Spirit Bear Podcast

The Spirit Bear Podcast aims to help mobilize knowledge that promotes the wellbeing of First Nations children, young people, families and Nations.

Season 1: Learning with uOttawa Students

The Caring Society is very grateful for the students of Dr. Veldon Coburn’s “Indigenous Politics in Canada” course at the University of Ottawa, who produced Season 1. The students interviewed scholars, politicians, and activists who work on advancing justice for First Nations, Metis and Inuit peoples.

 

You can find all of the episodes on all major podcast streaming apps, or by clicking the button. 

Season 2: "Ask an Expert" Series

Season 2 of the Spirit Bear Podcast - our "Ask an Expert" series - features interviews between Dr. Cindy Blackstock and various experts in the field of child wellbeing. The purpose of these episodes is to dig deeper into evidence-based solutions for supporting First Nations young people and their families by dispelling myths and examining what actually works. 

 

Each interview also features an accompanying information sheet written by the experts themselves. 

 

Season 3: Courageous Conversations 

Season 3 of the Spirit Bear Podcast features Courageous Conversations with Dr. Cindy Blackstock, along with special guest co-hosts and various child and family wellbeing experts. This season we talk about what you need to know to make good decisions on the ground for children, youth and families, and how we can keep ourselves accountable to children, youth and families.

 

S3 E1: New and emerging data from the Ontario Incidence Study on the overrepresentation of First Nations children, youth, and families in the child welfare system in Ontario

On this two-part episode of Spirit Bear Podcast, Dr Cindy Blackstock is joined by Amber Crowe, a member and resident of Alderville First Nation and Executive Director of Dnaagdawenmag Binnoojiiyag Child &Family Services, an Indigenous Child and Family Well Being and Dr. Barbara Fallon, the Associate Vice-President, Research for the University of Toronto and a Professor at the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work to discuss New and emerging data from the Ontario Incidence Study on the overrepresentation of First Nations children, youth, and families in the child welfare system in Ontario

S3 E2: Understanding the complex mental health needs for First Nations children, youth and families in Ontario

On this second two-part episode of Spirit Bear Podcast, Dr. Cindy Blackstock, Amber Crowe and Dr. Dr. Barbara Fallon are joined by Dr. Ashley Vandermorris, staff paediatrician in the Division of Adolescent Medicine at SickKids and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Toronto to continue the discussion and explore the complex mental health needs for First Nations children, youth and families in Ontario

S3 E3: Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada Call to Action 66

On this episode of Spirit Bear Podcast, Dr. Cindy Blackstock is joined by Gabrielle Fayant and Alyssa Carpenter to discuss the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada Call to Action 66 and their important work to call upon the federal government to establish multiyear funding for community-based youth organizations to deliver programs on reconciliation.

 

S3 E4: Intersections: Indigeneity, Motherhood, Child Welfare

What does it mean to have personal sovereignty being Indigenous having grown up in the violence of the colonial system? In this Special Guest episode of Beyond Binaries - Intersections: Indigeneity, Motherhood, Child Welfare, co-hosts Cheyanne Ratnam and Ashley Bach are joined by Rachelle Metatawabin and Kakeka Thundersky, who are incredible Indigenous women who are former crown wards and mothers.

S3 E5: Beyond the Numbers: Addressing Racial Disparities in Child Welfare

Why are Black children and families disproportionately affected by the child welfare system—and what can be done to change it? In this Special Guest episode of Beyond Binaries - Beyond the Numbers: Addressing Racial Disparities in Child Welfare, co-hosts Cheyanne Ratnam and Rachelle Matatawabin sit down with Vania Patrick-Drakes from One Vision One Voice (OVOV) to unpack the realities of anti-Black racism in child welfare and the urgent need for systemic reform.

S3 E6: Centering Lived Expertise: Transforming Child Welfare in Canada

What happens when youth with lived experience lead the conversation on child welfare reform? In this Special Guest episode of Beyond Binaries - Centering Lived Expertise: Transforming Child Welfare in Canada, co-hosts Cheyanne Ratnam and Rachelle Matatawabin sit down with Dr. Mélanie Doucet and Jessica (Jessi) Knutson from the National Council of Youth in Care Advocates (NCYICA) to discuss how youth-led advocacy is shaping national policy and pushing for systemic change.

S3 E7: What Happens When Families of Disabled Children Can’t Access the Support They Need?

What happens when families of disabled children can’t access the support they need—and child welfare becomes the last resort? In this Special Guest episode of Beyond Binaries: Our Stories, Our Worlds, Our Futures, co-hosts Cheyanne Ratnam and Rachelle Matatawabin sit down with Irwin Elman, former Ontario Provincial Child Advocate and current President of Defence for Children International-Canada, to explore the troubling intersection of child welfare and disabilities.

S3 E8: Our Stories, Our Worlds, Our Futures

What happens when lived experts take the lead in shaping the narrative on homelessness, youth justice, and media representation? In this Special Guest episode of Beyond Binaries: Our Stories, Our Worlds, Our Futures, co-hosts Cheyanne Ratnam and Rachelle Matatawabin sit down with Joel Zola, founder of Street Voices, to discuss how his lived experience inspired a movement to amplify marginalized voices and create real systemic change.

S3 E9: Addressing Youth Homelessness: Exploring the Crisis Among Vulnerable Youth

Youth homelessness isn’t about rebellion—it’s about survival. In this Special Guest episode of Beyond Binaries: Our Stories, Our Worlds, Our Futures, co-hosts Cheyanne Ratnam and Rachelle Matatawabin sit down with Michael Braithwaite, CEO of Blue Door, to speak about the undeniable link between child welfare and homelessness.

S3 E10: Empowering Young People to Influence Policy

How can youth lead the way in shaping the systems that affect them? In this Special Guest episode of Beyond Binaries, co-hosts Cheyanne Ratnam and Rachelle Matatawabin sit down with Sharif Mahdy from the Students Commission of Canada (SCC) to explore how youth engagement is important for driving real change.

 

S3 E11: Philanthropy in Action: Supporting Youth in Child Welfare

What does it take to build a community that truly supports children, youth, and families involved in the child welfare system? In this Special Guest episode of Beyond Binaries, host Cheyanne Ratnam is joined by Valerie McMurtry (CEO, Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada), Keziah Oduro (YPAC Member), and Wendy Chan (Associate Director, Program Impact, CAFC) to discuss how community, innovation, and collaboration can create lasting change.

S3 E12: The Power of Meaningful Connections

How do relationships and connections shape the futures of young people leaving child welfare? In this Special Guest episode of Beyond Binaries we sit down with Heather O’Keefe from StepStones for Youth to explore the power of meaningful connections in supporting youth as they transition to adulthood.

S3 E13: Reconnections: Culture, Language, Community

Many young people from the child welfare system experience disconnection from their culture and language. In Scarborough, Ontario, a new community center is being built—supported by all levels of government—to serve an ethno-specific group and foster cultural reconnection. In this Special Guest Episode of Beyond Binaries – Reconnections: Culture, Language, Community , Nedra Rodrigo joins cohosts Cheyanne Ratnam and Ashley Bach to share insights into how Indigenous communities were engaged in the process, the shared experiences between different peoples, and why reclaiming culture and language is essential for identity and healing.

S3 E14: Healing and Grief: Lived Experience, Loss, and Journey to Healing

In this episode of Beyond Binaries - Healing and Grief: Lived Experience, Loss, and Journey to Healing, cohosts Cheyanne Ratnam and Rachelle Wetatawabin share elements of their own journeys through loss, grief, and healing. Together, they reflect on lived expertise, uncover commonalities across their experiences, and deconstruct the ways grief is carried and transformed.

Grief is not the end of the story—it is part of the journey to healing. Tune in for an intimate and conversation between two voices of lived expertise.

S3 E15: How can alumni, memory, and storytelling become pathways to healing and eldership?

In this Special Guest episode of Beyond Binaries: Our Stories, Our Worlds, Our Futures - Alumni, Memory, and Storytelling: Eldership, Storytelling, and Healing, co-hosts Cheyanne Ratnam and Rachelle Metatawabin sit down with Marie Christian, a First Voice Advocate elder, to explore how storytelling, memory, and lived experience intersect to shape healing and community leadership.

S3 E16: Storytelling: Processing Loss, Finding Strength, and Reclaiming Identity

How can storytelling help us process loss, find strength, and reclaim identity? In this special episode of Beyond Binaries: Our Stories, Our Worlds, Our Futures - Storytelling: Processing Loss, Finding Strength, and Reclaiming Identity , co-hosts Cheyanne Ratnam and Rachelle Metatawabin get intimate about their own experiences of loss and healing. Through raw reflection and conversation, they explore how storytelling becomes a powerful tool for processing grief, reclaiming identity, and building strength.

Tune in to hear Cheyanne and Rachelle share their truths about grief, strength, and the reclamation of identity through storytelling.

S3 E17: Equitable Standards to Youth Transitions – Implementing Equity in Child Welfare

What does equity really look like in child welfare? In this Special Guest episode of Beyond Binaries - Equitable Standards to Youth Transitions – Implementing Equity in Child Welfare, we sit down with Mark Laforge from the Government of New Brunswick to discuss the Equitable Standards to Youth Transitions Evaluation Model. As a pilot partner, New Brunswick is leading the way in implementing tools developed by first-voice experts to bring real equity into youth transitions.

S3 E18: Beyond Allyship: Youth Engagement and Co-Conspiratorship in Child Welfare

What does youth engagement look like in child welfare reform and work? In this special guest episode we are joined by John Sharpe, Executive Director of Partners for Youth in New Brunswick, to explore what it means to move beyond tokenism and step into authentic allyship and co-conspiratorship with young people.