We invite you to visit us on the unceded traditional territories of the Lək̓ʷəŋən (Songhees and Xʷsepsəm/Esquimalt) Peoples on whose territory the university stands, and the Lək̓ʷəŋən and W̱SÁNEĆ Peoples whose historical relationships with the land continue today .
IGRAiN Conference International Cohost: 5th Summit
The Indigenous Global Research Alliance in Nursing (IGRAiN) is an international network anchored in the Indigenous nursing research community. Originating from the International Indigenous Nursing Research Summits that have been occurring for more than a decade, IGRAiN brings together Indigenous nurse researchers, students, and leaders from several countries globally to advance health equity for Indigenous peoples in a respectful and uncontested culturally safe space. At its core, IGRAiN honors the Indigenous nurses who came before us; those who paved the way for today's leaders and the generations yet to come. The alliance is grounded in a deep respect for Indigenous knowledge, leadership, and community. IGRAIN’s foundational goals are to: Promote Indigenous leadership in research; Center culturally safe and ethically grounded Indigenous methodologies; Support mentorship and capacity-building for students; and foster cross-national collaborations that uplift and strengthen Indigenous voices in nursing and health research.
As a network, IGRAiN aims to be more than just a collection of individuals, as it seeks to create shared infrastructure and resources: collaborative research projects, events, websites, and platforms to disseminate Indigenous-led scholarship. It recognizes that health disparities among Indigenous populations are deeply tied to cultural determinants of health (such as land dispossession, colonial policy, racism, loss of language and cultural suppression, and economic marginalization), and addresses these through research that honors Indigenous knowledge systems and healing traditions.
For nursing students, IGRAiN potentially offers opportunities to present research, to connect with mentors globally, to learn culturally respectful research practices, and to participate in projects that meaningfully contribute to Indigenous wellness. It also aligns with movements in nursing education toward cultural safety, reconciliation, and decolonizing curricula.
Members
Dr. Mona Lisa Bourque Bearskin
Dr. Mona Lisa Bourque Bearskin, is a Cree Métis Registered Nurse, scholar, and researcher from Beaver Lake Cree Nation in Treaty 6 Territory, she is a Associate Professor at the University of Victoria, School of Nursing, and one of six inaugural Canadian Institutes of Health Research-Institute of Indigenous Peoples Health (CIHR-IIPH) Indigenous Health Nursing Research Chairs. Her work is internationally recognized for advancing Indigenous nursing leadership, health equity, and the integration of Indigenous knowledge systems across nursing practice, education, policy and research.
Dr. Bourque Bearskin co-designed Canada’s first Indigenous Licensed Practical Nursing program in Maskwacis supported the development of the first Inuit Bachelor of Science in Nursing program in Nunavut and led Indigenous-specific graduate nursing leadership curricula at the University of Alberta. As former President of the Canadian Indigenous Nursing Association, she advanced national policy, strengthened Indigenous representation in nursing governance, and helped establish culturally safe nursing education frameworks. Mona Lisa is now co-leading the development of Canada’s first collaborative Indigenous-led graduate education in nursing program.
Professor Denise Wilson
Denise is the Associate Dean Māori Advancement and Professor of Māori Health. She advocates for improved health and social outcomes for whānau Māori (Indigenous peoples of Aotearoa). Her research focuses on whānau Māori living with violence, improving health and social service engagement, cultural responsiveness, and workforce development. Denise is a Subject Matter Expert for the Family Violence Death Review Committee. member of Te Pūkotahitanga (Māori Ministerial Advisory Group for Family Violence and Sexual Violence Prevention). Deniseserved on Te Pūkotahitanga (Māori Ministerial Advisory Group for Family Violence and Sexual Violence Prevention, the Family Violence Death Review Committee, chaired the Family Violence Prevention Investment Advisory Board, was the Deputy Chair of the Family Violence Prevention Expert Advisory Group, and a member of the Health Quality & Safety Commission’s Te Rōpū Māori (Māori Advisory Group)
Dr. Odette Best
Odette Best is a Wakgun clan member of the Gurreng Gurreng Nation and holds a Boonthamurra bloodline with adoption ties to the Koomumberri, Yugambeh people. Odette, is a semi-retired independent Historian and Scholar. She commenced her training at the Princess Alexandra Hospital in the late 1980s, and holds a Bachelor of Health Sciences (double major in Aboriginal Health and Community Development), a Master of Philosophy and a PhD. Odette has worked for 35 years in Indigenous health. Clinically, she worked for a decade as sexual health coordinator at the Brisbane Aboriginal and Islander Community Health Service and within the women’s and youth prison systems across Brisbane. In 2000, she moved into discipline teaching within nursing in the tertiary sector. Odette’s leadership in Indigenous health and Indigenous nursing research is acknowledged globally, and she is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing a Fellow of the Australian College of Nursing, a Churchill Fellow and a Fellow of the Congress of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nurses and Midwives. As an historian of Aboriginal nurses and midwives, Odette is passionate about uncovering and documenting the experiences of Aboriginal nurses and midwives and saving them from historical oblivion.
Dr. John Lowe
Dr. John Lowe, PhD, RN, FAAN, FIAAN is the Joseph Blades Centennial Memorial Professor at the University of Texas at Austin School of Nursing. He developed and directed the Indigenous Nursing Research Enhancement (INRE) Post-Doc Program and is a Faculty Affiliate of the Native American and Indigenous Studies. He is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing (FAAN) and the International Academy of Addictions Nursing (FIAAN). Dr. Lowe co-founded the Indigenous Global Research Alliance in Nursing (IGRAiN). He is an enrolled member of the Echota Cherokee Tribe of Alabama and the Lenape Indian Tribe of Delaware. Dr. Lowe recently served as a member of the Advisory Council to the National Institutes of Nursing Research (NINR) and as a member of the Board of Directors of the American Academy of Nursing. He co-authored with Dr. Roxanne Struthers (Ojibwe) the Conceptual Framework for Nursing in Native American Culture. He is an alumnus of the Minority Fellowship Program (MFP) at the American Nurses Association (ANA) and has served as the Chair of the National Advisory Council to the MFP. He developed and studies the Talking Circle intervention for the prevention of substance use, mental, emotional, and behavioral health disparities among Native American and Indigenous youth and young adults. These studies and other health programs are guided by Native-Reliance models that Dr. Lowe developed. The Talking Circle intervention has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs as a “Promising Evidence-Based Program” for the well-being of youth, recognized as the first manualized Talking Circle intervention, featured as one of the American Academy of Nursing’s “Edge Runners,” and featured in the National Academy of Medicine report of The Future of Nursing 2020-2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity. Dr. Lowe’s current research is funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. His work also has been acknowledged through numerous awards such as the American Nurses Association Luther Christman Award, Florida Nurses Association Cultural Diversity Award, Great 100 Centennial Research Award, Nursing Educator of the Year Award, Nurse of the Year Award, Lifetime Achievement In Education & Research Award, the Researcher of the Year at the Professor Rank Award, the Southern Nursing Research Society Research in Empathetic Care for Populations with Distinct Healthcare Needs Award, and induction into the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing International Nurse Researcher Hall of Fame.