Jennifer RobinsonCHIEF LADY BIRD
Jennifer Robinson is a resident physician at McGill University Health Centre in Montreal. She has been a consultant on health care and health policy in British Columbia and for the Assembly of First Nations. She is Algonquin and a member of the Timiskaming First Nation. Ms. Robinson will begin co-writing the Indigenous Leaders series with Karl Moore in March.
What does leadership mean to you?
Leadership for me means facilitating a strong ability to be compassionate about communicating, listening and inspiring others toward a common direction. Many Indigenous leaders evoke these qualities and that of resilience during challenging times of uncertainty. I have been taught that the traditional teachings of the Seven Grandfathers – wisdom, love, respect, bravery, honesty, humility and truth – remain the foundation for establishing values that inform a path to great leadership. Whenever I have been called upon to take on a leadership role I have tried to emulate these qualities.
Two influential Indigenous matriarchs that continue to influence my education on leadership personally and professionally are my mother and an Indigenous family medicine doctor.
I admire the resilience that my mother has, having raised seven children while working as an artist and earning a PhD. She created an interactive educational framework for engaging with Indigenous knowledge and Western science. Her work as an international artist advocates the importance of the environment. She has shown me that we can pursue our dreams and most importantly give back to others.
I had a rotation in medical school on reserve where I was supervised by an Indigenous female physician who has a profound ability to incorporate different knowledge systems in a complementary way that addresses health at an individual, community and environmental level. She provided a unique and inspiring opportunity to engage in medicine and community health. Her work is exemplary of how Indigenous physicians can contribute to establishing leadership in creating a sustainable health care system.
What does Indigenous leadership in health look like to you?
What I think is important for people to understand first is that First Nations people in Canada had their own governance structures in the community dismantled by the Indian Act of 1876. This had an impact on social, health, education and economic development in communities. It became illegal to practise culture, language, medicine or any form of governance. This meant that First Nations people who were living on reserves did not have control over resources or how they would access basic needs such as water, food and health services. We know that the factors that influence individual and community health reach far beyond the health sector, therefore solutions to improve health outcomes will require long-term commitments in each of those areas.
Indigenous people in Canada have had historical and continued traumatic interaction in the health care system, namely experimental health research in children at residential schools, forced sterilization in women and death as a result of structural systemic racism. These, too, are contributors to poor health outcomes. A key aspect to improving health outcomes will be to continue to restore community governance structures and include Indigenous leadership at all levels of the health care system.
I have had the opportunity to see many examples of positive strength-based solutions designed by Indigenous people in Canada, Hawaii, New Zealand and Norway. The outstanding common features at each place is how the solutions were grounded in culture, strong governance, leadership and commitment in legislation.
Governance structures designed and planned by Indigenous people are better equipped to address health inequities to advance better health outcomes. An example of a framework grounded in culture is the First Nations Mental Wellness Continuum, a national framework that was developed by Indigenous leaders working in mental wellness. It promotes governance, access to a continuum of services across a lifespan and building on community strengths.
What advice do you have for Indigenous youth today?
I would really encourage youth to keep engaging in learning opportunities and take notice of the experiences that make you feel like you have purpose. One way to do this is by finding ways to help others. It can be through these connections, kinship and community networks that our purpose is uncovered.
My path to medicine was unconventional, I worked at the passport office, in a pharmacy, and as an au pair, married and started a family. Unsurprisingly, plans may have to change, goals will be interrupted, and it is during these times that it might be helpful to remember that the strengths and resilience you have as an Indigenous person come from the perseverance of those that came before us.
Lastly, nobody is timing you. A family member said this to me when I was overwhelmed with a change of plans that felt like setbacks. I think of this often because it reminds me to stay the course.
What are you reading right now?
I recently read Crow Winter by Karen McBride, who is from Timiskaming First Nation. I enjoyed the way the Algonquin language is incorporated throughout. Currently I am reading Indian in the Cabinet by Jody Wilson-Raybould. I’ve enjoyed reading about her perspective as an Indigenous woman working at different levels of First Nations governance and in Canadian politics.
How do you raise your children to know their identity?
My children have grown up with both Algonquin and French culture in their daily lives. They learn about the significance of their Algonquin name, and have participated in ceremonies from the time they were very small. Now as preteens they have been asked to be witnesses on several occasions at ceremonies. This is an important role because it teaches them that they have a responsibility to prepare to see, hear, remember and be able to transmit the intergenerational knowledge of what they witnessed in the ceremony. My family and I focus on the strengths of both cultures because it will be their unique identities and the values and teachings of where they come from that will shape how they contribute to society.
Although I am generally prepared to answer questions posed by my children about Indigenous and Western relationships, occasionally I have been taken off guard. I recall on an outing with the kids while visiting their grandparents in France, we came across a replica of Christopher Columbus’s ship. As they enthusiastically explored the boat and listened to the history lesson from the guide, it occurred to me that navigating both cultures at times means preparing them for two very different versions of history.
Karl Moore is a professor at the Desautels Faculty of Management at McGill University in Montreal. He is also an associate fellow at Green Templeton College at Oxford University. He was the host of a long-running video series for The Globe and Mail in which he interviewed chief executive officers and business professors from the top universities in the world. His column, Rethinking Leadership, has been published at Forbes.com since 2011. He has established a global reputation for his research and writing on leadership, and has interviewed more than 1,000 leaders, including CEOs, prime ministers and generals.
Wáhiakatste Diome-Deer is completing her master’s degree in educational leadership at McGill. She holds a bachelor of arts degree in psychology and brain sciences from Dartmouth College in New Hampshire and has completed graduate work at Harvard University in Massachusetts. She is a consultant in education, leadership and Indigenization for organizations and schools, and has previously held positions at the Kahnawake Education Center, the Quebec Native Women Association and the Canadian Executive Service Organization. Ms. Diome-Deer is a traditional Kanien’kehá:ka woman from the community of Kahnawà:ke.