Building a Social Policy Framework for the Health and Well-being of Mi'kmaq Communities: A Two-Eyed Seeing Approach

In many First Nation communities, a high percentage of the population depends on social assistance for some or all of their income. This makes policy and programs that set the rules for receiving assistance, and that provide supportive services, an important area of public administration. Research has shown that life on social assistance is characterized by poverty, stress, insecurity and parenting challenges, which contribute to negative outcomes in health and well-being. The Mi'kmaq in Nova Scotia, living in 13 communities, have the opportunity to design social policies and programs related to social assistance that are suited to their culture and community conditions. This project undertakes research on how dependence has arisen historically and the forces that contribute to dependence today. In its action phase, the project supports the Mi'kmaq in developing a social policy framework that will serve them well in the future. The project takes a "two-eyed seeing" approach, a concept developed by Mi'kmaq elders. Two-Eyed Seeing refers to looking at something with one eye that draws on Indigenous knowledge, using the other eye to draw on Western knowledge, and using both these eyes together, for the benefit of all.