Department of Biological Flow

This article addresses the social implications of gender verification testing in sport. The authors ask how sex—gender is contained in mediated public discourses that questioned Caster Semenya’s identity following her success in the women’s 800 m at the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) World Championship. The authors use critical discourse analysis to examine the perception of the case surrounding Semenya along with perceptions of her sex and gender identity. The authors argue that the manner by which Semenya’s body is discursively constructed via news board discussants, scientific and medical communities, and athletic governance policies renders her flesh abject and promotes the interpretation of her body as being “‘disordered,” all in the service of maintaining the rhetoric of “fair play” and “equal opportunity” for female athletes. The authors claim that such tests reproduce existing hegemonic gender ideologies via the categories they reinforce and through the mechanism of testing itself, as this leads to sex—gender “verification.”

It is well understood from lived experience and research that peoples’ stories are their identities. The commonly recognized story of Aboriginal peoples (First Nations, Métis and Inuit) in Canada highlights the impacts of colonization on traditional ways of life, including multi-generational losses of cultural practices, language and land. A part of this story is the problematic use of substances resulting from colonial government practices, such as residential schools. Grounded in Indigenous (1, 2) and community-based approaches (3, 4) to knowledge gathering, our team produced a DVD and accompanying Journey Magnet and Exercise Sheet to share individuals’ inspirational yet historically silenced stories about the role of Aboriginal culture in healing from addictions. The goal for these stories, in the form of these products, is to serve as a catalyst for a strength-based provincial conversation (i.e., exchange of knowledge) in Saskatchewan, Canada about Aboriginal culture and the importance of re-claiming a healthy sense of self for continued wellbeing. Nearly 5,000 product packages have been distributed to individuals, communities and organizations at no cost and the majority of the stories are also available on our website. Community Ambassadors have worked to gather the stories and facilitate the conversation throughout the project through community events, organizations and virtual spaces. Feedback to date has relayed that the stories are being used in multiple ways, among diverse audiences, and are having their intended impact.

Drawing on three culturally specific research projects, this paper examines how community-based knowledge brokers’ engagement in brokering knowledge shaped the projects’ processes. Informed by Deleuze and Guattari’s (1987) conceptualization of the “rhizome,” we discuss how community knowledge brokers’ engagement in open research-creation practices embrace the relational foundation of Indigenous research paradigms in contrast to mainstream Western research practices that are engaged as linear, objective, and outcome-oriented activities. In turn, we offer propositions for building team environments where open research-creation practices can unfold, informing a periphery of shared space for Indigenous and Western paradigms.

Background: This paper describes the methods, strategies and insights gained from a scoping study using a " Two-Eyed Seeing " approach. An evolving technique, Two-Eyed Seeing respects and integrates the strengths of Indigenous knowledge and Western sciences, often " weaving back and forth " between the two worldviews. The scoping study was used to inform a tool for measuring the impact of culturally based addictions treatment services on wellness in Indigenous populations. It formed part of a three-year study, Honouring Our Strengths: Indigenous Culture as Intervention in Addictions Treatment. The scoping study identified and mapped literature on cultural interventions in addictions treatment, and described the nature, extent and gaps in literature. Methods: Using a Two-Eyed Seeing approach, we adapted, applied and enhanced a common framework of scoping studies. In the end stage of the scoping review process, an Ad Hoc Review Group, led by our project Elder, reviewed and interpreted Indigenous and Western understandings within the mapped information. Elements of the scoping study were joined with results from community focus groups with staff at treatment centres.