Nicole Ineese-Nashمشاهده پروفایل
استادیار
- Indigenous children, youth, and communities
- Land-based educational research
- Early childhood education and care
- +۶ مورد دیگر
Nicole Ineese-Nash (she/her) is an Assistant Professor at Toronto Metropolitan University holding dual appointments in the School of Early Childhood Studies and School of Child and Youth Care. She is an Oji-Cree educator and researcher from Constance Lake First Nation in Treaty 9 territory, currently residing in Tkaronto. As academic coordinator of the Indigenous Child and Youth Engagement Certificate at the Chang School of Continuing Education, she bridges community and academic work through her national non-profit Finding Our Power Together , which provides mental health resources to Indigenous communities across Canada. Her educational background includes an MA in Early Childhood Studies and a PhD in Social Justice Education, specializing in Indigenous Health, Disability, and Education. These qualifications ground her community-centered approach to research and teaching. In her research, Ineese-Nash centers Indigenous knowledge systems through land-based educational research, critical disability studies, and participatory action methodologies. Her work consistently challenges colonial frameworks in early childhood education and mental health services, emphasizing Indigenous self-determination and resurgence. Key themes include decolonizing disability conceptualizations, Anishinaabe relational ontologies, and culturally grounded mental health interventions for youth. Her publication trends (2017-2022) reveal a cohesive trajectory: early work established foundations in Indigenous disability studies, evolving into land-based pedagogical frameworks and community-led mental health responses, particularly during the pandemic. The research consistently intersects Indigenous methodologies with critical analyses of settler-colonial policy across early childhood, disability, and mental health domains. Scientific recognition includes: Board of Governors Leadership Award and Medal (2017) Gold Medal, Faculty of Community Services (2017) Through Finding Our Power Together and research projects like Land Forward and the Inclusive Early Childhood Service System Project (as Co-Principal Investigator), she develops community-driven grants and initiatives. Her teaching portfolio—including courses on Indigenous Early Learning and Advocacy in Child and Youth Care—directly informs her community engagement, with Wildflower Music representing her creative knowledge mobilization. Current work focuses on designing future land relations and expanding mental health resources through national Indigenous networks. She leads the Finding Our Power Together initiative as executive director, while research projects like Land Forward: Designing for Future Relations to Land involve community-university partnerships focused on land-based educational design. These efforts operate through collaborative teams integrating Elders, knowledge keepers, youth, and community practitioners across multiple Indigenous nations.
