Indigenous Food Sovereignty Coordinator

**Status**: Full-time, permanent (funding until 2029)

**Location**: London, ON (on-site)

**Hours**: 35 hours/week

**Salary**: $55,680 to $69,600 per year

**Paid Time Off**: Vacation, health & personal days, spiritual/cultural days, professional development, and birthday

**Benefits**: Comprehensive health, dental and more

**Pension**: HOOPP (defined benefit pension plan)

**Posting Date**: December 20, 2024

**Deadline**: January 10, 2025

**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.

**Why work with us?**
- **Make an Impact**: Your work will amplify SOAHAC’s mission, ensuring that Indigenous communities have access to vital, wholistic health services.
- **Innovative and Collaborative Environment**:Work in a multidisciplinary setting that values the exchange of ideas, innovation, and collective learning.
- **Professional Growth**: Benefit from meaningful professional development opportunities in a culturally rich environment that supports your career aspirations.
- **Supportive Benefits Package**: Enjoy competitive pay, a supportive benefits package, and meaningful time off to ensure your personal well-being.

**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.
- **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