Winnipeg, MB— The Ayaangwaamiziwin Centre, co-led by St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto, is hosting its 1st annual Symposium taking place April 22–23 in Winnipeg. This meeting comes roughly one year since the Centre’s launch, which has enrolled +2,500 people in this ground-breaking public health initiative tackling rising HIV and syphilis rates across the Prairies.
Through community-based testing with culturally safe care in Saskatchewan, Alberta, and more recently Manitoba, the initiative has identified +150 cases of syphilis and +60 cases of HIV. Individuals who tested positive received immediate treatment or were connected to care and prevention services.
Launched in March 2025, the Ayaangwaamiziwin Centre is a historic, Indigenous co-led initiative designed to test, treat, and connect more than11,500 people to trauma-informed, culturally grounded care. Working alongside Indigenous leaders and Elders, frontline health and harm reduction organizations, the Centre currently operates across the Prairies, with expansion planned for Yukon, the Northwest Territories, and Nunavut.
“With deep partnerships and leadership from Indigenous communities, we are seeing what’s possible when ancestral science informs and shapes care that is rooted in culture, dignity, and equity,” said Margaret Kisikaw Piyesis, CEO of CAAN Communities, Alliances & Networks.
“Ayaangwaamiziwin is more than a program—it is a movement to reach people who have been underserved for far too long, and to ensure they are met with respect, compassion, and the care they deserve – with Indigenous ways of knowing and doing.”
The Symposium comes at a critical moment for public health in Canada. Between 2020 and 2023, new HIV diagnoses increased by approximately85%, with rates in Saskatchewan and Manitoba now three times the national average. Each new HIV case carries an estimated $1.44 million in lifetime healthcare costs, totaling $2.1 billion for new cases in 2021 alone—an 11%increase over the past decade.
Syphilis rates are also climbing rapidly, nearly doubling between 2018 and 2023. Of particular concern is the resurgence of congenital syphilis, which has increased by nearly 600% after being close to elimination in Canada. These cases can result in miscarriage, stillbirth, or infant death, highlighting the urgent need for coordinated, community-driven responses.
The Ayaangwaamiziwin Centre 2026 Symposium will bring together Indigenous leaders, knowledge keepers and Elders, people with lived and loving experience, researchers, scientists, community leaders, and other partners to share progress, strengthen collaborations, and advance equitable approaches to HIV, syphilis and other STBBI testing and care.
Here is a quick look at some of the agencies organizations that will be in attendance at the two-day symposium:
· Public Health Agency of Canada
· Indigenous Services Canada
· CAAN Communities, Alliances & Networks
· University of Alberta, University of Manitoba, and University of Saskatchewan
· MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions at St. Michael’s Hospital
· Public Health North Zone, Primary Care Alberta in High Level, Alberta
· Street Works and Radius Community Health and Healing in Edmonton, Alberta
· Northreach Society in Grande Prairie, Alberta
· Wellness Wheel Medical Clinic and All Nations Hope Network in Regina, Saskatchewan
· Ka Ni Kanichihk and Siloam Mission in Winnipeg, Manitoba
· One Yukon Coalition in Whitehorse, Yukon
· Government of Nunavut
· Government of Northwest Territories
The foundation for the Centre was shaped in March 2024, when more than 100 stakeholders—including Indigenous leaders, Elders, health workers, and people with lived and loving experience — gathered in Winnipeg to co-create solutions.
During this gathering, Elder Albert McLeod introduced the word Ayaangwaamiziwin, shared by Ojibwe Language Specialist Roger Roulette, meaning “carefulness and preparedness.” This concept now grounds and guides the initiative’s vision, mission and approach.
Grounded in strong partnerships, ancestral science, Indigenous ways of knowing and doing, knowledge sharing, and a non-judgmental approach, the Centre demonstrates what public health can achieve when rooted in culture, safety, and equity.
Over the next three years, it will continue to expand, working with additional frontline agencies and people with lived experience to reach those underserved by conventional healthcare systems.
About REACH Nexus at MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions
REACH Nexus is a national research group focused on addressing HIV, Hepatitis C, and other sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections (STBBIs) in Canada. Based at the MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto, REACH works to reach the undiagnosed, expand testing options, connect people to care, improve access to prevention (PrEP and PEP),and reduce stigma. Learn more at www.reachnexus.ca
REACH Nexus Contact
Andrew Russell
Senior Communications Specialist
REACH Nexus - MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions
📧 andrew.russell@unityhealth.to
📞 416-268-7642
