Video Library
Explore our video library from past events such as Justice as Trauma
Rehabilitation, Reintegration & Second Chances
“The system doesn’t grant second chances. It just stops actively punishing you. A true second chance is a relational intervention, not an administrative one.”
There is a persistent fiction that the justice system “grants” second chances. In reality, the system is designed to manage risk, not cultivate human potential. In this session, I challenge the conventional narrative of rehabilitation by sharing the pūrākau of true reintegration. Drawing on the profound difference between institutional processing and genuine relational intervention, this talk explores how meaningful second chances are rarely born from systemic mechanisms. Instead, they are built through community, mentorship, and human connection.
He Aroha ki te Tangata for Personal Wellbeing
This workshop offers a healing-focused, practical introduction to self-care strategies that support wellbeing in environments where people may experience stress, pressure, or trauma. Guided by Te Ao Māori worldview trauma-informed practice, the session creates a safe and supportive space for participants to explore tools that strengthen resilience, emotional regulation, and personal grounding. A core foundation is whanaungatanga; a Māori principle centred on building meaningful relationships, connection, and belonging introduced accessibly for all audiences through themes of trust, relational safety, mutual respect, and collective support.
The Emotional Architecture of Justice
Myrna McCallum, Cree-Métis lawyer and Summit host shares her journey, and unpacks how trauma affects individuals, communities, and justice systems. This opening keynote offers a framework that prioritizes humanity, cultural responsiveness, and relational healing for collective liberation.
Practicing Love: Lawyering Toward Liberation
Sarah Katz and Corey Best share approaches to lawyering toward liberation.
Re-imagining Courtroom Practices
Justice Jasmine Akbarali (she/her) earned a BA in French from McMaster University (1991) and graduated as gold medalist from the University of Windsor Law School (1995). She clerked at the Supreme Court of Canada, was called to the Ontario Bar (1997), and practiced as a partner at Lerners LLP focusing on appeals and pro bono work.
Known for her compassionate approach, as in the 2024 Ukraine Airlines decision adapting processes to minimize trauma, she served as Vice President of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association and on the George Hull Centre board before her 2016 Superior Court appointment. This session explores re-imagining courtroom practices.
Indigenous Women Shaping Justice, Truth, & Change
This plenary moderated by Myrna McCallum convenes Indigenous women leaders for dialogue on leadership, legacy, and transforming justice through truth-telling and relational change amid colonial impacts, offering frameworks for collective liberation and radical hope.
-Sgt. Charmaine Parenteau: Métis RCMP Sergeant with expertise in Indigenous community policing.
– Ally Hrbacheck: Cree Indigenous entrepreneur, artist and facilitator
-Angela Sterritt: Gitxsan former journalist and author confronting hard histories.
What Neuroscience Teaches Us About Trauma & Hope
Dr. Kemia M. Sarraf (she/her) is a physician, public health expert, and President/CEO of Lodestar, internationally recognized for her work on the cumulative impact of chronic traumatic stress exposure in professionals and the systems they inhabit. Twenty-five years at the intersection of neuroscience, narrative, and organizational transformation have shaped a singular focus: disrupting harm before it becomes embodied.
In this keynote, Dr. Sarraf names what justice professionals have long known in their bodies – that cumulative traumatic stress, moral injury, and systemic dysfunction don’t just exhaust capacity, they erode the neural architecture that makes connection, discernment, and healing possible. Hope sparks when we believe we can take meaningful action and do. It becomes a discipline – a muscle flexed in the tradition of what Viktor Frankl called tragic optimism: the capacity to witness the darkest expressions of human suffering while simultaneously holding beauty, meaning, and the possibility of repair. Traumatic stress exposure is inevitable. The harm that results is not. And hope lives here: we are the intervention.
Truth & Transformation
Angela Sterritt (Gitxsan) is an award-winning investigative journalist, national bestselling author, and speaker centering Indigenous truths, breaking stereotypes, and fostering hope for Indigenous women and communities. Her storytelling weaves lived experience with advocacy for healing and reconciliation.
Angela shares insights on resilience and truth-telling: “Story has power—not just to educate, but to awaken, to unsettle, and to move people into action.”
Enduring Trauma & Collective Healing
Dr. Samah Jabr (she/her) is a Palestinian psychiatrist, author, and advocate addressing psychological impacts of occupation and systemic violence, guiding toward dignity and resilience. Presented by Southern Law LLP, this Day 3 opening keynote explores enduring trauma, collective healing, mental health as resistance, and paths to dignity grounded in cultural wisdom. Participants gain frameworks for trauma-responsive care, solidarity across borders, and justice rooted in humanity.
Adult Supremacy & Intergenerational Harm
In this strategy workshop Leslie Priscilla leads culturally grounded, trauma-informed intergenerational/ancestral healing rooted in children’s rights, decolonizing childcare, challenging adult supremacy/systemic oppression.
Healing-centered approaches transform communities/break trauma cycles: “Healing justice starts at home, where care, accountability, and nurturing disrupt cycles of violence.”
Panel From Wounds to Wisdom
From Wounds to Wisdom: Intergenerational Healing and Systemic Liberation Across Families, Communities & Systems with panelists Leslie Priscilla, Dr. Samah Jabr, Ally Hrbachek, Tere Davis, and Isibor Aigbe discuss intergenerational healing rooted in ancestral knowledge, community and spirituality. Moderated by Myrna McCallum.
Somatic Liberation: Dismantling White Supremacy
Dr. Resmaa Menakem (he/him, MSW, LICSW, SEP) returns to the Summit. A therapist, bestselling author of My Grandmother’s Hands, and founder of Justice Leadership Solutions, he specializes in communal healing and cultural somatics. This keynote confronts white body supremacy’s effects on all bodies through historical trauma, institutions, and cultural norms, offering somatic ideas to heal, build resilience, and create anti-racist cultural containers from individual to collective levels.
Speaking Hope: A Nonviolent Communication Approach
P. Leonie Smith, first-generation Jamaican-Canadian Black femme Nonviolent Communication expert and founder of The Thoughtful Workplace (Vancouver), uses relational skill-building for coaching/training/mediation over 20 years in senior management. Informed by NVC and Sociocracy.
Racial Justice & Indigenous Liberation Frameworks
A strategy workshop to integrate racial justice with Indigenous liberation frameworks with Myrna McCallum
Medicine Wheel Self-Care Practices
In this healing workshop Ally Hrbachek guides self-care through Medicine Wheel practices honouring the Four Directions
Before an Abolitionist Future
Sarah Katz is Clinical Professor at Temple University Beasley School of Law and directs the Family Justice Clinic advancing abolition, anti-racist, trauma-aware family law.
Corey Best, Black father and organizer, founded Mining For Gold for racial justice and collective healing, co-designing with impacted communities to reimagine child/family systems.
The Resilience Toolkit
Experience this unique approach to resilience building that fosters the flexible strength and increased capacity needed to overcome adversity, heal, and change systems of oppression and inequity into places where we thrive. Through focused lecture, personal reflection, and experiential practice, we will decode the language of the body by identifying stress and trauma responses in an intersectional and ecologically sensitive framework. Together we will practice real-time regulation tools that harness the body’s innate biology to settle overactive and detrimental responses—reclaiming energy, creative flexibility, and connection to ourselves, one another, and our shared liberation.
Human Rights: A Prison Ombuds’ Perspective
Dr. Ivan Zinger, Correctional Investigator of Canada, will provide an overview of the role and mandate of his Office, focusing on its commitment to promoting human rights within federal corrections. He will offer a detailed analysis of the key characteristics of the federal prison population, emphasizing the significant prevalence of mental health issues, cognitive deficits, and trauma among prisoners. Dr. Zinger will also address the challenges faced by Correctional Service Canada, the agency subject to his Office’s independent oversight, in meeting its human rights obligations while managing these complex needs within the correctional system.
JAT2025 All Sessions Bundle
Save 20% and gain full access to the entire Justice as Trauma 2025 conference recordings—keynotes, panels, workshops, and more. This comprehensive bundle provides a valuable opportunity to engage with expert presentations and discussions anytime, anywhere.
Indigenous Women’s Perspectives Panel
Speakers Myrna McCallum, Angela Sterritt, Charmaine Parenteau, Amanda Morgan & Jamie-Lee Tuuta discuss the power and impact of storytelling as a vital tool for healing, reclaiming identity, and advocating for justice.
Holding Space for Humility in the Legal Profession
In her evening keynote Myrna advocates for a relational, compassionate approach that nurtures trust, supports healing, and challenges the colonial legacy within the justice system. This keynote highlights how holding space with empathy and humility can transform legal practice into a more just and healing profession.
Justice as Trauma in the Community and Court Room
In this panel, we will explore some of the many ways that people are responding to justice as trauma.
Jordan will discuss the use of Trauma Informed Guidelines during the Ukraine Airlines Flight 752 Liability Trial. Rebecca will talk about the Kenora Justice Centre, which strives to address the overrepresentation of Indigenous youth and young adults (12-24) in the criminal justice system. Aonghus will talk about the importance of trauma-informed systemic interventions to those that were denied familial interventions at crucial stages of their young lives. Charmaine will explore, from a policing perspective, how silent bonds from shared trauma can foster healing, resilience, and collective strength. Jen will discuss prioritizing healing over punishment, as an Army veteran and police officer, and the transformative potential of psychedelic-assisted therapy.
Together, we will examine how trauma-informed approaches can reshape justice systems and ourselves, shifting to an emphasis on compassion, resilience, and long-term community well-being. This session will be hosted by Myrna McCallum.
Integrating Alternative Justice Approaches
Existing and working within punitive systems – as someone who desires to see more regenerative and healing ways of dealing with harm – can not only feel frustrating, but can bring about vicarious trauma and burnout. How do we begin to move towards the systems we want to see in the future when it feels like we are bound by the systems we have right now? How can we create opportunities for healing and accountability?
Looking specifically at the realm of sexual harm, this workshop aims to empower you to claim your individual, relational, organizational, and collective realms of influence, in order to integrate principles of restorative and transformative justice into your work. Taking a theoretical as well as somatic approach to change, you will leave this workshop feeling clear and grounded in your next steps to contributing to more healing approaches to sexual harm. This workshop is for anyone who works with sexual harm, be it with those who have experienced harm, those who have perpetrated harm, or both. This may include frontline workers, police, defence and prosecuting solicitors, judges, or other regulatory roles. Those who do not work with sexual harm but who feel they would benefit from the themes of the workshop are more than welcome.
Becoming Whole: Healing Collective Trauma
Becoming Whole: The Journey of Healing Collective Trauma Closing Keynote with Nkem Ndefo | In this compelling keynote, we will explore how trauma cascades through individuals, communities, and societies, and examine why conventional approaches to healing often fall short. Moving beyond theory, we will unpack a practical framework for trauma recovery that begins with stabilization and progresses through meaningful confrontation with difficult truths and experiences. Learn how this careful progression enables us to transform wounds into wisdom, building the capacity to feel deeply while maintaining connection to ourselves and each other. This session illuminates a path of individual and collective trauma healing, offering insight into how we might create systems and communities rooted in justice and flourishing in joy.
Creating Trauma-Informed Systems
Creating Trauma-Informed Systems Change Across Public Services with Caroline Bruce | The impact of trauma and adversity on inequalities and access to basic life chances like health, education, housing and employment (as well as justice) are only now being fully realized and acknowledged. But adversity is not destiny, and research evidence is building around the role that trauma informed systems should play in redressing the balance. In 2017, Scotland pledged to become a trauma-informed nation.
In this talk, Dr Bruce will share some of the practical and leadership lessons learned with the National Trauma Transformation Programme towards creating trauma-informed public services. She will introduce some of the practical tools* developed from the experience of the National Trauma Transformation Programme in Scotland to offer some practical responses to common questions such as: What does “trauma informed” justice actually look like in practice? What steps do we take to get there? How do we know when we’ve got there?
Leaning In: Restorative Justice Models
The Newfoundland and Labrador Human Rights Commission is using restorative principles and trauma-informed practice to reimagine the human rights complaint process. The last and hardest piece is the adjudication and decision-making process as set out in the Human Rights Act. In an adversarial system that focuses on winning and losing – is this even possible? Join Carey, Catherine, and Maria to discuss how they have tried to adopt lessons learned from Community Justice Connect (a restorative justice and conflict resolution service) to the human rights adjudication and decision-making process. They will talk about how the Commission developed new rules of procedure; how we engage parties as they prepare for a hearing after many institutional delays; how evidence and witnesses are handled; and how we communicate decisions to parties, affected communities, and the public.
Justice Transformed: Empathy & Trauma Awareness
Justice Transformed: Embedding Empathy & Trauma Awareness in Law, Education and Advocacy with speakers Amanda Morgan, Karen Campbell & Judy Jaunzems | This panel explores how integrating empathy and trauma awareness into law, education, and advocacy can create more just, human-centred systems. Amanda will talk about her experiences leading trauma-informed and First Nations-led solutions and research. Judy will explore how trauma-informed principles can be applied using The Human Curriculum framework, emphasizing self-awareness, therapeutic leadership, and human-centered approaches to justice and healing. Karen will explore the benefits of trauma-informed legal writing, offering best practices to enhance advocacy, align with ethical obligations, and support justice reform. Through interactive discussion, participants will gain insight and tools for incorporating trauma-informed principles into their professional and personal practices.
Post-Traumatic Growth: The Gift of Our Injuries
In this keynote, Robert will describe the concept of post traumatic growth and will give participants an introduction to the ways growth from trauma can be encouraged.
Helper, Help Thyself
In this insightful workshop, Robert explores the critical importance of legal and helping professionals understanding and addressing their own trauma. He highlights the potential risks to both practitioners and clients when unresolved trauma goes unrecognized or unmanaged, including the danger of deepening emotional injuries.
While emphasizing the value of therapy, Robert also offers a practical, accessible guide for recognizing, managing, and beginning to heal trauma—designed specifically for those without formal clinical training. This session empowers participants with the knowledge and tools to engage in meaningful self-awareness and care. Tune in to enhance your ability to support others ethically and effectively!
Fireside Chat with Resmaa Menakem & Myrna McCallum
Justice as Trauma 2025 opened with The Fireside Chat on The Wounds of Justice, Resilience, Racialized Trauma & Collective Healing; an important discussion between Myrna McCallum and Resmaa Menakem. Their meaningful dialogue covered resilience, the deep impact in the body that unatended racialized trauma has, and the true and multiple meanings of collective healing.
Trauma-Informed Adjudication & Decision-Making
Speakers: Carey Majid, Catherine Kelly & Maria Dussan.
The Newfoundland and Labrador Human Rights Commission is using restorative principles and trauma-informed practice to reimagine the human rights complaint process. The last and hardest piece is the adjudication and decision-making process as set out in the Human Rights Act. In an adversarial system that focuses on winning and losing – is this even possible? Join Carey, Catherine, and Maria to discuss how they have tried to adopt lessons learned from Community Justice Connect (a restorative justice and conflict resolution service) to the human rights adjudication and decision-making process. They will talk about how the Commission developed new rules of procedure; how we engage parties as they prepare for a hearing after many institutional delays; how evidence and witnesses are handled; and how we communicate decisions to parties, affected communities, and the public.