Workshops
Critical arts-based and anti-racist educational strategies can foster nursing and education student’s understanding of the MMIWG2S+ Calls to Justice. The following workshops were designed, impelemented and evaluated, the learnings from each presented below for you to be inspired from in creating your own.
About our workshops
Together, our community researchers, co-researchers, and advisors across three sites developed and evaluated unique arts-based, anti-racist workshops for undergraduate nursing and education students. Each site was supported by an inquiry pod made up of researchers, facilitators, students, and Indigenous leaders and advisors who worked collaboratively to design workshops that responded to local MMIWG2S+ concerns. The workshops were held consecutively, linking reflection, learning, and growth as both parallel and communal processes.
Grounded in decolonizing perspectives, the project used a participatory action approach that drew on the lived experiences, positionalities, and critical reflections of team members throughout the process. The workshops took place across three sites, each shaped by its local community, relationships, and context, which are described in more detail on this page.
Soil Art Workshop
Treaty 1 Territory | University of Manitoba
On Treaty 1 Territory, the Soil Art Workshop took place in Winnipeg at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. This multi-component workshop aimed to teach about MMIWG2S+ through soil-based art experiences. The University of Manitoba team worked with the rich prairie soil because of Indigenous Peoples’ deep spiritual connection to Mother Earth, its accessibility as a natural and creative medium, and its connection to Winnipeg’s Cree name, which means “muddy waters.” Through soil-based art, storytelling, and music, participants critically explored the topic by composing with soil, uncovering truths through the process of sifting, and creating found poetry in the soil. These activities invited reflection, dialogue, and deeper engagement with the experiences and realities of MMIWG2S+.
Teardrop Art Workshop
Stó:lō Peoples | Trinity Western University
This workshop was held on the unceded Lands of the Stó:lō Peoples, whose name means “People of the River” in Halq’eméylem. This workshop took place at Trinity Western University, one of the research sites. Bringing together nursing and education students, they spent time deeply listening to one Mother’s story about her daughter Shaylanna who went missing from the Highway of Tears in British Columbia, Canada. This mother’s story highlighted the structural barriers and racism that enable the ongoing violence against Indigenous women. Students responding to the story through creative writing and an artistic expression in the shape of a tear.
One student shared: I ended up drawing the tear and then drawing hands in like those blue gloves that we wear at the hospital all the time. To signify the role that I want to play…. I put some guiding words I can use when I encounter an Indigenous person in healthcare settings like respect, listening, or advocate. And then, in the stream that the tears leave behind, it’s like a commitment to try and do my best when I’m
working as a full RN, a responsibility to demonstrate respect, listen to their story, and stand up when I see something go wrong.
Red Willow Fishtrap Woman Workshop
Tk̓emlúps te Secwépemc | Thompson River University
The third workshop was held on the territory of the Tk̓emlúps te Secwépemc, whose name means “where the rivers meet.” The impacts of MMIWG2S+ are deeply felt within the community, with many community members from the Nation having experienced the loss of a loved one due to MMIWG2S+. The central focus of this workshop was the creation and adornment of the Red Willow Fishtrap Woman, which was created by community members in honour of women in this territory.
During the workshop, participants sat in circle, shared meals together, and learned from Indigenous Elders and mentors. Artistic engagement occurred through personal artistic responses to the Red Willow Fishtrap Woman, including the use of ponderosa pine needle circles, red willow pieces, and beading.
