Dr Michael Yellow Bird

I have been practicing mindfulness meditation and other contemplative practices since 1975 when I was an undergraduate university student. A lot of my own healing and recovery from traumatic events have come from my mindfulness and traditional tribal contemplative practices. In my professional work I have been introducing and teaching mindfulness to Indigenous communities, programs, and organizations for several years. I have shared the benefits of mindfulness and discussed the concept of neurodecolonization to helping professionals that work with Indigenous Peoples, and integrated mindfulness practices, curriculum, and research into my university classes. I have taught mindfulness to native students, teachers, administrators, incarcerated populations, homeless youth, conference attendees, and health professionals.

Tribal Background

I am a citizen of the Three Affiliated Tribes, the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nations. I grew up on the Fort Berthold reservation in White Shield, North Dakota.

Academic Background

I have held faculty appointments in the schools of social work at the University of British Columbia, University of Kansas, Arizona State University, and Humboldt State University, and was the Director of the Tribal and Indigenous Peoples Studies program at North Dakota State University. I am presently the Dean of the Faculty of Social Work at the University of Manitoba, MB, Canada. I am the author of numerous scholarly articles and book chapters and the co-editor of four books: For Indigenous Eyes Only: The Decolonization Handbook, 2005; For Indigenous Minds Only: A Decolonization Handbook, 2012; Indigenous Social Work around the World: towards Culturally Relevant Education and Practice, 2008; and Decolonizing Social Work, 2013. “Choice Magazine” selected Decolonizing Social Work as a 2014 Choice Outstanding Academic Title. Choice Outstanding Titles are given extraordinary recognition by the academic community and are designated to be “the best of the best.” My teaching, writing, and research, focus on Indigenous People’s mind body health; mindfulness and neurodecolonization research, theory, and approaches; Paleo and ancestral eating; and colonization and decolonizing theory and practice