Beʼsha Blondin facts for kids
Beʼsha Blondin is a respected elder and healer from the Dene people. She helps her community in many ways, especially by sharing traditional Indigenous healing practices. Be'sha has written six books about these practices. She also helped start and now leads two important groups: the Arctic Indigenous Wellness Foundation and Northern Integrated Culture and the Environment (Northern ICE).
Be'sha Blondin's Important Work
Be'sha Blondin is a respected Elder from the Sahtu Region, which is part of the Northwest Territories in Canada. She follows the traditional ways and teachings of the Dene people, often called the "Dene Way of Life." The Dene people live in a large area called Denendeh, which stretches across parts of the Northwest Territories.
Be'sha is a co-founder and director of the Arctic Indigenous Wellness Foundation. This group works to help Indigenous communities in the North feel healthy and strong. She also founded and directs Northern Integrated Culture with the Environment (Northern ICE), which helps strengthen Indigenous communities.
She is an important advisor at the Institute for Circumpolar Health Research (ICHR). This organization does research about health for people living in the northern parts of Canada, where it's very cold. Be'sha also helps lead Pull Together Now, a group that connects people with each other and with nature. She advises the inVivo Planetary Health Network and was a speaker at their 2021 conference.
Healing and Culture
Be'sha Blondin is an expert in health and community development. She works to bring back and share the traditional knowledge and beliefs of Indigenous cultures. She helps her people heal by:
- Leading healing programs that take place on the land.
- Creating plans to help people feel well.
- Teaching traditional ceremonies and healing practices.
- Sharing cultural knowledge about wellness.
In 2004, Dene National Chief Noeline Villibrun asked Be'sha to lead a prayer at a big Indigenous conference in Israel. Be'sha also helped lead and spoke at the opening ceremonies of the Parliament of the World's Religions Conference in Salt Lake City in 2015.
