Executive Director Allison Barlow, PhD, MPH reflects on the 35-year history of CIH and what gives her abundant hope for the future when Indigenous Peoples lead.
Indigenous Knowledges Are Expanding the Future of Public Health
Melissa Walls (Anishinaabe), PhD, Bloomberg Professor of American Health; Co-Director, Johns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health
“We find ourselves driven more than ever by our belief that Indigenous approaches are exactly what is needed for the health and healing of the planet, its people, and our plant and animal relatives.
For Indigenous Peoples, health is relational. It originates in our connections to family, community, culture, language, ceremony, spiritual helpers, and the lands that have sustained us since time immemorial. We know that wellness extends beyond the individual to future generations and the natural world.
The future of public health will require innovation, humility, and collaboration. Indigenous communities have been demonstrating these principles for generations. It is time to elevate the voices of those who carry Indigenous wisdoms. The next chapter of public health must integrate Indigenous knowledges and leadership to enact lasting change for collective wellbeing.”
Our Vision For the Next 35 Years
Donald Warne (Oglala Lakota), PhD, M.D., Bloomberg Professor of International Health; Co-Director, Johns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health
“We are all related. We humans, the four-leggeds, our plant relatives—when we put our minds and hearts together, all living things will thrive again.”
I would love to see, over the next 35 years, that we eliminate health disparities and Indigenous Peoples go back to being the healthiest people in the world, as we once were. I believe we can get there. We can lay the groundwork for future generations to eliminate disparities and have our people living in optimal health.
We need our own people to be well trained in these spaces. Eventually, I’d love to see a future where even more of our principal investigators, program directors, and leaders come from the communities in which we are working. Lived experience is foundational in this work, and we need to blend that with academic training.”
