Lacey Augustine

Lacey Augustine is a Mi’kmaw woman from Elsipogtog First Nation in New Brunswick and a recent Bachelor of Social Work graduate. With more than 15 years of experience in Indigenous youth mental health, crisis intervention, community outreach, and community-based research, she has dedicated her career to supporting the wellness of Indigenous youth, families, and communities.

Lacey began her work in mental health as a crisis line worker and has since held a variety of frontline and leadership roles, including Crisis Centre Team Lead, Outreach Crisis Interventionist, Mental Health Clinician, Research Assistant, and Peer Support Worker. Throughout her career, she has been actively involved in the ACCESS Open Minds movement, contributing to youth engagement initiatives, Indigenous advisory work, research projects, knowledge sharing, and the development of culturally relevant mental health services.

Her academic and professional interests focus on Indigenous youth mental health, systems change, community-driven wellness, cultural safety, and addressing the structural barriers that impact access to care. Lacey is passionate about ensuring Indigenous voices, knowledge systems, and lived experiences remain at the centre of mental health service design, implementation, and evaluation.

As Engagement, Implementation and Partnership Specialist with the ACCESS Open Minds Indigenous Youth Mental Health and Wellness Network, Lacey works collaboratively with communities, organizations, researchers, youth, and Elders to strengthen partnerships, support implementation of innovative practices, and advance Indigenous-led approaches to mental health and wellness across Canada.

At the heart of her work is a commitment to advocacy, relationship-building, and creating meaningful change that supports the wellbeing of Indigenous youth and future generations.