U of S News Briefs

May 8, 2009

Researching northern aboriginal communities

U of S researchers will launch a three-year project to better understand the political and economic roles of northern Aboriginal communities after receiving funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.

“We hope our findings will provide greater understanding for governments and industry of aboriginal political values and practices, bolstering efforts to ensure the inclusion of aboriginal people in any development that affects their communities and lands,” said project lead Bonita Beatty, assistant professor of native studies.

The research team – made up of Beatty, political scientists Greg Poelzer and Loleen Berdahl, and Evelyn Peters, Canada Research Chair and faculty member of the Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy – sees this project as a crucial step towards the future of the north.

Funding for training centre in Mozambique

Funding in the amount of $8.2 million from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) will help support the Massinga Health Training Centre in Mozambique, a health-training centre founded by the Mozambican Ministry of Health in collaboration with the University of Saskatchewan.

The project goal will be improving the quality of health care in Mozambique by training and increasing the number of health workers. By the end of the five-year program, the Massinga Centre aims to have provided training to 1,195 health workers and hundreds of others in health-related jobs.