Following Russian/Soviet colonization, Indigenous Siberian Eveny less frequently engage in hunting and reindeer herding—land-based activities central to their culture. Research suggests that an inability to engage in key cultural activities may hamper Indigenous peoples’ capacities to construct meaningful existences (i.e., fulfilling lives with purpose), but this has not been empirically investigated among Eveny. I conducted 14 semi-structured interviews on traditional land-use and meaning in life with Eveny men in Batagay-Alyta (Sakkyryr), Sakha Republic (Yakutia), Russia. Half of the participants lived in the village; the other half were nomadic herders. Both herders and non-herders described meaningful existences, but the groups often acquired meaning from different sources. Some sources (i.e., family, finances, reindeer) were deemed important by both groups. My findings illuminate what makes life meaningful for some Eveny, and can help policy-makers better address their unique needs.
What started as a project to discern faculty’s preferred role in working with students in distress has turned into a discovery of student challenges on post-secondary campuses including but not limited to trauma, indigenization, barriers affecting non-traditional students and other discussions including faculty self-care. The research was prompted by CACUSS and CASA’s recommendations for faculty involvement in creating healthier campuses with specific reference to mental health. Seven faculty members from a four-year university and two-year college from a northern Canadian community volunteered for approximate one-hour semi-structured interviews on their experiences with students in distress. The interviews were coded and analyzed using a thematic analysis. The emergent themes were common humanity, passion, concern and frustration. The author proposes post-secondary institutions look at adopting trauma-informed approaches to building policy, procedure and campus environments to address mental wellness and distress for all campus community members, students, staff and faculty alike.
