In the wake of the efforts made by Indigenous communities in disaster prevention and risk management a First Nations Symposium which was organized by the Centre du Savoir Sur Measure at the Univeristé du Québec à Chicoutimi, in collaboration with Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) and First Nations and Inuit Health Brand (FNIHB) Québec region, the objectives of this symposium were to:
• Provide a better understanding of existing and emerging risks;
• Strength the governance of emergency risk management;
• Improve preparedness for an effective response; • Increase community resilience.
Nathan’s Role: Met and built a network with a diverse number of Indigenous, Regional and Federal actors with a role in Natural Hazards and First Nations health, vulnerability, and adaptation. Having the opportunity to meet:
- Stanley Vollant: Innu surgeon, professor, and lecturer. The first Aboriginal surgeon trained in Québec, he received a National Aboriginal Role Model Award from the Governor General of Canada in 1996. In 2010, he began Innu Meshkenu (“my Innu path”), a 6,000 km walk whose goals are to bring peoples together, to promote the discovery of the land and the teachings of First Nations and to encourage Aboriginal young people to pursue their dreams.
- Reggie Tomaktut: From the Cree Board of Health and Social Services of James Bay (CBHSSJB) which delivers health and social services in the Cree territory of north-eastern Quebec.
Nathan S. Debortoli, PhD., 