Intentional Change: Welcome Home to Inclusion, Cooperatives, Laughter Yoga
Communities everywhere are coming to grips with the impacts of the past two years of civic upheaval. In British Columbia, for example, there are clear ripple effects of Covid-19 becoming a public health crisis, and it has raised awareness that forced isolation, separation, grief and disconnect has created deep emotional impacts for all citizens.
Members of ESATTA Workers Cooperative (Empowering Self Advocates to take Action) is an entrepreneurial co-operative of self advocates who deliver presentations in local groups on a range of topics and use their own life experiences and skills to teach others. They say, “People with disabilities and their families know the long-term impacts of being excluded from community – for community is the lifeblood of society. In 2022, we recognized the need and we have an unexpected opportunity to share our lived experience about “emotional preparedness and resilience” with the community to be of service." Among the many presentations ESATTA delivers is People Planning Together, a two-day training program delivered by self advocates with a strong person-centered emphasis.
As we navigate the pandemic and adapt to the changing conditions it means recognizing the challenges. This then opens up a world of opportunities for people with disabilities to contribute inside local communities. With 10 years’ experience, ESATTA is developing new local to global ways to bring these resources to other communities using both technology and grassroots organizing. This is mutually beneficial for it creates opportunities for leadership amongst the people with disabilities who live there.
In 2022, “our plan is to customize ‘kits' for communities that would support inclusion of all citizens. We can create Self-Advocate groups around the province to mentor their community leaders to bring those kits to life. We are continually learning what it takes to do this in the new Covid landscape. We are also learning who to partner with to maximize our presence and utilize our knowledge.”
The goal of today is to show how Self Advocate groups can become mentors to community inclusion efforts, and intends to explore ways to effectively engage with people online, continue to seek out, establish and nurture partnerships with various leaders in communities. They will share their own experiences of leadership, and will include a section on Laughter Yoga to help us all relieve stress.
Presenters:
James White brings knowledge from 38 years working in the Community Living sector. He worked helping close institutions in BC so they could be supported people to live in their home communities. He worked 25 years as a Regional Manager for Community Inclusion agencies and 14 years as Regional Manager of Vancouver Coastal Area for Community Living BC . This area serves 3000+ Disabled people. He is a mentor / member of Empowering Self Advocates to Take Action Cooperative (ESATTA). ESATTA is a Self Advocate leadership company that teaches workshops on Community Living and Disability related topics. His previous adventures include climbing Tanzania’s Mt. Kilimanjaro with Ryan a young man with a developmental disability.
Kara Anderson is a Self-advocate and member of Self Advocate Leadership Network and ESATTA as well as a mother of an adult son with Autism.
Michael McLellan Co-founder of the Self Advocate Leadership Network (SALN), and member of ESATTA. Michael is one of BC’s most prominent self-advocates, spending decades working to ensure that British Columbians with intellectual disabilities are empowered as community leaders.
Shelley Nessman is a member of ESATTA and an experienced Consultant with a demonstrated history of working in the non-profit organization management industry. Skilled in Group Facilitation, Circle work, Strategic planning, Compassionate Approaches in Teams and Team development as well as Nonprofit Organizations, Social Enterprise, Coaching. Strong dialogic leader graduated from Simon Fraser University. I support agencies and people to think strategically while staying connected to their vision.
Facilitator:
Joy Gilfilen, presented Humanity Rising #301 – Standing Up with Power; then hosted the Intentional Change Series #375, #376, and #377 in December. Her goal with this series is to “Humanize Communities in 2022” by demonstrating how small pods of people can start intentional movements that naturally spiral out through the community, and then show how other generations expand the work, and how elders are necessary to build foundations that are vital. As a civic leader, Joy is President of the Restorative CommUnity Coalition, podcast host of iChange Justice and JoyTalk and the convener of the Intentional Change Network. Joy founded the Civic Joy Academy to teach Intentional Change philosophies, and is providing her flagship product Flipping the Joy Switch – Introducing the Fear to Joy Triangle Model free for the public. Go to JoyGilfilen.com for more.
Convener:
- Jim Garrison, President, Ubiquity University
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