Advancing a holistic, physical activity-based wellness program for Indigenous women - Knowledge sharing to foster expansion

The rate of type II diabetes is 3 to 5 times higher for Indigenous people compared to the general population, and the rate of obesity is nearly twice as high. The reasons for this difference include the impact of colonization on Indigenous peoples, resulting in family breakdown, and dramatic changes to their 'way of life'. Many Indigenous women lack the opportunity to participate in exercise and do not have access to, or engage in, local health programs. A community led, physical activity-based wellness program for Indigenous women has been running for 4 years in three communities in Alberta. Led by a community member, in the program women come together to experience new types of exercise, learn about nutrition and share their personal experiences in a culturally sensitive environment. The program has been well received and there are many new communities across multiple provinces that would like to be able to host a program. This research project would support the following activities: 1) the continued development of the program itself, 2) the establishment of an Advisory Group to guide program development, expansion into new communities and research; this group would be led by participants of the program and champions from the communities involved, 3) regional community events in which program champions would share information about the program and community leaders would share information about their communities, with a goal to support the new communities in adapting a program to meet their needs and finding financial support for the program, and 4) the continued development of an Indigenous women's health promotion 'community of practice' (CoP) - this is a group of individuals from different regions and different disciplines (homemakers, administrators, researchers, elders, healthcare providers, etc.) that come together to share knowledge, who are all working to support and empower Indigenous women in order to prevent ill health.