Loes van Wiligen, founder and Honorary President of ISHHR, suggested arranging in this time of crisis a series of webinars, alternating between English and Spanish. These “Conversations on the way to Medellin” could prepare the ground for our planned capacity-building and the International Conference in Medellín, Colombia in 2022 in cooperation with Colombian partners. Facilitators and front-workers from Colombia and around the world could share perspectives on their work with the final beneficiaries: women and men in Colombia and other post-conflict countries – tools for coping and healing.
After the success of the first webinar with Hector Aristizabal (in Spanish) on his work with survivors for the Truth Commission in the Territorio Sagrado, vimeo.com/552604812#at=16
ISHHR was proud to present Webinar #2, this time in English, with noted speakers:
Nora Sveaass,
professor emerita from the University of Oslo, served on the UN Committee against Torture, decorated by HM King Harald for her work with Human Rights.
Theme: Supporting survivors of sexual and gender based violence in conflict and their helpers – A brief presentation of a training manual on mental health in the context of SGBV
Hector Aristizabal,
psychologist, human rights defender, and performance artist from Medellin, and leader of <http://www.reconectando.org/>, has worked with the Colombian Truth and Reconciliation Commission since 2016
Theme: the Sacred Territory – using the methodologies of eco-dialog to open minds to the interrelation and interdependency of nature and humanity
Boris Drozdek,
psychiatrist and psychotherapist at De Hemisfeer, NL, editor and author of acclaimed books synthesizing insights from psychiatry, social psychology, and anthropology in a framework for a culturally informed therapy.
Theme: A Developmental, Time and Context-Sensitive Perspective on Stress and Resilience
Dr Cécile Rousseau,
Professor, Division of Social and Cultural Psychiatry, McGill University, currently working with refugee children and adolescents from Southeast Asia, Central America, and Somalia.
Theme: The pandemic context and its consequences for social inequities, social conflicts and human rights.
David Danto,
Head of Psychology at the University of Guelph-Humber and Chair of the Canadian Psychological Association Standing Committee on Reconciliation.
Theme: “Allyship, Indigenous Knowledge and Mental Health”- about being supportive of Indigenous approaches to healing that are already in the community.
The speakers addressed and invited to discussion on issues of interest for all who work with post-conflict survivors. Webinar #2 is available on video
https://www.facebook.com/ishhr2021/videos/624181235413678
Webinar #3, working title “Trauma psicosocial y trabajo posconflicto” is planned for December 6th.