SPEAKERS: ATOP MEANINGFULWORLD PRESENTS: HEALING THE TRAUMA OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AROUND THE GLOBE

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1 ATOP MEANINGFULWORLD PRESENTS: HEALING THE TRAUMA OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AROUND THE GLOBE Thursday, 20 March :30 PM - 2 PM 2nd Floor, 777 UN Plaza, CCUN 44th St., at 1st Ave, NYC SPEAKERS: Rev. Dr. Sally MacNichol, Co- Founder and Co- Executive Director, CONNECT, New York, NY Rev. Dr. MacNichol has been an anti violence activist, domestic violence advocate and educator for over 25 years. She has counseled victims of domestic violence, run empowerment groups for survivors, worked with batterers, as well as trained hundreds of staff from child welfare programs and community based organizations as well as clergy across New York City s five boroughs. She has served on numerous committees working to reform NYC s domestic violence policies and practices. In 2004, Sally developed CONNECT Faith which works in collaboration with New York City s diverse faith communities to create and strengthen their response to gender and family violence. She serves on the board of Freedom House, one of the few domestic violence shelters in the country for people with disabilities, and House of Peace, a nonprofit organization working to address intimate violence in NYC s Muslim Communities. Sally has her Masters of Divinity and a Ph.D. in Systematic Theology from Union Theological Seminary. DV as a Social Issue: Root Causes, Impact & Intersections Abstract: Too often do most of us tune out or altogether turn a blind eye to one of the most pervasive social ills of our time, intimate partner violence. We tell ourselves that such violence is the product of personal dysfunction and injustice, when in fact, it is a direct symptom and

2 reflection of social dysfunction and injustice. At the same time, interpersonal violence magnifies the afflictions of an unjust society at the individual level and thus helps to perpetuate an unending cycle. To turn a blind eye to this issue, therefore, is to equally turn a blind eye to its broader impact on our societies wellbeing, as well as the deep underlying causes that injure and disempower us all at some level. Rev. Dr. Victoria Jeanne Rollins, Founder, L.O.V.E. Task Force on Non- Violent Living, New York, NY Victoria s life- long service as human rights activist and faith leader began at the tender age of 12 when she was elected Chaplain of her YMCA s Girls Club. Since then, her career has been distinguished, multi- faceted and progressive. Early on, she received a Leadership Award for her work as a Special Needs educator, where she co- led family support groups and developed the first Defeating Prejudice curriculum, and was also recognized for her early work in long term care. Victoria s extensive pastoral work includes directing Church school, volunteer services and social justice groups. Her community activism work and leadership spans battered women s shelters, rape crisis centers, city homeless programs, The Clothesline Project, a bereavement support group. She received her Doctorate in Theology from Exeter Univ. (UK) in 2007, and was ordained as Interfaith Minister in She is trained as a certified Life Coach, Disaster Chaplain, Holistic Pilgrimage Healer, and as a Death Doula. Victoria s research on the use and abuse of power has been presented and published widely. Currently, is an active member of Rise Again Ministries and the Episcopal Church; she serves as a Hospice volunteer and as a Consultant for CONNECT, N.Y.C.; and is a board- certified Chaplain. Reclaiming Life: Love s Transformative Power to Heal the Wounds of Trauma Abstract: The experience of traumatic violence is so often devastating and life- changing. Yet, the journey of soul recovery in healing trauma, through choices made toward a new use of personal and collective power, can restore us to even deeper levels of wholeness and wisdom. We are born into our beautiful world, created for life and love in abundance through interdependence and respect for one another and all creation. Yet too often do we find ourselves wounded - and wounding. By choosing to recognize, honor and nurture the divine spark of life within each of us, we become open to the miraculous transformative power of Love and human resilience. Beyond, and sometimes because of the brokenness in our embodied relationships, we may be transformed by a Spirit of Love created within us, an energy to be shared with one another, which has been expressed in every faith tradition through the ages and more recently corroborated by brain and heart science. To love, and to heal thereby, is a choice requiring awareness, honesty, commitment, non- violent practice, the courage to speak against destructive forces of our societies, and the creation of beloved community.

3 Dr. Steve Olweean, Common Bond Institute, New York, NY Steve is a therapist with a graduate degree in Clinical Psychology from Western Michigan University. He has over 30 years experience in community based mental health treatment and advocacy to underserved populations. His principal areas of treatment are trauma and abuse recovery, victim/perpetrator dynamics, crisis intervention, dissociative disorders, and healing negative belief systems. Steve has also been a human rights and peace activist since the late 1960s, and founder of several organizations and programs for which he has received wide recognition and awards. In the 1980 s, he developed the integrated Catastrophic Trauma Recovery (CTR) treatment model for treating large civilian populations traumatized by war and violence in developing societies. He is currently involved in two book projects, the first as editor of Engaging The Other, a compilation of authors from around the globe exploring the unique power when the energy of animosity and opposition is transformed into healing and collaboration (and from which he has generated the Annual International Conference on Engaging The Other ); and the second as author of Transgenerational Trauma: Communal Wounds and Victim Identities. Lorne Schussel, Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, NY Lorne Schussel, M.A., is a 3rd year doctoral student in clinical psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University, focusing on the utilization of novel mind- body practices with at risk populations. Previously, Lorne was a Reseach Assistant in the laboratory for Advances of Consciousness and Health in Arizona, was free lance film for Discovery Health, and worked in a hospital with suicidal patients. He continues to explore the nascent literature of consciousness,

4 health and spirituality within the framework of a post- materialist paradigm, and has recently published his work in the Journal of Clinical Psychology: In session. The Best Self Visualization C0- CHAIRS: Dr. Ani Kalayjian, Founder and President, Association for Trauma Outreach & Prevention, Meaningfulworld Dr Ani Kalayjian, A psychology Professor, a Psychotherapist, Genocide Scholar, International Humanitarian Outreach Administrator, Integrative Healer, author, and United Nations Representative. She was awarded Honorary Doctor of Science degree from Long Island University (2001) recognizing 20 years as a pioneer in her work and mission. In 2007 she was awarded Columbia University, Teacher College's Distinguished Alumni of the Year. Her calling grows out of your family s history and your own: As an Armenian child in Syria, where her family had sought sanctuary against the Ottoman Turkish Genocide, she experienced first hand the constant sadness and fear of a refugee. She has over 100 published articles in international journals, books, and is an author of Disaster & Mass Trauma, as well as Chief Editor of Forgiveness & Reconciliation: Psychological Pathways to Conflict Transformation and Peace Building (Springer 2009, paperback 2010), and Chief Editor of II Volumes on Mass Trauma & Emotional Healing around the World: Rituals and Practices for Resilience and Meaning- Making (Praeger, ABC-CLIO 2010), and the author of a meditation CD called From War To Peace transforming generational trauma into healing and meaning-making. She is the recipient of 2010 ANA Honorary Human Rights Award. Currently she is on the faculty of Teachers College, Columbia University.

5 Rev. Michele Campbell, UN Rep, Association for Trauma Outreach & Prevention, Meaningfulworld Michele is an ordained Interfaith Minister, Interfaith Disaster Chaplain and certified Evidence- Based Coach whose main focus and passion is helping trauma survivors connect back to their resilience and wholeness, and in particular, veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars transitioning back to civilian and family life. Michele also serves as an Organizational Development consultant, specializing in change management and values based, mission driven strategic planning. Earlier in her career, she spent more than 12 years as a project manager and consultant in the field of commercial construction before fully committing herself to her life mission in both her professional life and her volunteer work. She holds an M.A. in Organizational Management and Development from Fielding Graduate University, with prior graduate training in Educational Psychology at McGill University.