Blog

By Jane Mayer, The New Yorker, August 2, 2021 I t was tempting to dismiss the show unfolding inside the Dream City Church in Phoenix, Arizona, as an unintended comedy. One night in June, a few hundred people gathered for the première of “The Deep Rig,” a film financed by the multimillionaire founder of Overstock.com, Patrick Byrne , who is a vocal supporter of former President Donald Trump . Styled as a documentary, the movie asserts that the 2020 Presidential election was stolen by...

By Damian Carrington, The Guardian, August 5, 2021 Climate scientists have detected warning signs of the collapse of the Gulf Stream, one of the planet’s main potential tipping points. The research found “an almost complete loss of stability over the last century” of the currents that researchers call the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC). The currents are already at their slowest point in at least 1,600 years , but the new analysis shows they may be nearing a shutdown. Such...

By Sarah Ladd, Courier Journal, August 4, 2021 A massive and historical partnership between a slew of Kentucky foundations will tackle child trauma, or "ACEs," in the commonwealth in the coming years through education, policy work and maybe the state budget. The "Bloom Kentucky" partnership, more than two years in the making, doesn't have an end date right now, Kentucky Youth Advocates executive director Dr. Terry Brooks said Monday: "It's not a microwave proposition; it's going to be much...

By Sarah Stoller, The Washington Post, August 4, 2021 The recent debate over whether breastfeeding athletes would be allowed to bring their nursing children to the Tokyo Olympics has dramatized the choices that confront working mothers of young children. After petitions from athletes including U.S. marathon runner Aliphine Tuliamuk and soccer player Alex Morgan , the Tokyo Olympic committee eased a ban on family members attending the Games to allow nursing children to come with their...

By Associated Press, MarketWatch, August 5, 2021 When homeless outreach workers first visited her encampment under a Los Angeles highway overpass last fall, Veronica Perez was skeptical of their offer of not just a bed, but a furnished apartment complete with meals, counseling and the promise of some stability in her life. “They said they had housing for me, but it just didn’t seem real,” Perez said. “When you’re homeless, you become leery and you don’t trust people.” Perez, 57, had been...

PC Reacts is a new series by PACEs Connection in which we look at current events through a trauma-informed and PACEs science lens. In the next episode in this series, we will respectfully and mindfully discuss issues that are adjacent to Britney Spears' public struggle with mental health, human rights, as she fights to end her conservatorship with her father. The emphasis of our conversation will be on positive and adverse childhood experiences and potential trauma experienced for children...

By ACEs Aware, July 27, 2021 ACEs Aware grantees throughout California have advanced the ACEs Aware initiative by educating clinicians and communities, and building partnerships to address ACEs and toxic stress. The ACEs Aware initiative funds community-based approaches to identify, treat, and heal the effects of ACEs and stress. Last month, we asked grantees Tri-City Mental Health Authority, Kings County Department of Public Health, and the Hanna Institute to share their strategies for...

By Sydney Johnson, EdSource, August 4, 2021 Bicycles typically aren’t allowed on the blacktop at Verde Elementary School in Richmond. But this year, scooters and bikes are a key feature of the school’s summer program aimed at getting students reacquainted with both in-person play and learning. As schools pivoted to distance learning during the pandemic, school enrollment in California plunged. But even the students who had steady access to the internet and managed to keep up in an all-new...

By Jeremy Loudenback, The Imprint, July 29, 2021 Under a sweeping plan created by California’s health agency, the state has proposed solutions to longstanding challenges for low-income parents that include improved access to an array of pediatric mental health services — before children reach a crisis state. Current state policy requires a diagnosis for clinicians in California to treat a child receiving Medi-Cal, the state’s version of Medicaid. For children with complex mental health...

By the HOPE Team, 8/5/21, positiveexperience.org/blog This past week, the HOPE team had our first in-person staff retreat! We treasured the opportunity to come together, discuss our work, and even have the chance to meet some of our newest staff members face-to-face. Join us in welcoming these wonderful additions to HOPE! Isabella Pagnozzi, MSM - Isabella started with HOPE in June as an administrative assistant. She received her Master's degree in Business Management, focusing on project...

By Alicia Ault, JAMA Network, August 4, 2021 D epending on who you ask, the end of a 2-decade dry spell in federal funding for gun violence research is a windfall or a pittance. Either way, experts in the field say that renewed funding is especially urgent now, as the US heads into a second year of record firearm-related violence. By late July, the Gun Violence Archive reported 25 370 US firearm deaths in 2021, putting the year on track to surpass last year’s 43 559 deaths. US Centers for...

“Imperfect Storm: Lessons Learned from a Traumatic Year" The 2021 Global Health Virutal Summit on Violence and Abuse provides a collegial environment for participants to have a virtual front row seat to the latest science and practice in violence and abuse treatment and prevention from a very traumatic 2020. Last year, our world experienced trauma in many areas such as racism, a pandemic, political unrest, human trafficking, and more. This year's summit encourages lessons learned to foster a...