AHA Centre
(2012 - 2017)
The Aboriginal* HIV and AIDS Community-Based Research Collaborative Centre (AHA Centre) was established July 01, 2012 to unite the Aboriginal Health and HIV research communities in response to HIV and AIDS among Aboriginal Peoples in Canada. Housed at The Canadian Aboriginal AIDS Network (CAAN), the Centre drew on an established ‘networks of networks’. The AHA Centre’s goal was to reach across disciplinary and cultural boundaries to integrate Aboriginal research agendas in an intersectoral and interdisciplinary environment.
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The cornerstones of the Centre were information exchange, infrastructure support and research development, capacity building and innovative Knowledge-to-Action. Within a collaborative framework that foregrounded Indigenous Knowledges, community-based research (CBR) initiatives were supported through capacity building and access to expertise. From the outset, the Aboriginal and HIV and AIDS communities were directly engaged in every aspect of the Centre. This CAAN-led Centre united a team of 55 Knowledge Users, Investigators and Collaborators and 29 supporters from Canada, the US, New Zealand and Australia in a strategic response to HIV and AIDS-related issues that are relevant to Indigenous* Peoples in Canada and international Indigenous populations. |
Research and Policy Unit brainstorm (2015)
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Sherri and Marni
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The AHA Centre evolved from the previous CIHR Community-Based Research Facilitator in HIV/AIDS (CBRF) program and was guided by CBR principles. Grounded in Indigenous and decolonizing methodologies as well as rights, strengths and action-based inquiry, the AHA Centre offered support to anyone interested in conducting community-based research on HIV and AIDS by, with and for the Indigenous community in Canada. |
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The objectives of the AHA Centre (2012 – 2017) were to:
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Between 2012 and 2017, the AHA Centre has:
For more information on the AHA Centre (2012 – 2017) please see the recording of our end of grant webinar, July 05, 2017.
- supported research initiatives affecting and involving Aboriginal People living with HIV and AIDS (APHAs) on a wide range of topics ranging from Indigenous research methods, the development of qualitative research questions to engagement in quantitative epidemiology and basic science research projects, (44 grants supported).
- supported research team members to engage with each other;
- led research initiatives regarding methodology, evaluation, linking policy and practice through the TRC, developing and informing new models for Indigenous Knowledge Translation (KT);
- contributed to capacity building through mentorship (of community members, academic and community researchers, students and staff at organizations);
- offered workshops that teach about CBR, Indigenous methodologies, grants crafting, building effective research teams, where to apply for research funds and research ethics, for example;
- created and sustained partnerships with academic and community researchers, Aboriginal and Mainstream AIDS Service Organizations, NGOS and policy makers across the country; and
- supported KT activities and products produced by organizations external to CAAN and the AHA Centre, including four Volumes (17 articles in total) of the Canadian Journal of Aboriginal Community-Based Research (CJACBR). The AHA Centre has also hosted two highly evaluated Wise Practices Gatherings (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, 2013 and Vancouver, British Columbia, 2015).
- administered funds to three research projects through our Research Proposal Development Program (RPDP), which allows communities to apply for up to $5,000 to fund CBR proposal development for local, regional and national-level community-based, multi-disciplinary, intersectoral HIV research projects. Three proposals were funded 2012-2017:
- Shohan Illsley (NPI) Remote Control: Building on Capacity To Implement Community-Based Research in Rural, Northern, And Remote Communities in Manitoba
- Dr. Patti Spittal (NPI) The Cedar Project Partnership: Preparing to meaningfully respond to HCV infection among Indigenous people who use drugs in Vancouver and Prince George, BC
- Raye St. Denys (NPI) HIV, Aging and Mental Health in Métis People in Alberta
For more information on the AHA Centre (2012 – 2017) please see the recording of our end of grant webinar, July 05, 2017.
*The terms Aboriginal and Indigenous will be used interchangeably to be inclusive of First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples in Canada. This reflects on-going community debate pertaining to issues surrounding identity and the language relevant to our history, fiduciary relationships and International ties.