Bridging the Gaps: Survivor-Centered Solutions for Enhanced Care

Bridging the Gaps: Survivor-Centered Solutions for Enhanced Care Pathways

A digital panel discussion featuring survivors and care providers about the barriers survivors face, gaps in care and justice systems, and the survivor-led innovations that are driving real change.

Moderator

Fallon Farinacci is Red River Métis and a child survivor, advocate, and speaker for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people.

As an intergenerational survivor and a mother of three, Fallon understands the importance of breaking the cycles of trauma. Healing and speaking openly about the ongoing discrimination and violence Indigenous peoples face is of the utmost importance to her in ensuring the cycle ends for future generations. Reclaiming her power and place is not only to honour her ancestors and her parents, but also for herself, and most importantly for her children.

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Nadia George

Nadia is an internationally recognized award-winning actor and public speaker, and somatic-trauma informed practice consultant & educator, based in Toronto.

Nadia combines her love for the creative with her professional knowledge to advocate for embodied mental health awareness, and environmental justice. As a consultant, she empowers organizations and individuals to capture their full potential through a trauma-informed somatic approach. With lived experiences in the child welfare system, reconnecting to her Indigenous roots, and enduring the impacts of environmental injustice, Nadia recognizes the need for strength based solution-focused conversations.

Championing that allyship and connection as the baseline of discussions, she motivates those she encounters to make actionable change, so positive outcomes become the norm.

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Keara Dean

Keara Dean was born and raised on the unceded, ancestral lands and traditional territory of the Beothuk (bee-OH-thuk), Mi'kmaq (MEE-gmahk), Innu (In-oo) and Inuit Nations, known as St. John's, Newfoundland. She now resides with her family on the land of the Anishinabe, Algonquin Nation, known as Ottawa, Ontario.

Keara is a Mom of two teenagers, an activist, advocate, survivor of sexual violence, social worker, student, and wanderer. She loves to be creative, curious, and engaged in conversation and community.

She is guided by feminism and nature, personally and professionally. Currently, Keara’s personal work is learning how to listen more, slow down, mindfully experiencing what is close to her. Her paid work is with Femade, as a social worker supporting folks who are dealing with issues related to women's health.

As a social/environmental justice defender and co-conspirator, you can find Keara mountain biking, hiking, or camping in the forest; And on, in or near a body of water to soothe her soul, collecting rocks wherever she goes.

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Asmaa Ali

Asmaa Ali is an award-winning registered nurse, speaker, writer, and health researcher engaged in health promotion and in developing healthy public policy on local, provincial, and national levels. Her focus extends particularly to the well-being of women, Black communities, and Muslim communities across Canada. Previously, she has served as a board director for the Alberta Immigrant Women and Children’s Centre. Asmaa is a Master of Nursing student at the University of Calgary and has completed an executive program on health system leadership at the Harvard T.H Chan School of Public Health. She was named as one of Alberta’s Top 30 Under 30 by the Alberta Council for Global Cooperation and is recognized as a provincial nursing scholar by the Alberta Registered Nurses Educational Trust.

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Jayden Ode’imin

Jayden Ode’imin (she/they) is a mixed Anishinaabe and Southeast Asian single mother, survivor, and passionate advocate. A daughter of a Missing and Murdered Indigenous Girls, Women, and 2-Spirit (MMIGW2S) survivor, Jayden brings both intergenerational and personal lived experience to her work and advocacy.

As a survivor in the child welfare system and continued intergenerational trauma, Jayden advocates for community-driven healing and Anishinaabe rooted approaches to justice.

Jayden began her career in event coordinating, graphic design and copywriting at her local Women’s Centre, and now works as a Graphic Designer in the non-profit sector, supporting community organizations with a focus on healing, justice, and visibility.

An advocate for women and human rights, Jayden devotes countless volunteer hours outside of her 9 to 5 to grassroots movements, survivor-led initiatives, and anti-war efforts, using her voice and design skills to uplift and empower others who may not have a voice.

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Sarah Hope

Sarah Hope holds a degree in Sociology and brings over 20 years of frontline experience supporting individuals through complex trauma, with a strong focus on domestic violence. She has provided crisis counselling and harm reduction support to survivors, many of whom have also faced addiction, mental illness, and systemic poverty. Her work is rooted in trauma-informed care, attachment theory, and integrative models of healing that emphasize safety, empowerment, and emotional regulation. Sarah is passionate about advocating for compassionate, client-centered support and is honoured to contribute her voice to this important conversation.

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Patti A McIntomney

Patti McIntomney is a survivor of sexual assault and IPV. She is a First Nation Hereditary Chief of the Crane Clan living in 1850 Robinson Huron Treaty Territory. Her Grandfather Grand Chief signed the Treaty of Niagra and it is his Silver Chain Convenant wampum belt. She treasures his wisdom and honours our 7 Grandfather teachings. Patti carries the Messenger Wampum of the Wabenaki to stand up for Justice on behalf of victims, survivors, and those affected.

Patti carries traditional values. She has self represented in the court system and was the first to conduct a private prosecution and enact a tort of criminal harassment. She rightfully takes pride in this, and my case is used at all levels of the justice system.

This Womans Truth

This Woman’s Truth is a victims rights advocate in both Canada and Italy who’s successfully pushed for stronger strangulation laws in Canada and longer statutes of limitations for gender based violence crimes in Italy.

On January 1, 2015 This Woman’s Truth became the victim of a near-fatal strangulation, non-state torture, and sexual assault at the hands of her then-partner while in Italy. She chose not to report it in Italy. When she returned to Canada she was encouraged to “just move on” after speaking to municipal police. A year and a half later she returned to police, this time the RCMP, prepared to press charges but was devastated to learn, not only had the first officer failed to even begin a complaint, file, or report, he had also failed to inform her of a six-month statute of limitations in Italy (whereas in Canada there is no statute of limitations for the assault that she experienced). No longer able to pursue criminal justice, she was denied equitable Crime Victims Assistance granted the crime occurred outside of Canada.

Today, This Woman’s Truth is fundraising for a Constitutional Challenge with Canada’s legendary human and environmental rights law-firm Arvay Finlay LLP to see the Victims Bill of Rights enshrined in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, equitable crime victims assistance to all victims across Canada, and jurisdiction of GBV cross border crimes be able to be transferred to Canada.

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