First Nations peoples believe the eagle flies with a female wing and a male wing, showing the importance of balance between the feminine and the masculine in all aspects of individual and community experiences. Centuries of colonization, however, have devalued the traditional roles of First Nations women, causing a great gender imbalance that limits the abilities of men, women, and their communities in achieving self-actualization.Restoring the Balance brings to light the work First Nations women have performed, and continue to perform, in cultural continuity and community development. It illustrates the challenges and successes they have had in the areas of law, politics, education, community healing, language, and art, while suggesting significant options for sustained improvement of individual, family, and community well-being. Written by fifteen Aboriginal scholars, activists, and community leaders, Restoring the Balance combines life histories and biographical accounts with historical and critical analyses grounded in traditional thought and approaches. It is a powerful and important book.

Gail Guthrie Valaskakis was Distinguished Professor Emerita of Concordia University in Montreal and the director of research at the Aboriginal Healing Foundation in Ottawa. She was a founding member of the boards of Waseskun Healing Lodge, the Montreal Native Friendship Centre, the Native North American Studies Institute, and Manitou Community College and served on numerous boards dealing with issues involving women, First Nations, race, and culture. Her background is Chippewa and she was raised on the Lac du Flambeau reservation in Wisconsin. In 2002, she received a National Aboriginal Achievement Award for her contributions to Aboriginal media and communications. Her writing on the development and impact of northern and Native communications and on issues of Aboriginal cultural studies is widely published.

Gail Guthrie Valaskakis' profile page

Eric Guimond is an assistant director at the Strategic Research and Analysis Directorate at Indian and Northern Affairs Canada.

Eric Guimond's profile page

Madeleine Dion Stout is a former nurse and founding director of the Centre of Aboriginal Education, Research, and Culture at Carleton University.

Madeleine Dion Stout's profile page

• Winner, Choice Magazine Outstanding Academic Title

“This timely text, directed to policy-makers, educators and community members, presents a wide-ranging collection of papers all of which address the task of restoring gender balance in terms of both the representation of and the reality of First Nations women’s participation in various social contexts. Importantly it also documents some of the outstanding work women have been doing over the last several decades in this regard.”

Journal of the Society for Socialist Studies

“The collection’s great strength is its incredible tightness – authors often explore the same issues, histories, individuals, and legislations from a variety of angles, weaving together many different strands into a clear, compelling whole. The collection achieves the remarkable for an academic text – focusing on analysis and action, exploring problems and presenting solutions. All of the chapters are well written and engaging, and a handful – on trauma and resilience, Aboriginal women’s writings, cultural competence, and museum artifacts – are especially excellent.”

Choice Magazine, September 2009