Conference 2022 Plenary Speakers

Regrouping & Recharging: Gathering to Create Sustainable Change

Plenary Speakers

David Mandel, Executive Director—Safe and Together Institute

Topic: Pivoting to the Perpetrator as Parent: Using a Domestic Violence Perpetrator Pattern-Based Approach to System Transformation

With over almost 30 years’ experience in the domestic violence field, David’s international training and consulting focuses on improving systems’ responses to domestic violence when children are involved. Through years of work with child welfare systems, David has developed the Safe & Together™ Model to improve case practice and cross-system collaboration in domestic violence cases involving children. He has also identified how a perpetrator pattern-based approach can improve our ability to help families and promote the development of domestic violence-informed child welfare systems.

Nneka MacGregor, Executive Director—Women’s Centre for Social Justice (WomenatthecentrE)

Topic: A Fresh Breath: Examining the Occurrence of Strangulation Among Women Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence

Nneka MacGregor is the co-founder and Executive Director of the Women’s Centre for Social Justice, better known as WomenatthecentrE, a unique non-profit organisation created by and for women and trans survivors of gender-based violence globally.

Elder Lorna Standingready

Topic: Supports for Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence: What Has Been Achieved and What is Still Needed

Lorna is a direct descendent of one of the negotiators, Ka-na-hah-cha-pay-o (Skillful Archer) of Treaty 4 and great niece of Chief Peepeekisis, son of Ka-na-hah-cha-pay-o. Lorna has been a volunteer with over 40 organizations in her community. John Howard Society, Regina Anti- Poverty Ministry and The Regina Action and Education on Child Hunger (REACH) to name a few as well as being a board member on different committees and organizations at the provincial and federal level. Today Lorna is called upon to say a Welcome to Treaty 4 Territory and a Blessing and Prayers at many events.

Heidi Rankin, Associate Director—Safe and Together Institute

Topic: Building Relationships with Shelters to Implement the Safe & Together™ Model

Heidi has over 20 years of experience in the sexual and domestic violence field. She has worked in crisis counseling, program and policy development and advocacy in both the United States and Eastern Canada. As a member of the Prince Edward Island Premier’s Action Committee on Family Violence Prevention, Heidi helped develop a child welfare domestic violence screening protocol. Heidi received a Master’s in Public Administration with a concentration in domestic violence from the University of Colorado at Denver, the only program of its kind in the country. In her current role, she oversees the training staff and faculty, manages our Certified Trainers and presents nationally and internationally.

Aly Bear, Third Vice Chief of the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN)

Aly Bear, the Third Vice Chief of the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN) is a proud mother to her two daughters, a lawyer and a descendant of Dakota, Anishinaabe, and Nehiyaw heritage from the Whitecap Dakota First Nation. She is passionate about revitalizing and implementing traditional Indigenous laws and integrating these laws in modern-day Indigenous governance structures. Vice Chief Bear has taken on leadership roles in her own Nation, within the College of Law and has been an advocate for First Nations women and MMIWG2+. This passion of advocacy brought her to hold the Women’s Commission Portfolio for the FSIN, where she has been working on bringing the Red Eagle Lodge to life while asserting the Declaration to Honour First Nation Women and Girls to be adopted by all levels of government including within First Nations institutions.

Dwayne Yasinowksi, Director of Education—Caring Hearts Saskatchewan

Topic: Organizational Trauma

Dwayne has presented over 100 education and training sessions to approximately 9000 professionals and volunteers on “grief and bereavement,” “trauma,” “trauma informed care,” “intergenerational trauma,” and “self-care and resiliency building.” He has worked with a variety of not-for-profit organizations, First Nations agencies and communities, Government agencies, Ministry officials and organizations throughout the province.

Pauline Streete, Senior Advisor on Equity, Diversity, Inclusion & Anti-Oppression—University of Regina

Topic: Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Anti-Oppression

Pauline Streete is the Senior Advisor on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and Anti-oppression at the University of Regina. Prior to joining the University, Pauline occupied positions in education, the private, public and the not for profit sectors. She was a Program Development Consultant for Sask Polytechnic and was also the Executive Director for a provincial cross disability not for profit agency. Pauline’s commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion spans decades. She was a sessional lecturer on the topics of diversity and inclusion in the workplace and Women in Leadership. She has occupied board seats and has volunteered for several community-based organizations. Pauline possesses a Bachelor of Education and a Master of Human Resource Development from the University of Regina.