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The next 7-Directions Summit will be held the week of Sept. 22 in Nova Scotia!
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7-Directions Summit
7-Directions Summit on brain-heart health and regenerative healing in Indigenous communities
In 2025, Pewaseskwan (the Indigenous Wellness Research Group), is hosting the 7-Directions Summit at various locations across Canada.
The summit will bring together individuals with lived or living experience, caregivers, health care workers and professionals to engage in meaningful conversations about brain-heart, heart health and the transformative potential of regenerative healing. The summit will provide an invaluable opportunity for meaningful connections, fostering dialogue and collaboration on these topics.
Together, we aim to bridge cultural perspectives and scientific research, sharing wisdom and building mutual understanding for the benefit of our communities, while also addressing the unique challenges faced by our communities. The summit will examine the intersecting themes underpinning the barriers to health care within Indigenous populations and identify factors hindering fair access.
The summit will generate culturally appropriate solutions that resonate with the rich tapestry of Indigenous values and traditions, ensuring the proportional representation of Indigenous people in regenerative healing. Additionally, the Summit will seek to address the historical wounds caused by untrustworthy health research practices, including unethical medical experiments.
In essence, the 7-Directions Summit will strive to design a roadmap toward a future where heart-brain health and regenerative healing are embraced, understood, and accessible in a manner that respects and aligns with the cultural fabric of Indigenous communities in Canada.
The first summit was held at Sturgeon Lake First Nation from December 17 to 19, 2024. Anyone from Saskatchewan was welcome to register for the sharing circles, however we privileged First Nation, Métis and Inuit participation. The participants shared personal experiences with:
• regenerative healing
• brain-heart
• heart health conditions
• those who provide care to individuals affected by these conditions
• healthcare professionals working in these areas
The summit included a Pipe Ceremony and feast on Day 1, followed by a Regenerative Healing Summit on Day 2 and a Brain-Heart Health Summit on Day 3.
Please email us for more information about upcoming Summits: pewaseskwan@usask.ca
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Most of our team lives and works on Treaty 6 territory and the Homeland of the Métis. The original peoples of these lands are the Cree, Saulteaux, Dene, Dakota, Lakota, Nakota, and Métis. Others are based in Vancouver, on the unceded lands of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples. We encourage everyone, wherever they are, to learn about the Indigenous people of the lands on which they live and work. We seek to become engaged allies together. In the spirit of truth and reconciliation, we respect the self-determination of First Nations, Métis and Inuit – in their cultures, languages and their pursuit of wellness.
© 2023 Pewaseskwan (the Indigenous Wellness Research Group) | Office of the Cameco Chair in Indigenous Health and Wellness, University of Saskatchewan.