February 2022

By Jeremy Loudenback, Illustration: Christine Ongjoco, The Imprint, February 1, 2022 F or decades, social workers investigating Los Angeles County parents accused of child abuse and neglect have relied on training, in-person interviews, consultations with supervisors and a straightforward, 16-item risk assessment to decide how cases should proceed. But in recent months, county workers who decide whether or not kids should be removed from their homes have begun using a new, more high-powered...

By Ariel Wittenberg, Photo: Chris Linder, All About Birds, December 21, 2021 It’s a busy morning on Capitol Hill when the gaggle of congressional staffers and their boss, U.S. Rep. Alan Lowenthal, gather on the back lawn. At this moment in early October, Congress is locked in negotiations over the biggest-ever boost in federal funding to fight climate change. But this morning’s meeting isn’t about legislation in the House of Representatives. It’s about three visitors perched atop the...

By Elizabeth Blair, Image: William Still's The Underground Railroad , 1872, National Public Radio, February 8, 2022 He has been compared to James Bond and Malcolm X, though his name has largely been left out of the history books. Abraham Galloway was an African American who escaped enslavement in North Carolina, became a Union spy during the Civil War and recruited Black soldiers to fight with the North. That's the short version. The fuller picture would include his work as a revolutionary...

Welcome to Virtual Healing Circles! At UC Davis Health we are working to realize Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision of the Beloved Community . We invite you to join us in a session of compassionate listening and intentional sharing to foster understanding, love, and unity. Join us Wednesday, February 23, 2022 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Please register here: bit.ly/healingcircle2-23

Based on decades of asking people young and old this question, I’ve found that there are seven keys to a happy and stress-free relationship. Learn them here!

“Introduction to ACEs, Using Trauma-Informed Approaches, and Fostering Resilience — Level 1,” an online, asynchronous training course, is now free and available to the public. This course is offered by the East Tennessee State University Ballad Health Strong BRAIN (Building Resilience through ACEs-Informed Networking) Institute. It offers an overview of what is meant by adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and how these may impact lifelong physical and mental health. Participants will learn...

By Anderson Cooper, Image: CBS News, CBS News, February 6, 2022 Last year, when archeologists detected what they believed to be 200 unmarked graves at an old school in Canada, it brought new attention to one of the most shameful chapters of that nation's history. Starting in the 1880's and for much of the 20th century, more than 150,000 children from hundreds of indigenous communities across Canada were forcibly taken from their parents by the government and sent to what were called...

By Peter T. Coleman, Greater Good Magazine, February 8, 2022 In 2006, I joined a group of about 40 peace experts in a small remote village in Poland called Kazimierz, a historic haven for Jews in a predominantly Catholic region of the world. There Andrea Bartoli, an accomplished peacemaker and devout Catholic who works tirelessly around the world to reduce deadly conflict, made an hour-long presentation arguing that because highly contentious conflicts can become so constricting—in terms of...

By Eric Tegethoff, Photo: Yurii Kibalnik/Adobe Stock, Public News Service, February 3, 2022 A resolution making its way through the Idaho Legislature encourages educating state officials and agencies on the impact of traumatic childhood events. Adverse childhood experiences are common in the state, with nearly a quarter of Idahoans experiencing four or more . Those events include experiences such as physical, emotional or sexual abuse; witnessing domestic violence; and family members in jail...

By Sharon Pruitt-Young, Photo: Patrick T. Fallon/AFP/Getty Images, National Public Radio, February 9, 2022 A walk in the park may be just what the doctor ordered. A new program launched last month in Canada gives some doctors the option of providing patients with a free annual pass to the country's national parks as part of an effort to increase access to nature and the health benefits to be found outside. PaRx , a health initiative launched by the BC Parks Foundation in 2019, partnered with...

By The HOPE Team, 2/9/22, https://positiveexperience.org/category/blog/ The American Academy of Pediatrics released two new snapshots in the Family Snapshots: Life during the Pandemic series. These reports share what parents found the most helpful or most challenging in raising their children throughout lockdown and as the pandemic progressed. In the Words of Parents Part 1: Work and Family Finances and In the Words of Parents Part 2: Remote Education and Home life . [ Click here to read more. ]

Work burnout is not a new idea, but conversations around burnout have increased in recent years, and for good reason. To read about work burnout and how we can support resiliency in the workplace, check out our newest blog on the Resilient Georgia website.