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Fall 2016

Toor, Mansharn K

This thesis is guided by an inquiry into the state responses to Australia’s Mabo v Queensland 1992 and Canada’s Calder v British Columbia 1973 rulings in the struggle for Indigenous rights to self-government. Australia’s Cape York Peninsula and Canada’s Nisga’a Nation serve as case studies for this

thesis, to answer the research questions: What consequences came out of the Mabo and Calder cases for Indigenous territorial claims in Australia and Canada? And how does the settler state reterritorialize and limit Indigenous rights to self–government? Utilizing Henri Lefebvre’s concepts of

, political, and economic relationships to ensure Indigenous rights to self–government are limited. In the aftermath of the Mabo and Calder decisions, this thesis traces the settler state’s mechanisms to gain political and economic certainty by removing Indigenous rights to self–government. My findings reveal

Spring 2015

Jobin, Shalene M C

domination in settler societies has had and continues to have an insidious impact on the social, political, and economic lives of Indigenous peoples. Each of these spheres, combined, produces an interrelated system of colonial logics. Yet, focusing merely on state domination in settler societies (what I

Indigenous political economy approach, I examine economic exploitation of the Plains Cree, with a key focus on settler-colonial logics within neoliberal governmentality. I explore this undertheorized phenomenon—the correlation between economic exploitation and mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual

conflict for Indigenous peoples—which can result in a settler-colonial–induced dissonance. Specifically, my dissertation makes a case for the Cree to shift away from state recognition towards alternative modes of resistance. Utilizing a Nehiyawak peoplehood method, I draw from oral histories, Cree

Fall 2019

Crystal Gail Fraser

Through archival sources, interviews, and my own experience as the daughter and grandaughter of Gwichyà Gwich’in women who were institutionalized in Inuuvik and Aklavik, I explore the uniquely northern experience of Indigenous children who were consigned to Inuuvik’s Indian Residential Schools

coercive policies that were designed to remove Indigenous peoples from their lands, eliminate their sovereignty, and assimilate them into the broader Canadian settler-society remained. My training in both History and Indigenous Studies allowed me to draw upon new methods to investigate how children were

embedded in this colonial framework experienced student life by exploring topics like bodies, health, hygiene, sports, and sexual violence. The resistance and activism of Indigenous parents and children were foundational to the survival of the students and our cultures. Resisting damage-centered research

Fall 2019

Tina Leanne Shrigley

This study investigated Indigenous women’s experiences of healing from trauma. The legacy of colonization and Indian residential schools continues to impact Indigenous peoples through historic and intergenerational trauma. Very little research exists on the impact of historic and intergenerational

trauma on Indigenous women, including treatment and intervention for complex trauma. In-depth interviews took place with four Indigenous women from a First Nations community in Southwestern Ontario. These women self-identified as experiencing, and engaging in healing activities to recover from trauma

to give back to their community, engage in learning more about their culture, and also described a deeper spiritual connection. The findings of this study affirm current research and indicate the continued need for, and availability of, both traditional Indigenous and mainstream psychological

Fall 2020

Schiefelbein, Wyatt Douglas

In response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) and the Psychological Foundation of Canada (PFC) issued a joint statement identifying the harms that psychological research and intervention have caused Indigenous communities, while also

whiteness and the dispossession of Indigenous peoples from lands and resources. It is for the purpose of understanding the function of psychological disciplines in the continued theft of Indigenous lands and resources that I develop a research methodology I call Indigenous critical disability studies (I-CDS

), drawing on current Indigenous scholarship and disability studies to do so. Using the I-CDS framework, I argue that a possessive logic intelligence acts directly as a means of justifying the dispossession of Indigenous peoples from lands and resources by settler colonial nations through appeal to the

Spring 2021

Simpson, Tonya

For the past decade, the disproportionate victimization of Indigenous women across Canada has gained national attention within the spheres of activist organizations, media outlets, and political parties. Although the rates of homicidal violence towards non-Indigenous women have declined over the

years, the targeting of Indigenous women persists. This observation suggests that factors unique to the victimization of the latter group exist, and these variables might be sustaining the violence that they continue to experience. Recent dialogue concerning the ongoing violence towards Indigenous women

has situated the heightened rates of homicide within the greater contexts of structural violence inflicted upon Indigenous peoples. This structural violence is rooted Canada’s colonial history and is maintained by several contemporary social structures. Provided the recent association between

Spring 2020

Voaklander, Britt

Diabetes in pregnancy has been found to be more prevalent among Indigenous women in many countries. It is not clear whether Indigenous women with similar colonial histories have a greater prevalence of both pre-existing diabetes mellitus (pre-existing DM) and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM

) compared to non-Indigenous women. This thesis includes a systematic review of the literature that examined the prevalence of both pre-existing DM and GDM among Indigenous women in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the USA. The systematic review identified that Indigenous women living in countries with

to non-Indigenous women. This thesis also includes a retrospective cohort study of all singleton births in Alberta from 2006-2016 that evaluated the prevalence of pre-existing DM, GDM, and maternal and neonatal outcomes among Métis women compared to non-Métis women in Alberta. Results from the

Spring 2022

Miller, Andrea

Transitions towards renewable energy at all scales are urgently needed to meet current targets for climate action and renewable electricity generation. Indigenous communities across Canada are increasingly investing in clean energy initiatives, energy efficiency measures, and renewable energy

projects that centre community members as project planners, managers, owners, and beneficiaries. This research explores the landscape of Indigenous-led and owned renewable energy in Alberta. The work presented here shares the findings of a community-based participatory research partnership with members of

Enoch Cree Nation in the province’s emerging clean energy economy. Community-specific findings are situated within the context of interviews with key informants from the fields of Indigenous renewable energy and community generation, who shed light on the roles that Indigenous communities are playing in

Fall 2023

Howse, Robin M

This thesis research will explore the ways in which land-based healing and reclamation are interconnected. The Indigenous community members of the Pekîwe Cultural Lodge were both collaborators and co-thinkers in this work. Looking at the social aspects of reclamation through an Indigenous lens

provides a rich dialogue that will be valuable to the academic literature in both reclamation and Indigenous studies. A unique Indigenous research method is utilized in these processes. Primary qualitative research data is analyzed, outlining the opportunities and challeneges of reclamation and restoration

. Additionally, this work aims to inspire and encourage Indigenous academics and community members, especially youth, to pursue their own healing journeys. Hopefully this will result in more brilliant and resilient Indigenous minds achieving their goals and bringing their gifts to life. Some key concepts in this

Fall 2022

Lau, Stuart C.

Neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) have been found to be more prevalent among Indigenous children. However, it is unclear whether this extends to all Indigenous children from countries with similar colonial histories. In this thesis, we conducted a systematic review to assess the evidence on the

prevalence of NDDs among Indigenous children in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the USA and compared these estimates with those among non-Indigenous children. Limited evidence suggests a greater burden of Intellectual Disability affecting Indigenous children in Australia, New Zealand. This review also

Communication Disorder in Indigenous children. This thesis also includes a population-based retrospective cohort study that evaluated the prevalence of neurodevelopmental disorders and disabilities (NDD/D) of all singleton Métis live births and a random sample of non-Métis live births in Alberta from 2006-2016