Dakelh Territory/Prince George, BC - Two new federally funded initiatives at the University of Northern British Columbia will increase knowledge of environmental health issues in First Nations communities across Canada, and aim to improve health outcomes for these communities.

"The Government of Canada is pleased to provide $11 million over ten years for the study and $100,000 a year ongoing for the network," said the Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, federal Minister of Health. "These initiatives are important because they contribute to improving health outcomes in First Nations communities by increasing capacity and filling important gaps in research related to food, the environment and health."

The University of Northern British Columbia is housing two new initiatives under the leadership of Dr. Laurie Chan, who holds the BC Leadership Chair in Aboriginal Environmental Health. The First Nations Food, Nutrition, and Environment Study is a multi-year study with 100 randomly selected First Nation communities across Canada.  The study is aimed at increasing knowledge on the benefits, as well as possible risks, of food and water being consumed in First Nations communities.  To this end, information will be gathered on such aspects as:  the current use of traditional and store bought food; food security (availability and affordability of safe, nutritious food); levels of both nutrients and environmental chemicals in many traditional foods; heavy metals in drinking water; pharmaceutical by-products in surface water; and mercury levels in hair.

“Our people’s health is largely determined by the food we gather on the land,” said BC AFN Regional Chief Shawn Atleo. “Our ancestors had very low rates of diseases and lived long healthy lives.  We need our traditional foods to be safe and accessible in order to improve health in our communities.”

The First Nations Environmental Health Innovation Network is a virtual network affiliated with the National Collaborating Centre for Aboriginal Health, which seeks to connect environmental health researchers with First Nations communities across Canada to build research capacity by providing First Nations with a ‘one-stop-shop’ on environmental health issues.  The Network is a partnership-based initiative made up of nine founding partners, one of which is the Assembly of First Nations.  Both of the projects are funded by Health Canada’s First Nations and Inuit Health Branch.

 

> Click here for more information about the network

“First Nations care about the safety of drinking water, chemical contaminants in the traditional food supply, water and soil contamination, indoor air quality and household mould. We hope to provide services to communities in need, and to bring awareness at the academic, regional and national levels on these important health issues,” said Dr. Laurie Chan.  “First Nations have told us they want to make informed decisions on their environment.  To do this we need both sound scientific research and traditional knowledge - our projects are about balancing the two.”


Contact:
Dr. Laurie Chan, BC Leadership Chair in Aboriginal Environmental Health, UNBC (250) 960-5237
Regional Chief Shawn Atleo (604) 837-6908
Health Canada Media Relations (613) 957-2983
University of Northern BC Communications (250) 960-5622  

 

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