Project Background & Description

The Community-2-Community (C2C) Team Grant represents a multi-year initiative that began under the Community Mobilization Training (CMT) for Diabetes Prevention: Implementation and scale-up of a best practice training model for diverse Indigenous communities (the CMT Pathways Project- CIHR#PI3-151327). The CMT Pathways Project (2017-2023) was a community-based participatory research initiative that studied the CMT in six Indigenous communities. The goal was to learn about the factors, conditions, and types of social systems necessary for the successful implementation and scale-up of the KSDPP, a recognized best practice for diabetes prevention and healthy living, and to better understand concepts of wellness and health promotion from Indigenous community perspectives. The work culminated in the proposal and successful grant application for this current phase of the CMT, the C2C Team Grant.

Officially titled Mobilizing Resilience through Community-to-Community (C2C) Exchange: Seven Generations Thinking for Diabetes Prevention, the C2C Team Grant builds upon the relationships created under the CMT Pathways Project and aims to mentor new communities and CMT facilitators. Under the initiative, participating and newly engaged communities will interact through community exchanges, video storytelling, social media, and gatherings to share knowledge and wise practices. The research seeks to understand how community resilience can impact the success of the C2C model as well as how the C2C model promotes community mobilization for T2D. The research will be the first to examine how community resilience can be used for T2D prevention in Indigenous communities. The results will identify sustainable approaches to T2D prevention that can be extended to other communities across Canada to promote the well-being of Indigenous populations. The C2C Team Grant was officially launched at a 2-day Gathering in Kahnawake on July 6-7th, 2023. To capture the important events and discussions that took place at the gathering, please see the following "Gathering Report" (password required): acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:VA6C2:e8e21816-a9c3-4278-8111-ad0eb49e7069
​​
NOTE: This document can only be accessed using a password. If you are part of the C2C project and  would like to access the gathering document, please email Cameron Hare: [email protected]. 

Project Funding

Funding for the C2C project is provided by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR), Diabetes Prevention and Treatment in Indigenous Communities: Resilience and Wellness Team Grant (CIHR #DRW-187410) through a grant to nominated principal applicant – Lucie Lévesque, Queen’s University.

​Mentorship activities in northern and remote communities are supported by a Lawson Foundation Grant (Child and Youth Diabetes Strategy) (#GRT 2022-58) to nominated principal applicant - Treena Delormier, McGill University.
​

Outcomes to Date

June 2024 Project Gathering at the Museum of Human Rights, Winnipeg, MB

​

July 2023 Project Gathering in Kahanawá:ke, QC

• C2C Project Advisory Circle Gathering in Kahnawá:ke, Mohawk Territory (July 6-7, 2023) 
  • Brought together over 40 community and organizational team members. 
  • Attended by Indigenous health and wellness representatives from 7 Indigenous communities in Ontario, Manitoba, and Quebec.
  • Attended by representatives from regional organizations including NIDA, SERDC, and IDHC. 
  • Key events included a youth mobilization workshop, a facilitated discussion on environmental protection, and a participatory video making workshop.​​​​​

Pictures from the Gathering

• Presentation at the Lawson Foundation gathering (July, 2023) 
• Facilitated a 2-day participatory video making workshop at the National Indigenous Diabetes Association (NIDA) Conference  titled: Sharing Stories: Engaging community in T2D prevention through participatory video-making (November 22-23rd, 2023)

Team Members 

• Alex M. McComber, Co-Principal Applicant, Knowledge User, Lead CMT Facilitator, McGill University 
• Amelia Tekwatonti McGregor, Elder, Knowledge User, Member of KSDPP Community Advisory Board, Kahnawá:ke 
• Ann C. Macaulay, Co-Applicant, McGill University & KSDPP 
• Brittany McBeath, Graduate Student, Queen’s University, Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte   
• Brittany Wenniserí:iostha Jock, Co-Principal Applicant, McGill University, Akwesasne Mohawk Territory 
• Cameron Hare, Undergraduate Student, Queen’s University, Métis Nation of Ontario  
• Céleste Thériault, Executive Director, National Indigenous Diabetes Association (NIDA) 
• Cheryl Bushie, C2C Coordinator, ADI Worker, Hollow Water First Nation 
• Christine Pritchard, C2C Coordinator (interim) Niagara Regional Native Center  
• Colin Baillie, Graduate Student, Queen’s University  
• Dave Bergeron, Co-Principal Applicant, Université de Québec à Rimouski 
• Denise Leafe, Diabetes Wellness Worker, Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte  (on leave, 2024) 
• Brittany Brant, Community Health Nurse, Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte
• Donna Ivimey, Research Coordinator, Queen’s University  
• Elizabeth Proskurnik, Health Promotion Supervisor, Southeast Regional Development Corporation (SERDC)
• Guylaine Ottawa, Community Member, Atikamekw de Manawan  
• Jean Bear, Health Director, Brokenhead Ojibway Nation, Project Advisory Circle  
• Jeff LaPlante, Program Director, Diabetes Prevention, Lawson Foundation, Knowledge User, Project Advisory Circle.  
• Jolian Wong, Graduate Student, McGill University (to Dec 2023); Research Coordinator 2024+ 
• Kathleen LaForme, Indigenous Diabetes Health Circle, Diabetes Wellness Coordinator 
• Kathy Brant, Grandmother, Knowledge User Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte    
• Lucie Levesque, Nominated Principal Applicant, Queen’s University  
• Lucy Bird, Health Director, Black River First Nation, Project Advisory Circle  
• Marie-Claude Tremblay, Co-Applicant, Université Laval, KSDPP 
• Martine Lévesque, Co-Applicant, University of Montreal  
• Michelle Bushie, Health Director, Hollow Water First Nation, Project Advisory Circle  
• Mike Alexander, Community Member & Artist, Swan Lake First Nation  
• René Ottawa, Councilor, Atikamekw de Manawan 
• Rose Anna Niquay, Community Member, Atikamekw de Manawan 
• Shiniah Bird, C2C Coordinator, Black River First Nation 
• Sonia Périllat-Amédée, Research Coordinator, McGill University  
• Susan Barberstock, Director, Community Wellbeing, Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte  
• Tanager Abigosis, C2C Coordinator, Brokenhead Ojibway Nation  
• Treena Wasonti:io Delormier, Co-Principal Applicant, McGill University  
• Victoria Taylor, Undergraduate Student, Queen’s University