HealthierHere recently hosted “A Discussion on Sovereignty, Equity, and the Health of Indigenous Peoples,” a virtual presentation and question-and-answer session with Dr. Desi Rodriguez-Lonebear. Partners were invited to join us in learning about Indigenous data sovereignty and governance principles and practices, and how they can be applied to help address the intersection of health disparities and data justice in our community.

Dr. Rodriguez-Lonebear, social demographer and professor of Sociology and American Indian Studies at UCLA, shared an overview of what has led up to the inequity that American Indians and Alaska Natives experience today, and presented frameworks that can help the Connect2 Community Network, HealthierHere and our partners to build better relationships that help improve the health of the Indigenous patients and clients we serve.

Interested? Watch the presentation recording:

Want to learn more? Check out:

• Indigenous Data Sovereignty Network - national network of advocates for Indigenous data sovereignty, providing research information and policy advocacy to safeguard the rights and promote the interests of Indigenous nations and peoples in relation to data
• Dr. Rodriguez-Lonebear's Research and Publications - research at the intersection of race, indigeneity, citizenship, and inequality, and examinations of how sociopolitical processes, ideologies, and institutions construct, control, and erase populations, peoples, and knowledges
• Connect2 Community Network - a community of social service, community-based and health organizations collaboratively building a community information exchange by and for all people in King County, WA