Indigenous Women in Leadership

Indigenous women traditionally held places of honour, respect, and leadership within their families and communities as our advisors and caretakers of life, lands, and resources. Indigenous women are natural leaders and decision-makers; keepers of knowledge, culture and language; protectors of land and water; activists and cycle-breakers. Indigenous women are reclaiming their rightful place as leaders. This course supports Indigenous women in revitalizing roles and responsibilities and reclaiming places of honour and respect as leaders within their communities and organizations.

This course is grounded in relational practices and will guide you to identify and connect with cultural values, build upon your already trusted leadership capacities for community-led, community-driven development, and create spaces for social change.

This seven-week course will provide you with opportunities to learn and explore the abundance of strengths and gifts that live within you and your community. This course reflects Indigenous teachings, relational leadership models, and approaches. Principles and tools are also shared.

This course is for First Nations, Métis, and Inuit women of all ages and backgrounds who have some prior leadership experience and are interested in engaging in social change and becoming active members of a national network of supportive Indigenous leaders.

Benefits and Learning Objectives

In this course, you will:

• Reflect upon lived experiences and leadership practices for personal strengths and motivations.
• Explore the stories and experiences of other Indigenous women to build a leadership profile to uncover your values, skills, and capacities.
• Create an action plan to further build upon your strengths and capacities.
• Develop an understanding of opportunities and practical strategies for overcoming challenges.
• Learn tools for supporting community-driven change.
• Connect, collaborate, and learn from your peers’ approaches for building community well-being.

By attending this course, your organization will be able to:

• Build on the foundations of strong leadership skills and awareness to support change.
• Develop relational approaches to increase the social capital of their communities.
• Develop vision and leadership approaches that support and lead to innovation and social change.

Time Requirement

You should prepare to dedicate 6-8 hours per week for seven weeks.

This course will use a blended delivery model, which includes a combination of weekly live sessions, asynchronous learning activities, and independent work time. As a participant, you must engage with your peers in the online space to complete course assignments.

The schedule for this course includes:

• May 17 & 18, 2021: Orientation to Moodle
• May 19-June 30, 2021: Online Course

Technology Requirement

• Reliable internet access (high speed is recommended)
• Speakers and microphone, or headphones

Who Should Apply?

The course’s strength is in the geographical and cultural diversity of Indigenous women who attend, share, and contribute meaningfully. The mix of ages, leadership experiences, backgrounds, cultural knowledge, roles and responsibilities, education, and working lives creates a vibrant learning context.

You are a great candidate if you:

• Are a self-identified First Nations, Métis, or Inuit woman who is passionate and actively working to make positive social change in your community or organization.
• Have a high school diploma or undergraduate degree in combination with sound oral and written abilities.
• Have three to five years of lived experience in leading (formally or informally) in a community or organizational settings.
• Have limited exposure to leadership training or other educational opportunities.
• Are committed to being accountable to the course and your peers throughout.
• Are committed to applying your learning in your community or organization after the course.
• Are willing to be an active member of Coady’s Indigenous graduate networks.

Approach to Learning

This course includes Indigenous and non-indigenous approaches to leadership and community building. We use participatory and experiential learning methods as much as possible, and we prioritize the sharing of participants’ experiences and stories to deepen everyone’s learnings. Learning may include virtual talking circles, Elder teachings, mini-lecture presentations, small and large group discussions, guest speakers, readings, videos, and skill-building exercises. Weekly assignments are a regular part of the course. Additionally, you will need to engage in ongoing online dialogue with your peers.