5th Annual Arizona ACEs Summit: Becoming a Trauma Informed State - Overcoming Adverse Childhood Experiences to Create a Healthier Arizona "Adverse childhood experiences can negatively impact a child's life well into adulthood - through identification and assessment, we can develop intervention strategies - creating happier communities for current and future generations of Arizonans. These efforts will move us closer to becoming a trauma-informed state, and help solidify Arizona as the number...

Holly Figueroa and Steward Health Choice Arizona Cultural Competency & Tribal Services hosted an amazing conference and Native American celebration on November 16 in Flagstaff!! The program opened with prayers by Uqualla, a dynamic Medicine Man from the Havasupai Tribe. We heard from several keynote speakers on topics designed to facilitate healing among Native American communities. Albert Pooley of the Hopi and Navajo Native American cultures emphasized the importance of loving the...

After attending the amazing and informative Calling Upon the Warrior Spirit to Heal Historical Trauma Conference and Ceremony in the Gila River Indian Community, I was introduced to the Roundtable on Native American Trauma Informed Initiatives. This organization is a great collaboration of elders, educators, attorneys, clinicians and advocates working to heal Historical Trauma and improve the lives of people in Indian Country. Elder Prosper Waukon connected our organization with Renee...

This symposium will help bridge gaps between the diverse groups of agencies and nonprofits who have joined together for this important work. Our ultimate goal is to break down barriers that defeat our shared mission of serving Arizona's most vulnerable residents.

My previous life was devoted to physical health and wellness. Thorughout my lifetime, I have researched numerous diets and a plethora of nutrition information. The most profound work I found was in the 1980's when I was a teenager and seeing a nutritionist, Dr. H.L. Newbold. Dr. Newbold was a huge supporter of the fact that a person's diet should reflect their ancestry. In other words, if you are a descendant of Jamaica, for example, your diet should consist heavily of fresh fruits, nuts,...

Alongside two elders and a colleague, we arrived at the Centre for Addiction & Mental Health in Toronto, Canada. Our intention was to facilitate the first Canadian/American collaboration to heal Historical Trauma. I vacillated between feeling immensely excited and powerfully emotional; what an honor to be a black woman surrounded by First Nation relatives on Native land. Our first great work was to enter the sacred ceremonial space for prayer and cleansing. As a tribal African woman, I...

LEVEL 2 HISTORICAL TRAUMA SPECIALIST CERTIFICATION MARCH 2022!!! The wait is finally over! Iya Affo and Heal Historical Trauma will present: Historical Trauma Specialist Certification- LEVEL 2: A Neurological, Environmental & Cultural Perspective on March 1st & 2nd 2022. LEVEL 2 will cover the following: Neurological implications of Historical Trauma and how to align neurobiology with desired behavioral outcomes. Indigenous Attachment Theory Understanding the injurious relationship...

HEAL HISTORICAL TRAUMA & Iya Affo PRESENT: The Historical Trauma Specialist Certification- Level 1 is a comprehensive understanding of Historical Trauma from a multicultural lens. The training is designed for participants serving, leading, advocating and working with people of color. It is the perfect training for people in a variety of disciplines as well as multicultural families and for anyone with the desire to understand the impact of slavery, genocide and colonization. The course...

Being Trauma-Informed means that we are Culturally Attuned. Heal Trauma Global is a sister company to Heal Historical Trauma and was cultivated to fill a wide gap in stress science & trauma training. The trauma-informed movement is beautiful! It's wonderful that as a society we are moving in a direction that honors an individual's past as part of the driving force behind current behaviors. Yet, time and time again, I have attended trainings that are labeled as Trauma-Informed only to...

In Honor of Black History Month 2k22 Please Enjoy the Following NEW Trainings: Facilitating a Full Expression of Resilience: BIPOC are resilient. In learning how trauma is formed and passed from one generation to the next in our communities, we will understand how to facilitate a full expression of resilience in vulnerable communities. This course takes a deep dive into the reality of flight or fight mode and how many people enduring oppression, discrimination and hate live with a constant...

We are the only entity offering a comprehensive, 48-hour Historical Trauma Specialist Certification Program. The Program is broken into 6 levels and is built on a foundation of BIPOC cultures and neurobiology. It is taught from a multicultural perspective, injecting traditions and ideology from various cultures from around the world. In this inclusive study we rely on the ancient tradition of storytelling, visual art and interconnected relationships to intentionally explore difficult topics.