First Nations seem unusually well placed to challenge an exclusionary politics that withholds scientific power from the majority of those affected by it. The successes of these First Nations could lead to greater changes. Perhaps this is why the faux-partisan pundit classes seem so bent on distracting us with their interminable squabbling over how to divide the cake amongst themselves.

Blowing off the fog of ignorance that now hides the history of the Ukrainian-Canadian left would help to dismantle a problematic conservative consensus. It would throw light on the Ukrainian left’s historic and ultimately unsuccessful efforts to put into practice a progressive form of nationalism, one that protects the independence of distinct cultural groups within a shared democratic space.

Wisdom Engaged shows powerfully that health and well-being must also be at the centre of decolonisation and reconciliation efforts. The book gives compelling evidence that Indigenous health is fundamentally tied to land, language, and culture. “Being well” is the end purpose of community empowerment, emplacement, and self-determination.