Community Resources
These resources aim to help community researchers with conventional research practices and empower them to lead research projects in their own communities. These resources include tools and templates for designing research plans and protocols and finding and applying for funding sources.
A Community Guide to Protecting Indigenous Knowledge – this guide provides worksheets and information to help communities in preserving and sharing their Indigenous knowledge (Indian Affairs and Northern Affairs Canada, 2001)
Centre for Indigenous Research and Community-Led Engagement – previously the Centre for Aboriginal Health Research (CAHR), this centre promotes, facilitates and leads relevant and ethical research that improves Indigenous peoples' wellbeing
Guide for Writing a Funding Proposal – this guide provides an in-depth explanation of what is involved in writing a funding proposal
Institute of Indigenous Peoples' Health (IIPH) – funds health research in order to develop and support a well-trained base of investigators with the skills and expertise needed to design and conduct innovative and diverse research and knowledge translation activities aimed at improving health. (Click Opportunities to browse current Canadian Institute of Health Research funding opportunities, including those for research into Indigenous health, on ResearchNet.
Health Attitudes and Beliefs Survey
The FNHA reached over 2,000 Indigenous people across BC with the Health Attitudes and Beliefs Survey. The goal of the survey, conducted in 2019, was to better understand the perspectives of Indigenous people related to the toxic drug crisis, cannabis use and cancer prevention. Published July 2019.
Researcher Resources
These resources include guides, toolkits and workbooks created by First Nations organizations and researchers, aimed at helping communities do research for their own benefit.
Canadian Institutes of Health Research – Canada's federal funding agency for health research, the CIHR CIHR provides leadership and support to health researchers and trainees across Canada
First Nations in BC Knowledge Network – a platform that fosters knowledge-sharing and facilitates networking among First Nations individuals, communities and organizations
First Nations Information Governance Centre – supports First Nations communities in building data and statistics capacity, including providing credible and relevant information on First Nations
International Journal of Indigenous Health – established to advance knowledge of and understanding for improving Indigenous health
National Collaborating Centre for Indigenous Health – supports First Nations, Inuit and Métis public health renewal and health equity through knowledge translation and exchange
Research Universities Council of BC – works to improve the quality, accessibility and coordination of university education in BC, and provides a single voice on behalf of BC's major universities on public policy issues including funding, research, accountability, admissions and transfer
UBC Indigenous Portal – information about Indigenous engagement at the UBC Vancouver campus and an information resource for Indigenous students, faculty and the wider community
Researcher Guides
The FNHA encourages all researchers to familiarize themselves with the existing protocols and expectations surrounding research in First Nations communities.
This section lists resources that the FNHA Research and Knowledge Exchange team believes are essential for researchers to understand and refer to before they approach communities with their research proposals.
The principles and practices explained in these resources should be applied and adapted to the unique circumstances of the research study and the community.
These resources include general and specific guidelines created by various Indigenous organizations and communities, as well as by academics, universities and government agencies. Guides from local communities have been included as well and their content will likely be valuable to all researchers, even when working with different communities.
Guidelines for Ethical Aboriginal Research – A Resource Manual for the Development of Ethical and Culturally Appropriate Community-Based Research within the First Nations Communities in the Manitoulin Area. Developed by members of the Aboriginal Health Research Review Committee in collaboration with Manitoulin First Nations leadership and community agencies. 2011.
CIHR Guidelines for Health Research Involving Aboriginal People – Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Ethics Office. 2013-06-27. This document presents earlier guidelines developed by CIHR before TCPS2 was created. Much of its content was incorporated into TCPS2, but there is still some guidance that researchers may find helpful.
Ethical Guidelines for Aboriginal Research Elders and Healers Roundtable – A Report by the Indigenous Health Research Development Program to the Interagency Advisory Panel on Research Ethics. Dr. Dawn Martin-Hill, Danielle Soucy MA. This report describes ethical guidelines that were developed through community-based consultations.
Ethics in First Nations Research – Environmental Stewardship Unit, Assembly of First Nations. March 2009. This paper provides an in-depth introduction to a First Nations perspective on research and discusses relevant ethical considerations for researchers and communities.
Ethics of Aboriginal Research – Marlene Brant Castellano, Journal of Aboriginal Health. January 2004. Vol 1, No 1, p. 98-114. This paper offers principles to help guide the development of ethical codes around Aboriginal research, both within the community and with outside researchers.
Kwayask itôtamowin – Indigenous Research Ethics Report of the Indigenous Peoples' Health Research Centre to the Institute of Aboriginal Peoples' Health and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Willie Ermine, Raven Sinclair, Madisun Browne. Indigenous Peoples' Health Research Centre. March 2005. This paper is a comprehensive summary of a thorough literature review on Indigenous research ethics. It also describes a legal review and an Elders dialogue completed by the authors.
Ownership, Control, Access and Possession (OCAP) or Self-Determination Applied to Research – A Critical Analysis of Contemporary First Nations Research and Some Options for First Nations Communities. First Nations Centre. October 2005. This paper offers a detailed critique of the western approach to Aboriginal health research and explains why and how OCAP should be adopted by researchers.
Protocols and Principles for Conducting Research in an Indigenous Context – Faculty of Human and Social Development, University of Victoria. February 2003. This is an example of ethical protocols around Indigenous research that have been developed by an academic institution.
Protocols and Principles for Conducting Research in a Nuu-Chah-Nulth Context – Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council Research Ethics Committee. August 2008.
Research Principles and Protocols - Mi'kmaw Ethics Watch – Unama'ki College of Cape Breton University.
Six Nations Council Ethics Committee Protocol – The Six Nations Council.
The First Nations Principles of OCAP – First Nations Information Governance Centre. 2013. This page provides a brief introduction to OCAP.
Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans -- Chapter 9: Research Involving the First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples of Canada, 2nd Edition – Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. December 2010. This policy represents the ethical standards that all institutional researchers are expected to follow when conducting research involving Aboriginal people.
