Child & Youth Diabetes
A history of support for prevention, management and research
The Lawson Foundation’s interest in supporting diabetes prevention, management and research dates back to the 1970s when the Foundation endowed the Helen and Frances Lawson Chair in Diabetes Research for the Lawson Health Research Institute in London, Ontario. In the 1990s, the Foundation supported two groundbreaking, community-based diabetes prevention projects – the Kahnawake Schools Diabetes Prevention Project (KSDPP) and the Latin American Diabetes Prevention Project. Inspired by the success of these initiatives and in response to growing concern around the challenges of diabetes and the potential of innovative approaches to improve diabetes prevention and management, the Foundation introduced a Canada-wide Diabetes Strategy in 2001-02. Over the next 14 years, the Foundation invested $9,000,000 in a broad range of community-based projects located in urban centres and rural and remote areas, and that served diverse populations including children, young adults, pregnant women, Indigenous, ethno-cultural communities and individuals with severe mental health issues. The Foundation also contributed an additional $2,500,000 to the Lawson Chair to ensure continued support for diabetes research.
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Related News and Updates
Child & Youth Diabetes Strategy | Virtual Learning and Connecting Series #5 | Niqitiavait, “the Good Foods”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJoddhnhzUg In our February 26, 2024, episode of the Child & Youth Diabetes Strategy Virtual Learning and Connecting Series, we were honored to be joined by host Martha Peet, an Inuk Elder and Traditional Knowledge Keeper...
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November marks Diabetes Awareness Month and an opportunity to reflect on the silent health crisis affecting millions of people across Canada, especially in northern and Indigenous communities where the rise of type 2 diabetes among youth has been recognized as the...
Child & Youth Diabetes Strategy | Virtual Learning and Connecting Series #4 | Innovative Approaches to First Nations Wellness
https://youtu.be/4R68_Lk-NWM?si=sL6M4sIXpZ8dGpN2 In Episode 4 of our Child & Youth Diabetes Strategy Virtual Learning and Connecting Series, alongside our partner, First Nations Education Council, we heard from David Gill, a retired National Team athlete...
Child & Youth Diabetes Strategy | Virtual Learning and Connecting Series #3 | Indigenous Birth Helpers
https://youtu.be/xwVG2vRKwro?si=C7KF4-FY6zyvBNIR “We have to go back to the beginning.” That’s what Indigenous grandmothers told Jolene Mercer and Kathleen Bluesky, who shared the story of Wiiji’idiwag Ikwewag with us for the latest episode of the Child &...
Child & Youth Diabetes Strategy | Virtual Learning Series # 2 | Culture & Diabetes
https://youtu.be/e1uSpCOLoXE?si=ZKi7Dl3n5G1J4WxM “I am not this disease. It came to tell me that I need to start loving myself.” Grandmother Renee Thomas-Hill shares her wisdom in episode 2 of our virtual learning series on diabetes and Indigenous wellbeing....
Child & Youth Diabetes Strategy | Virtual Learning Series # 1 | Food Matters
https://youtu.be/9lQWYl6QBRw?si=L5zAOhEIcXUXDZFI Watch episode 1 of our Child Youth & Diabetes Strategy Virtual Learning & Connecting series, which features a conversation with Demian Lawrenchuk, Fox Lake Cree Nation, and Executive Director of Food...