Learning begins in relationship.
Root & Relation was created from the belief that cultural safety is not a checklist, a single workshop, or something we ever fully complete. It is an ongoing practice of listening, reflecting, building trust, and being accountable to the relationships we hold.
Through cultural safety and humility workshops, Root & Relation creates space for honest conversation, meaningful reflection, and practical learning. Participants explore how history, power, bias, and systems continue to shape the experiences of Indigenous Peoples — and consider what culturally safer practice looks like in their own roles and workplaces.
The goal is not to leave people afraid of saying the wrong thing. It is to support them in becoming more thoughtful, curious, accountable, and willing to keep learning.
Ashley Hubbard
Ashley is a member of Kwanlin Dün First Nation and belongs to the Wolf Clan. She is a Registered Nurse, Occupational Health and Wellness Nurse, facilitator, researcher, and Master of Nursing Candidate in the Indigenous Wellness pathway at the University of British Columbia Okanagan.
She grew up with connections to both her First Nations and German settler ancestry. Her understanding of cultural safety is shaped by her family, lived experience, nursing practice, academic work, and relationships with Indigenous communities.
Her nursing career has included community care, clinical practice, occupational health, workplace wellness, and Indigenous health. Through this work, she has seen how policies, systems, communication, and everyday interactions can either strengthen trust or create further harm.
Her graduate research, Honouring the Journey: A Relational Approach to Indigenous End-of-Life Care, explores how healthcare can better honour the person, family, community, culture, and relationships surrounding care. This relational understanding continues to guide how she teaches and facilitates learning.
Warmth, honesty, and practical curiosity
Ashley brings warmth, honesty, humour, and a practical perspective to conversations that can sometimes feel uncomfortable or overwhelming.
Root & Relation workshops are not about memorizing the “right” words or learning a single version of Indigenous history and experience. They invite participants to think more deeply about how they listen, communicate, share power, build trust, respond to racism, and remain accountable within their relationships.
Learning is connected to everyday practice so participants leave with more than information. They leave with meaningful questions, practical actions, and a clearer understanding of their individual and collective responsibilities.
Salmonberry
Traditional use
Traditional food and medicine; the berries and young shoots nourish, and the leaves are used in teas.
No single story
There is no single Indigenous identity, experience, culture, or perspective.
Ashley speaks from her own identity, family connections, professional practice, education, and lived experience. She does not speak on behalf of all Indigenous Peoples, Nations, or communities.
Root & Relation encourages every organization to learn about the lands where it operates and to build respectful, reciprocal, and ongoing relationships with the Indigenous Peoples and Nations connected to those lands.
Learning that is
- Relational and grounded in respect
- Honest without being shaming
- Reflective and action-oriented
- Relevant to everyday work
- Mindful of diverse Indigenous experiences
- Rooted in humility, reciprocity, and accountability
Cultural safety begins with how we make people feel, how we respond when harm occurs, and how willing we are to keep growing — together and in good relation.
Work together
Ashley is available for consulting, speaking, training, and workplace wellness partnerships with organizations ready to deepen their cultural safety practice.
Get in touch