International Actions

The momentum to reduce inequalities in health within and between countries is growing nationally and internationally. For Indigenous peoples, this is particularly critical given the prevalence of health challenges among 370 million Indigenous people living in rich and poor countries alike.

Canada, through the leadership of the National Collaborating Centre for Aboriginal Health, helped played a pivotal role in ensuring Canadian and other Indigenous perspectives were incorporated in the World Health Organization's 2008 final report on closing the global health gap through action on the social determinants of health. These efforts, including a symposium in Adelaide, Australia to prepare input to the commission in 2007, marked the first emergence of Indigenous networks on this issue, and demonstrated one of the most coordinated activities in Indigenous health at a global level. Read more.

Networks of Indigenous representatives continue to thrive. The NCCAH subsequently joined delegations to the Pan American Health Organization in Quito, Peru on social determinants of Indigenous health in the Americas, identifying examples of successful actions and policies for mitigating risk conditions and improving health outcomes, as well as urging governments to make the health of Indigenous peoples a priority in national agendas.

NCCAH Academic Leader Margo Greenwood accepted an invitation, as one of three Indigenous representatives, to participate at a London, England “Call to Action” meeting of the World Health Organization in February 2009. The event was organized by the Department of Health for England, and further affirmed a presence on the global stage for Canadian Aboriginal perspectives on social determinants of health. The NCCAH is currently developing reports and background narratives that document Canada's important role in this global movement.