Land Acknowledgement
As an Ottawa based organization we recognize the colonial structures that are upheld by our presence here on stolen land. We […]
By Kimberly Sogge on May 4, 2022.
Thursday July 23, 2020
On July 3 we had a very thoughtful conversation around stigma and language, and the opportunity we have to take compassionate evidence based action when engaging with individuals with substance use disorder. Mr. Gord Garner, Executive Director of the Community Addictions Peer Support Association (CAPSA), discussed how science and research leads toward changes to compassionate language.
Do we speak of the client’s desire to change when the issue is the capabilities to change? Is it that the client is not ready to change, or is it that the client is not able to change yet?
For free resources click here.
To hear our talk click here
About the Presenter:
Mr. Garner is the Executive Director of the Community Addictions Peer Support Association (CAPSA), and the chair of the annual Recovery Day Ottawa event. He is a national public speaker and trainer on addressing stigma and Person First Language. He is living well with his own substance use disorder at the time of this writing. He is dedicated to removing barriers, to enable policy writers, academics, researchers and people with experience of substance use disorders active or in remission to take evidence-based actions to improve the lives of Canadians concerning substance use. He supports the four pillars of prevention/education, harm reduction, treatment and enforcement/policy. He advocates that they all serve one purpose, increased wellbeing for Canadians in regards to substance use. This naturally leads to advocating for changes and better cohesion. All of Gord’s work is informed by his 38 years of active addiction and by the those who helped him.