• FULL-TIME
• Permanent

Southwest Ontario Aboriginal Health Access Centre (SOAHAC) is a diverse, dynamic, multiservice Indigenous health and wellness agency.  We strive to provide quality, wholistic health services by sharing and promoting traditional and western health practices to enable people to live in a more balanced state of well-being. SOAHAC provides services to Indigenous people including those who live on and off reserve, status, non-status, Inuit, and Metis within the Southwest, Waterloo Wellington and Erie St Clair regions.  SOAHAC has a mandate of ensuring that health services are accessible, of high quality, and are culturally appropriate. It is SOAHAC’s objective to build health care capacity within Indigenous communities.

Are you a knowledgeable and driven individual who is passionate about making a tangible difference? We are looking for an Indigenous Food Sovereignty Coordinator (FSC) to join our team at our London site. Reporting to the Integrated Care Manager and in conjunction with the Traditional Food Bag Program Lead the Food Sovereignty Coordinator (FSC) will be play a central organizing role in this Indigenous-led, community-engaged research that is designed to support and expand the current activities of SOAHAC’s Traditional Food Bag Program and food insecurity programs, by co-creating, operationalizing, and documenting a range of participatory land-based activities related to traditional foods (e.g., cooking classes, gardening, and hunting/harvesting activities), thereby planting the seeds for Indigenous food sovereignty for Indigenous people in the city of London, Ontario.

SOAHAC’s Traditional Food Bag (TFB) Program called “Minomode-zewin nunge-gehwin”, which translates to “healthy ways of eating” was created in 2021 as a response to the food insecurity needs of urban indigenous people, while also addressing their desire for more traditional foods in their diets.

What we’re looking for:

• Experience: A minimum two (2) years experience working with Indigenous People in Community Health Promotion, Community Program Development, Social Services, or related field.
• Indigenous Cultural Knowledge and Understanding: Knowledge of culture and local Indigenous communities in Southwestern Ontario is required.
• Cultural Sensitivity & Awareness: A genuine respect for Indigenous cultures and practices, with an openness to learning and engaging with Indigenous communities. Experience with Indigenous communities is an asset.
• Program Knowledge: Demonstrated knowledge and understanding of issues contributing to food sovereignty and Indigenous food practices. Knowledge of local Indigenous food practices an asset. Experience facilitating group workshops required.
• Organization and Time Management: Demonstrated organization, time management, and problem-solving skills that contribute to community engagement. Possess ability to manage multiple projects and demands. Must have computer literacy including skills in word processing, e-mail, PowerPoint, and Excel.
• Teamwork and Collaboration: You are a team player who can establish and maintain effective working relationships with others and across teams.
• Communication: Excellent interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to interact positively with community members, management, and staff.
• Additional Requirements: You have a valid driver’s license and access to a vehicle, as travel within the region may be needed. You’ll also need a clean police check and up-to-date immunizations and records.

What you’ll do:

• Program Functions: Planning, designing, organizing and coordinating activities for a series of land-based activities and learning spaces that expand the current offerings of the traditional foods and food insecurity programs at SOAHAC to create rich, well-supported spaces to grow and share knowledge associated with diverse traditional foods and traditional foods practices. Build relationships with local knowledge consultants, the TFB local advisory committee and research team based at Western University.
• Collaboration with Western University and the Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR): Outputs will support key learnings and best practices of the TFB Program, and they will be shared broadly with varied audiences, including community health and health care practice, Indigenous academic and policy contexts. Examples include: yearly reports, recipe books, program video recordings, manuals and guides, participation in conferences and professional meetings.
• Community Engagement: Create opportunities to broadly share learnings with community members.

If you are interested in joining our team, send your resume and cover letter to:

Email:                          careers@soahac.on.ca

Subject line:                FT Indigenous Food Sovereignty Coordinator, London

Or mail to:                   Human Resources

                                     Southwest Ontario Aboriginal Health Access Centre

                                     493 Dundas Street,

                                     London, ON N6B 1W4

Please visit Southwest Ontario Aboriginal Health Access Centre online at:  www.soahac.on.ca or like us on www.facebook.com/soahac to learn more about us!

We thank all those for applying but only those selected for an interview will be contacted