CBU Awarded $499,993 SSHRC Insight Grant to Spearhead International Indigenous Research 

Cape Breton University (CBU) is proud to announce that an international collaborative network, anchored at CBU, has been awarded a $499,993 Insight Grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). The five-year initiative, Our Research Futures: Indigenous Pathways for Research in Higher Education, is spearheaded by principal investigator Dr. Marcia Ostashewski, Director of the Centre for Sound Communities and Professor of Ethnomusicology at CBU, alongside Dean of Unama’ki College, Laurianne Sylvester and Assistant Professor of Mi’kmaq Studies, Starr Paul.

Coordinated through CBU’s Centre for Sound Communities and Unama’ki College, the project connects scholars, diplomats and community leaders across four internationally interconnected hubs:

• Unama’ki (Cape Breton, Nova Scotia): Cape Breton University

• British Columbia: University of Victoria

• Aotearoa (New Zealand): Victoria University of Wellington

• Mexico: Indigenous communities in the Huasteca region, and Mexico City.

The Initiative’s leadership extends from Canada to Mexico and across the Pacific, guided by a diverse team of Indigenous scholars and allies. This includes Dr. Hector Vazquez-Cordoba and Dr. Anita Prest at the University of Victoria, who are leading the network’s collaborations with Indigenous organizations in Mexico, as well as Victoria University of Wellington’s Dr. Mike Ross and Dr. Brian Diettrich who are directing the project from within the Aotearoa hub. The academic team is further strengthened by the expertise of Canada’s High Commissioner to New Zealand, Keith Smith, bridging scholarship and international diplomacy, and advising on such matters as international Indigenous rights frameworks.

Fostering Indigenous Success in Global Academia

While higher education institutions globally are increasingly striving to prioritize Indigenous methods, many degree programs and university systems are still adapting to fully support Indigenous ways of knowing. Our Research Futures is designed to create concrete frameworks that foster the success, well-being and sustainability of Indigenous scholars and researchers within these academic environments.

“The combined international team for Our Research Futures expresses our deep appreciation to SSHRC for their generous and timely support for our research,” said Principal Investigator Dr. Marcia Ostashewski. “This is an extraordinary opportunity to affirm Indigenous knowledge and leadership in scholarship, especially inclusive of emerging scholars and particularly those who are working at the intersections of Indigenous languages, creative practices and the advancement of Indigenous knowledge globally.”

By studying the lived experiences of Indigenous undergraduates, graduate students, established scholars and Indigenous Knowledge Holders, the project will identify institutional barriers and highlight the factors that lead to Indigenous academic and research success.

“Working with other Indigenous peoples around the world, and learning about how they nurture their own knowledge and communities, has elevated our work and lifted our communities here at home,” said Starr Paul, Assistant Professor at CBU and Indigenous Lead for the Unama’ki Hub. “I have seen that other Indigenous people in other parts of the world have gone through similar hardships as those experienced by my people. They thrive in their language and culture today.”

“This global collaboration inspires me, and the Mi’kmaw youth we work with, to continue the revitalization of Mi’kmaw language and culture happening all over Mi’kma’ki today,” Paul continued. “There is a resurgence yet to come for my people, and it will have our ancestors sing with joy in the spirit world.”

That sense of global solidarity is echoed across the network’s international partners.

“I’m most excited about learning from and working with other Indigenous peoples to build stronger and more resilient pathways for Māori researchers. ‘Kāpuia te kākaho’ (Our unity is our strength),” said Dr. Mike Ross, Head of School for Māori Studies at Victoria University of Wellington, who also notes that this traditional Māori proverb reflects knowledge about the kākaho. This reed is easily broken on its own, but nearly impossible to break when bundled together with many others – an apt comparison for the international Indigenous collaboration at the heart of the project.

Public Engagement

To ensure the research sparks real-world change and extends beyond academic journals, the CBU-led team is committed to robust public engagement. Over the next six years, the project plans to deliver:

• International Gatherings: Hosting gatherings to share knowledge and arts, with major events planned including at the University of Victoria, and the Museum of Anthropology in Xalapa/Mexico City.

• Multimedia Production: Translating findings into a multilingual documentary film and an Our Research Futures podcast series to amplify voices of emerging Indigenous researchers.

• Youth Resources: Creating free digital learning resources designed to inspire Indigenous youth to pursue careers in academia.

• Student Mentorship: Funding the training and career development of 25 students (from undergrads to PhD candidates) over five years, as well as a Indigenous Postdoctoral Project Coordinator.

To directly support the vitality of Indigenous knowledge and practices, project outputs, learning resources and final policy recommendations will be made publicly accessible in Indigenous languages, specifically Mi’kmaw, Māori and Nahuatl, alongside English and French.

Our Research Futures aligns directly with Cape Breton University’s core priorities of fostering EDIA (Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Accessibility), Indigenization, decolonization and reconciliation. Through the dedicated work of Unama’ki College and the Centre for Sound Communities, CBU remains committed to honouring different ways of knowing and driving significant positive impacts for Indigenous scholars and Indigenous communities across Unama’ki.

For more information about research initiatives at CBU, please visit cbu.ca/research.