Hi again! This is my second blog post of two detailing my experience this summer working as a health and wellness intern for Dene Thá First Nation. If you haven’t checked out my first blog post you can read it if your scroll up a little bit on this website.
July started off as a month with a lot of ambiguity. At the time, all the interns were under the impression that we would be travelling to our respective nations later in the month. As a result, we spent the first two weeks of July busy completing various on site related training, such as first aid, fire hydrant use and bear spray. These sessions also gave us the opportunity to meet and get to know each other in person. While Jenna and Stennette arrived in Beaver First Nation in mid July, Mary and I were unfortunately not able to go up to Dene Thá First Nation due to unforeseen circumstances. July was definitely one of the more difficult months for me as it was about learning how to work amongst uncertainty. If there was one important lesson I took away, it would be to embrace the possibility of not always knowing. A great quote that sums up this lesson would be from A Bridge Across The Ocean, by Susan Meissner - “This is how it is for all of us. Life will send us across a bridge we did not want to cross, but when we finally open our eyes on the other side, we see that there had been nothing to fear at all.”
In the latter two months of my internship, I have divided my attention between three separate projects. I have continued to work with Jenna on various public health related assignments for Beaver First Nation. This included compiling a log of public health resources for COVID-19, making videos about proper hand washing and mask etiquette, as well as an awareness poster for mass gatherings. In addition, Mary and I were able to meet with some individuals from Dene Thá First Nation over Zoom. We began preparing a video series on various sports/games and science experiments kids can work on at home. One of the projects I had looked forward to organizing this summer was a fencing workshop. Unfortunately, since an in-person session is no longer feasible, I will be spending the last three weeks of my internship creating beginner fencing videos. Hopefully they will be able to generate interest among the indigenous youth to try out a new sport! Mary and I are also working with the UAlberta North staff on several small projects. We are currently looking into funding for future Engage North interns as well as compiling a comprehensive list of researchers at the University of Alberta involved with Northern related projects.
This summer was nothing like what I had expected. With COVID-19 everyone has had to quickly adapt to working online. The greatest challenges for me were maintaining my productivity and focus while working from home. As the Fall term for school rapidly approaches, I am excited to use some of the strategies I developed over the summer to help me with my studies.
Until next time,
Katie
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