Carolyn Belanger is a registered nurse from amiskwaciwâskahikan (Edmonton, Alberta) in Métis homelands and Treaty 6 territory. She began her career in a busy urban emergency department before focusing her practice on Indigenous health in both urban and remote communities. She witnessed the vital role of Indigenous knowledges in improving health outcomes and the necessity of Indigenous self-governance for healthcare services to be culturally relevant and contextually responsive. To be able to advocate for Indigenous health equity, Carolyn returned to academia and gained a Master of Public Health from the University of British Columbia. Carolyn stays connected to the evolving needs of her community as a volunteer with a grassroots, Indigenous led outreach group. Inspired by those she serves; she is now pursuing a PhD through the Faculty of Native Studies at the University of Alberta where she is encouraged to apply her own Métis worldview to her research. Aligned with the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation’s commitment to human rights and dignity, Carolyn’s research explores resurgent approaches to Indigenous health governance. She looks forward to engaging peers and mentors at the Trudeau Foundation in order to further her capacity in advocating for Indigenous health equity and transformative self-governance.
