband Professor Malcolm King. She is an Associate Professor in the School of Public Health at the University of Waterloo and Adjunct Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) and in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University. She served as the inaugural Cameco Chair in Indigenous Health and Wellness at USask from 2017 to 2025. Dr. King is focused on improving the health and wellness of First Nations, Inuit and Métis. Her research interests include Indigenous wellness; Indigenous research philosophies, methodologies and ethics; Indigenous health training and mentorship; Indigenous women’s health; HIV, HCV and STBBI; heart and heart-brain health; pediatric; cancer; regenerative medicine; clinical trials; and land-based research. Her clinical focus has been HIV/AIDS and viral hepatitis. Dr. King is a Principal Investigator on various CIHR research grants related to Indigenous people and their wellness and provides Indigenous leadership on several CIHR/TIPS/NFRF/SHHRC grants, with many focused on wholistic care for perinatal women living with or at risk of HIV or hepatitis C virus. She co-chaired the 2nd International Indigenous Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD) Gathering, provides Canadian leadership to The Alliance for Perinatal and Reproductive Justice and is a member of the Executive Committee for RareKids-CAN.
Michelle Paquette is of mixed European and Métis ancestry. She works with Pewaseskwan – the Indigenous Wellness Research Group, where she co-leads Waniska – The Indigenous Healing and Wellness Research Hub. She also serves as the Indigenous Community Navigator for the RareKids-CAN research network and supports other Pewaseskwan projects as needed. All of her previous and current research is connected to health, justice and wellness for all equity-denied groups. As a researcher who believes in community-driven research, she leverages her lived experiences with the child welfare system, the criminal justice system, addiction and recovery to help dream and create better worlds for other community members and future generations. She lives and works with her family on the unceded and traditional territories of the Coast Salish People in what is now known as Vancouver.