You are warmly invited to participate in a free, two-day symposium dedicated to exploring the interplay between hope and environmental justice, co-hosted by Circle of Indigenous Nations Society (COINS) and Kutenai Art Therapy Institute (KATI).

We extend a special invitation to youth (under 30) and Indigenous participants. Everyone is welcome. 

Our aim is to foster a nurturing environment where we can collectively uncover and share our responses to the climate crisis through an anti-racist perspective and a deep commitment to care. Recognizing the need for the wisdom of Elders, dialogue across generations, collaboration, and mutual understanding to address the climate crisis, we aspire to cultivate thoughtful, deliberate discussions, enriched by the creative process of art-making.

To minimize our carbon footprint and emphasize accessibility and inclusivity, the symposium will be held in a partially hybrid format, with virtual sessions on June 13 and in-person sessions in Castlegar, BC on June 14.

Registration is required. Participants can register for one or both days.

In these urgent times, we gather to increase resilience, deepen understanding, create meaning, find hope, and strengthen cross-cultural integrity. We will explore how Indigenous communities are disproportionately impacted by the climate crisis and discuss ways to center and amplify the voices of knowledge keepers during these challenging times.

There will also be space to delve into the role of education in land-based work and explore how mental health services can support deepening relationships with the land.

June 13 - Virtual Elder Seminar

Single session - 9:30am-12:00pm

We are delighted to be joined online by two grounded and compassionate Elders - Duncan Grady and Mitchell Thomashow. Think of this as a time for slowing down, listening, art making, and growing into a deeper relationship with place. With Duncan and Mitchell guiding the conversation, it promises to be an inspiring gathering full of shared stories and meaningful dialogue.

There will be opportunity in the seminar for art making, discussion, self-reflection, and questions. 

Duncan Grady will lead an inquiry into what our relationships have to teach us about justice and environmental action. What is relationship? Where does it begin and end, if anywhere? Is our environment separate from us? Is there a possible interrelationship between our “internal environment” and the environment “out there”? And, does justice refer to “punishment”? How are the environment and justice interconnected? He will use a cultural perspective to respond to these questions.

Dr. Duncan Grady’s professional experience includes 14 years of post secondary education and 31 years of psychotherapy in addictions, trauma, death and dying. He has a Masters Degree in Counseling Psychology and a Doctorate of Divinity specific to Creation Spirituality. He is an elder of the Circle of Indigenous Nations Society, West Kootenays, BC. He currently co-leads retreats, works with communities impacted by lateral violence and provides training and consultation using western and non-western approaches to health, well-being, spirituality, trauma, dying and death.

Mitchell Thomashow will invite us to explore perceptual reciprocity and environmental learning. Every organism on the planet perceives. “Collectivities” of perception emerge when organisms adapt and coevolve in changing environments. Communities of species (forests, habitats, and even landscapes and the biosphere) perceive. “Collectivities” of awareness are mutually responsive in multiple scales of place and time. Apprehending environmental change requires a deepening of this awareness. This presentation will illustrate these relationships. Participants are invited to engage with the ideas through simultaneous Place Mapping art activities.

Dr. Mitchell Thomashow is the author of five books—Ecological Identity, Bringing the Biosphere Home, The Nine Elements of a Sustainable Campus, Pacific Northwest Changemakers, and To Know the World. He is currently working on a writing project called Memory and Wonder: A Field Guide. He consults widely on the academic and administrative aspects of environment and sustainability. He lives in the hill country of southwest New Hampshire. His many passions include hiking, bicycling, lake swimming, basketball, guitars and keyboards, and board games.

June 14 - In-person Sessions in Castlegar, BC

Multiple sessions - 9:00am-4:00pm

Imagine a day where hope is cultivated and conversation is meandering. This event follows an unconferencing model, inviting all participants to collaborate actively. Together, we'll foster an open exchange of ideas, drawing upon our collective knowledge and creativity to hopefully walk with the most pressing issues of our times.

Each of the following three options will be offered twice throughout the day - once in the morning and again in the afternoon. Registrants will be given the choice which two sessions they would like to attend. The only session that cannot be attended twice is the Tipi Ceremony.

Option 1 - Morning or Afternoon

Tipi Ceremony

Facilitated by COINS Elders & Staff

Names of facilitators and ceremony description to be announced.

A tipi ceremony will be held on-location by Elders and staff members of the Circle of Indigenous Nations Society (COINS).

Option 2 - Morning and/or Afternoon

Trash Monsters and Super Bugs: Recycle, Re-create and Re-story

Facilitated by Monica Carpendale & Will Parker

Join Monica and Will in creating creatures that give voice to the experience of climate chaos. We will use recycled materials, natural materials, found objects, tape wire, and glue. The intention is to play with inventiveness, work with flexible repurposing, build skills in problem-solving, and encourage story. We will work with the metaphor of taking what has been thrown out, handed down, to re-create and give it new life in a different configuration.

Monica Carpendale is KATI's founder and professor emeritus. She has over 30 years’ experience as an art therapist, teacher, supervisor and clinical practitioner, has published articles in the Canadian Art Therapy Association Journal and authored five books. For Monica, making “art” and making “special” has always been a part of her life.

Will Parker specializes in ecological identity work, he enjoys stacking rocks and building trails. Will has over 10 years’ experience in designing and facilitating arts-based environmental education programs and workshops, in schools, rural and remote communities. Will is an instructor at the Kutenai Art Therapy Institute and a member of its research committee.

Option 3 - Morning and/or Afternoon

“All My Relations” Mural

Facilitated by Juanita Kiff

This workshop is a space for us to creatively contribute our thoughts, feelings, creativity and energy towards a collective mural. Through large and small group discussions, we will explore both personal and societal steps towards fostering positive change. This process is designed to emphasize the significance of personal responsibility in our interconnected world, while focusing on accessible and actionable possibilities.

Our collective ideas will take shape through a dynamic art-making process. We will create individual paintings and stitched pieces, which will then be assembled into a collaborative mural. This mural will embark on a journey, traveling to subsequent events and relevant gatherings, serving as a potent agent of change. It will serve as a voice of inspiration, cultivating hope and facilitating restoration for the Earth and all our relations.

Juanita Kiff is an avid painter and clinician who offers mental health and substance counselling and art therapy services primarily focused on Indigenous populations. She is devoted to the preservation of traditional knowledge, the use of traditional healing methods and all efforts toward mending our relationship with the Earth. She facilitates workshops and healing circles and offers clinical and art therapy supervision.

No registration required

Silkscreen Printing

Facilitated by Marcus Dénommé

Join Marcus for an introduction to the world of analog silkscreen printing. This workshop will demonstrate the versatility of this artistic medium, as well as give the participants an opportunity to screen print onto a variety of surfaces, and leave with printed artworks. The medium of silkscreen printing lends itself to activism and grassroots organizing. Marcus has a passion for public interventions, be it wheat-pasted posters, street art, murals, sculptural installations, etc. The screen-printer can disseminate their messages and imagery to a huge audience, across different social classes and communities. It is no surprise that some of the world's greatest social movements used silkscreen printing to create change in the world.

Marcus Dénommé is a graphic designer and visual artist hailing from Timiskaming first nations territory in Ontario, Canada. It was there at a young age that Dénommé began to explore stencil making, street art, and public artistic interventions of many kinds as a communication tool within their community. Dénommé has taught dozens of intensive printmaking classes for institutions far and wide.

No registration required

Community Panel - The Role of Art & Imagination in Climate Chaos

Stay tuned to learn more about the fabulous panelists involved.

And more!

Interactive Art Showcase

Live Music

Original compositions, reflective of themes of healing, justice, and relationship to nature. Performed by KATI students Paloma Callo and Avery Seligman.

Catered Lunch

A delicious catered lunch by Kim's Creations with vegan and gluten-free options.

Partners & Sponsors

		This symposium is brought to in partnership with the Circle of Indigenous Nations Society (COINS). COINS is an Aboriginal non-profit society that provides cultural support and counseling services to people in the West Kootenay and Boundary region.
		This event is made possible thanks to the generous sponsorship of the Canadian Race Relations Foundation. The event would not be possible without their support.
		Many thanks as well to our sponsor Teck Trail Operations. Serving our local community and building capacity within the Trail-Rossland-Castlegar-Beaver Valley-Salmo areas.