Monday March 9, 2020
6:00 - 7:30 p.m.
Metro Convention Centre - North Building

Narratives of trauma and resilience: how sharing stories helps communities thrive

Join the conference’s public event to explore the far-reaching effects of collective trauma on the people who experienced the trauma, as well as families and communities across generations.

This panel will engage storytellers and academics from diverse backgrounds in a discussion on the role of narratives, personal and traditional, in sharing both traumatic and inspiring experiences to help communities heal and thrive. Historical and personal trauma are often treated with silence out of fear that exposing them would complicate the present and cause more pain. Storytelling and listening to stories, however, can empower individuals and communities, imbuing them with a sense of agency and control over events and their implications. Panel members will share personal and academic perspectives pertaining to historical and ongoing stories of trauma and resilience of North American First Nations (Gros Ventre tribal nation of Montana and Ontario Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation), as well as those pertaining to the Jewish Holocaust and Cambodian genocide.

The event will feature:

• Dr. Jutta Lindert, professor at Emden Leer/Brandeis, expert in genocide, refugees and mental health
• Dr. Joseph Gone, professor at Harvard University, expert on the intersection between culture, coloniality and well-being in Indigenous communities
• Lenore Keeshig, Ojibway journalist and storyteller
• Dan Yashinsky, author and storyteller
• Moderator: Dr. Allison Sekuler, VP Research, Baycrest and Managing Director, Rotman Research Institute

Don't miss out - register now!