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British Journal of Social Work 2006 36(3):381-399; doi:10.1093/bjsw/bcl005
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© The Author 2006. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The British Association of Social Workers. All rights reserved.

An ‘Ecospiritual’ Perspective: Finally, a Place for Indigenous Approaches

John Coates, Mel Gray and Tiani Hetherington

John Coates, Ph.D., is Professor of Social Work at St Thomas University in New Brunswick, Canada. Mel Gray, Ph.D., is Professor of Social Work and Tiani Hetherington a Ph.D. student in social work, both at the University of Newcastle in New South Wales, Australia.

Correspondence to John Coates, Department of Social Work, St Thomas University, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, E3B 5G3. E-mail: jcoates{at}stu.ca

Despite holding significant roles in providing social services to First Nations or indigenous communities, social work has been reluctant to accept indigenous perspectives and traditional forms of helping and healing. Most often, social workers have operated within the dominant paradigms that, despite efforts to the contrary, have primarily imposed Western social work beliefs and practices which have been unable to effectively accommodate diversity. This paper argues that the recent attention to the importance of the environment and spirituality, and the paradigmatic shift that such issues require, has created a welcoming space for indigenous voices. Such acceptance has opened the opportunity for the profession to benefit not only from a genuine exchange among cultures, but also from a re-thinking of the foundational beliefs of the social work profession.

Keywords: Indigenous social work, cultural diversity, spirituality, eco-social work


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