A talk that explores the origins of addiction and substance use through an indigenous lens. To shed some light on today's overdose crisis in British Columbia, Len takes us through the missing context of indigenous peoples and discusses ongoing challenges that limit progress. Understanding how all of these pieces fit together is a critical step to decolonizing and creating
lasting solutions to this community wide challenge. Len Pierre is Coast Salish from Katzie First Nation. His background is primarily in the area of Indigenous Education but also includes Child Care Counselling, Television and Radio Broadcast, and more recently Adult Education. Len is the Indigenous Cultural Safety Coordinator at Fraser Health Authority. His work includes overseeing the regional development of policies, resources, education and training modules to support health care providers in delivering safe and equitable care. Len aims to bring awareness on the impacts of colonialism on communities and also explore the tremendous worth in Indigenous knowledge and values for society. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx