final evaluation report - antigonish women's resource...

Final Evaluation Report 2014-‐16

A collaborative journey of sharing, open dialogue, and learning

Prepared by: Peggy Mahon MAdEd External Evaluator, April 12, 2016

Responding to and Preventing Sexual Violence in Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation

Acknowledgements I want to thank Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation for inviting me into your community to be part of this project as the external evaluator. It was a privilege to work with community members and project partners and to be given the honour of documenting and reflecting what has been learned through this important community-‐based, community-‐led process. I would like to express immense appreciation to all the Paqtnkek community members, community leaders, and Advisory Committee members who took time to answer evaluation questions and to reflect individually and collectively on project successes and challenges. In this evaluation report, I have attempted to weave your thoughtful individual and collective reflection with the lessons learned and the more practical documentation of project processes and outcomes. Throughout the evaluation, many acknowledged the passion, energy, knowledge, skills, and support that all Advisory Committee members, including staff, contributed to this project. Membership over the two years (2014-‐16) included representatives from Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation, the Antigonish Women’s Resource Centre & Sexual Assault Services Association (AWRCSASA), Mi’kmaq organizations and communities, Antigonish RCMP, StFX University, the Project Coordinator, Community Facilitators, and StFX students as follows:

Juliana Julian (Paqtnkek Health Centre Director), Lucille Harper (AWRCSASA Executive Director), Darlene Prosper (Paqtnkek Council), Judy Julian (Paqtnkek Council), Molly Peters (Paqtnkek Council), Robert Pictou (Paqtnkek Council), Mike Taylor (Addictions Worker), Meaghan Fullerton/Tiana Fusco (Clinical Therapist, Paqtnkek and Pictou Landing), Kathleen Denny (Community Wellness, Paqtnkek), Brad Paul/Tma Francis (Community Wellness, Paqtnkek), Angela Lafford (Maternal Child Health Worker, Paqtnkek), Carla Ashawasegai (Paqtnkek School Support Worker), Mary Lafford (Paqtnkek Elder), Megan Sioux Lafford (Paqtnkek Youth), Alicia Julian (NS Native Women’s Association Representative, Paqtnkek), Walter Denny (RCMP – Domestic Violence, Eskasoni First Nation), Dorene Bernard (Shubenacadie Elder/Residential School Survivor), Bernadette Poirier (Waycobah Family Healing Centre), Heather Blackburn (Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner Program Director, AWRCSASA), Jennifer Arnold (Antigonish RCMP), Terena Francis (Aboriginal Student Advisor, St. Francis Xavier [StFX] University), Robyn Bourgeois (Indigenous Women’s Leadership Program, Coady International Institute), Dr. Jane McMillan (Sexual Violence Research Consultant for the project, Canada Research Chair of Indigenous Peoples & Sustainable Communities, StFX University), Mariah Richard and Victoria Paddon (StFX students), Annie Chau (Project Coordinator) and Karla Stevens (Community Facilitator).

Wela'lin, Peggy Mahon

Table of Contents Executive Summary ............................................................................................................................ i 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Evaluation Approach ................................................................................................................ 2 1.2 Evaluation Methods & Tools .................................................................................................... 2 1.3 Evaluation Implementation & Analysis ............................................................................... 3

2. Project Implementation & Outputs ............................................................................................ 4 2.1 Bringing Partners Together to Support the Project ................................................................... 4 2.2 Developing a Culturally Relevant Needs Assessment Process & Plan ....................................... 5 2.3 Presenting Findings & Identifying Strategies for Change .......................................................... 9 2.4 Implementing the Action Plan – Community-‐led & Community-‐wide .................................... 10 2.5 Sharing Knowledge & Lessons Learned ................................................................................... 16 2.6 Summary of Project Outputs & Participation in Project Activities .......................................... 17

3. Outcomes: Partnerships & Collaboration .................................................................................. 19 3.1 An Appreciation for the Diverse Knowledge & Perspectives of Partners within a

Community-‐led Approach Strengthened the Project .............................................................. 19 3.2 Partnerships & Collaboration Strengthened Relationships & Built Trust ................................ 22 3.3 Engaged & Informed Advisory Committee Members ............................................................. 24 3.4 Satisfaction with Involvement in & Contribution to the Project ............................................. 26

4. Outcomes: Community Engagement & Dialogue on Sexual Violence ...................................... 28 4.1 Engaged Community Members Throughout the Project ........................................................ 28 4.2 Opened up the Dialogue on Sexual Violence .......................................................................... 30 4.3 Identified Needs, Challenges & What is Needed to Improve Response & Prevention ............ 32

5. Outcomes: Response & Prevention Strategies .......................................................................... 37 5.1 Community Healing Circles: Increased Opportunities for Sharing & Healing in a

Culturally Safe Environment ..................................................................................................... 37 5.2 Support for Supporters Strengthened Individual & Community Capacity .............................. 38 5.3 Education for External Service Providers Increased Understanding of Cultural Competency

& Trauma-‐Informed Practice .................................................................................................... 43 5.4 Education for Youth & Parents Increased Individual Knowledge & Skills ................................ 47 5.5 Educators Team Started to Build Capacity for Ongoing Community Education ...................... 53 5.6 Resources & Tools Helped to Strengthen Community Capacity .............................................. 54

6. Outcomes: Sharing Knowledge & Lessons Learned ................................................................... 55

7. Conclusions & the Way Forward .......................................................................................... 57 7.1 Partnerships & Collaboration .................................................................................................. 57 7.2 Community Engagement & Dialogue on Sexual Violence ....................................................... 58 7.3 Response & Prevention Strategies .......................................................................................... 59 7.4 Sharing Knowledge & Lessons Learned ................................................................................... 61 7.4 Achieving Project Goals & the Way Forward ........................................................................... 61

Appendix A: Executive Summary Needs Assessment Results .......................................................... 64

Appendix B: Needs Assessment Focus Group & Safety Audit Evaluation Results .......................... 66 Appendix C: Outcomes Evaluation Framework .......................................................................... 70

Responding to & Preventing Violence in Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation, Final Evaluation Report, 2016. i

Executive Summary Responding to and Preventing Sexual Violence in Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation was a two-‐year collaborative project between the Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation Health Centre and the Antigonish Women’s Resource Centre and Sexual Assault Services Association (AWRCSASA), and funded through Status of Women Canada. The evaluation report is intended to recount or tell a story about what happened over the two years, and connect what happened with how well the project activities achieved results and met the overall goals. Project goals include:

1. Establish collaborative relationships with Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation community leaders, Band staff, Health Centre staff, First Nations partners, and local community organizations working in the field of violence against women and girls.

2. Engage the community and partners in planning and assessing community needs; 3. Engage the community in violence prevention and response strategies; 4. Share project results and lessons learned with the network of partners and First Nation

communities.

Project Activities & Participation An Advisory Committee was formed to provide overall direction and support to the project. The committee consisted of a diverse membership that included a balance of community and external partners. About one-‐half of the members represented Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation and about one-‐half represented AWRCSASA, Mi’kmaq organizations and communities, Antigonish RCMP, and StFX University. The Committee participated in planning a culturally relevant needs assessment process, designed to engage community members. They also identified values to guide project activities. One of these, nurturing, was considered a community strength, where community members go above and beyond to provide care and nurturing. One hundred and thirty-‐seven (137) community members participated in the needs assessment, 99 females and 38 males. Activities included two community forums, twelve focus groups, a community safety audit, and an open house and survey for external service providers. Focus groups were held for residential school survivors, men’s wellness, young women, young men, Chief and Council, band staff, health centre staff, directors, and open sessions. Care was taken to provide support by having an Elder and/or a counsellor available. The following themes and recommendations emerged from the needs assessment. Paqtnkek is a nurturing community. There are networks of informal supporters who are trusted in the community. Community members came with varying definitions of violence/sexual violence, healthy relationships and consent. There are various challenges with disclosing and reporting sexual violence. Residential school trauma, intergenerational trauma, and the cycle of violence are widely experienced. Racism and colonialism are broader forms of oppression that contextualize violence in the community. Culture is significant in addressing violence and sexual violence through healing and forgiveness. One general recommendation was that the project must be inclusive, collaborative, community-‐led, and community-‐wide. Another was that it must break the cycle of violence, promote safety, and build community capacity

Responding to & Preventing Violence in Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation, Final Evaluation Report, 2016. ii

to continue and sustain the work. There were specific recommendations for response to and prevention of sexual violence. The findings were presented at a community forum where community members identified priorities for action. Response strategies included: Healing & Ceremony; Support for Supporters; Policies & Procedures; and Tools & Resources. Prevention strategies included: Education and Awareness, Online Safety and Social Media and Healthy Relationships. The priorities were incorporated into an action plan that focused on building on community assets to strengthen capacity to respond to and prevent sexual violence. Activities offered through the action plan included: Community Healing Circles; Healing Through Workshops; Supporters Team sessions; Policies and Procedures Task Group; External Service Provider education; Educator Team training; Education sessions for youth and parents; and a final community forum. Participation in these activities was 292, 219 females and 73 males. Awareness events, videos, a “Think Respect” campaign, and distribution of fridge magnets involved 666 participants. Project results and lessons learned were shared formally, through presentations and workshops, and informally, through meetings and networks. Six formal presentations and a Lessons Learned workshop involved 112 participants, 99 women and 13 men.

Outcomes: Project Partnerships & Collaboration One project strength was that, through the Advisory Committee, partners developed a shared understanding of what each would contribute, and then worked collaboratively to plan and support the project. This resulted in an appreciation for the diverse knowledge, experience, and perspectives of the partners which, in turn, strengthened the project. All understood that the project would be community-‐based and community-‐led and were aware of the need to be respectful of Mi’kmaq values and traditions. Community partners knew best how to engage the community, knew what works best for their community, and could advise and support cultural relevancy. External partners were able to provide other kinds of expertise and access to resources and networks. Collaboration between the community and external partners strengthened relationships. Ultimately, this has resulted in a level of comfort and trust with each other, in it being less intimidating to reach out, and in services being more accessible to community members. Advisory Committee members were actively engaged and felt informed about project activities and findings. Overall, members were satisfied with their involvement including feeling that their ideas were supported and their contribution was valued.

Outcomes: Community Engagement & Open Dialogue on Sexual Violence

Community members started to become engaged in the project during the needs assessment phase and continued to be engaged up to the final closing meeting. The overall approach of a community-‐led, community-‐based project that was culturally respectful supported community members to be engaged. Also, participation was open, inclusive, and

Responding to & Preventing Violence in Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation, Final Evaluation Report, 2016. iii

care was taken to provide safe spaces and support for them to be involved. The support and participation by Chief and Council, Band staff and Health Centre staff sent a signal that this effort was being taken seriously. The participatory methodology and implementing what community members said was needed meant that their contribution mattered. Multiple strategies engaged community members at different times according to their comfort level and needs. Having a Community Facilitator who knew the community, as well as knowledgeable, trusted and experienced facilitators for all sessions supported participation. Grounding activities in culture and ceremony were important to meaningful participation. Perhaps the most important project outcome was that the community engagement process opened up a dialogue about sexual violence, an issue that had not previously been openly talked about. The process also enabled community members to support one another within that dialogue and to have support from a counsellor if needed. When asked what was most helpful about the focus groups, participants said the the interaction, sharing, open dialogue, courage to speak out, learning, support, people’s input and ideas, information, and facilitation. They also talked about hope for change and a promising future. Opening up dialogue around such a sensitive and complex issue and providing opportunities to learn more about sexual violence was not without challenges. Feedback from the facilitators and participants indicated that both adults and youth had varying definitions and understanding of sexual violence and consent. This was largely because sexual violence had become normalized in the community. This raised another challenge of how to address this normalization with adults and with youth. Two other significant challenges that emerged were realizing the impact of intergenerational trauma and how to work with and support perpetrators who may also be survivors. While these were openly acknowledged, they are not easily addressed. Throughout the project, Advisory Committee members and community members explored ways to best approach these challenges over the long term.

Outcomes: Response & Prevention Strategies The Community Healing Circles created culturally safe spaces for community members to talk about, share their experiences, and start to heal. Confidentiality agreements, a support team, and trusted Mi’kmaw facilitators, who don’t reside in the community, enabled community members to trust the process and feel safe enough to share their stories. This also gave all community members the option to participate. Supporters, who were viewed by others in the community as trusted people to talk to, formed a “Supporters Team” as part of the response strategy. Through skill-‐building sessions, they learned more about different forms of violence and trauma, laws, healthy coping skills, and practicing self care. This gave them insights into how they could be more supportive and compassionate in their role, hence increasing community capacity to provide support and information to community members. Opportunities to share and debrief with a counsellor and to support each other were very important. They identified benefits of having men in the group and of involving men and boys in this issue. They suggested ways this work could continue and be strengthened.

Responding to & Preventing Violence in Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation, Final Evaluation Report, 2016. iv

In their workshops, external service providers learned more about the impact of residential schools, colonialism and intergenerational trauma; as well as trauma-‐informed, culturally safe, and holistic practice. They identified actions they intended to take in their workplace to strengthen awareness, service provision and organizational practice. This has the potential to increase access for community members to culturally safe and trauma-‐informed services.

A Policies and Procedures Resource was developed with input from other Mi’kmaq communities. This has built community capacity to develop policies and procedures for a harassment-‐free and violence-‐free workplace. There is a community plan to move this forward. Education workshops for youth and parents increased understanding about healthy and unhealthy relationships, consent, sexual violence, and online safety for a good portion of youth and parents who participated. The Seven Sacred Teachings was a valuable cultural inclusion. The plan to have a community Educators Team did not come to fruition; however, training three community members to lead educational sessions started the process of building capacity for ongoing education. Various awareness events, the “Think Respect campaign, videos, and fridge magnets in every household raised broader awareness about sexual violence, respect in relationships, and resources available. One project challenge was to effectively engage youth in Grades 9-‐12. In thinking about future engagement of this age group, community members suggested it is important to ensure that youth have a fuller understanding of healthy relationships, sexual violence and consent in order to support healthy interactions and prevent sexual violence. They also pointed out that, while it is important for young people to recognize sexual violence is a problem in the community to address the normalization of violence, it is important to build resilience and supports for youth, particularly for those who may have experienced and/or witnessed sexual violence and experienced trauma.

Outcomes Sharing Knowledge & Lessons Learned The formal “Lessons Learned “workshop held after completion of the needs assessment was successful in sharing knowledge about the project, as well as successes and challenges. Participants were very positive about what they had learned, identified various ways the session had been helpful for them, and identified actions they planned to take back to their community as a result of the workshop.

Conclusions & the Way Forward Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation has embarked on a collaborative journey of sharing, open dialogue and learning. By building on community strengths, strategies have strengthened individual and community capacity in a number of areas, while starting to build capacity in others. Overall, the project has achieved the four goals. Through the evaluation, community members and partners expressed a very strong commitment to continue the work begun through this project. Their suggestions for the way forward are summarized in the last section of the evaluation report.

Responding to & Preventing Violence in Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation, Final Evaluation Report, 2016. 1

Section 1: Introduction This is the final evaluation report for the two-‐year project, Responding to and Preventing Sexual Violence in Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation. This was a collaborative project between the Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation Health Centre and the Antigonish Women’s Resource Centre and Sexual Assault Services Association (AWRCSASA) and funded through Status of Women Canada. This report covers the full two years of the project from April 2014 to March 31, 2016. As outlined in the evaluation approach, the evaluation report is intended to recount or tell a story about what happened, and connect what happened with how well the project activities achieved results and met the overall goals. More importantly, the evaluation was committed to respecting Indigenous Ways of Knowing and a coming-‐to-‐know process that emerges through the journey of observing, experiencing, and interpreting. As a result, the report incorporates what community members and partners are coming-‐to-‐know through their reflection about their insights and the lessons learned. As much as possible, the report includes the actual comments provided by project participants as a way of telling the story. The project goals are as follows:

1. Establish collaborative relationships with Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation community leaders, Band staff/service providers, First Nations partners, and local community organizations working in the field of violence against women and girls.

2. Engage the community and partners in planning and assessing community needs; 3. Engage the community in violence prevention and response strategies; 4. Share project results and lessons learned with the network of partners and First Nation

communities. The first year of the project has focused on the first two goals. Project activities included bringing together partners to form an Advisory Committee, developing a culturally relevant needs assessment plan, and mobilizing and engaging community members to clarify needs and identify response and prevention strategies. The second year involved implementing an action plan based on the community-‐identified priorities. Response strategies included Support for Supporters; Healing & Ceremony, Policies & Procedures, and Tools & Resources. Prevention strategies included Education and Awareness, Online Safety and Social Media, and Healthy Relationships. The intent of the action plan was to build and strengthen individual and community capacity to respond to and prevent sexual violence. An external evaluator was hired to work with the project staff and the project Advisory Committee. The evaluator in consultation with the Project Coordinator and Community Facilitator designed a draft evaluation framework that would guide the evaluation (Appendix C). This plan was presented to the project Advisory Committee in November 2014. The overall purpose of the evaluation is to assess the effectiveness of the project in meeting its goals, to assess the learning journey of the participants, to identify lessons learned, and to


assess the effectiveness of sharing lessons with the network of community partners, stakeholders and First Nation communities. This report is organized in the following sections:

Section 1: Introduction, including evaluation methodology (this section) Section 2: Project Implementation & Outputs Section 3. Outcomes: Partnerships & Collaboration Section 4: Outcomes: Community Engagement & Dialogue Section 5: Outcomes: Response & Prevention Strategies Section 6: Outcomes: Sharing Knowledge & Lessons Learned Section 7: Conclusions & the Way Forward

1.1 Evaluation Approach To use a metaphor from Telling Our Story in Our Place and Time1, an evaluation is like weaving a basket. The inner wall of the basket is project implementation and the outer wall is the evaluation. Together these two combine to form tension that enables the program or project to improve and enables learning and growth. It is also important to balance an understanding of how project goals connect to project activities and results. Therefore, the evaluation focuses on learning throughout the project. Project implementation creates a story of what happened in the project and connects it with assessing how well the project activities achieved results and met overall goals. Most importantly the evaluation will respect Indigenous Ways of Knowing and a coming-‐to-‐know process emerging as a journey of observing, experiencing and interpreting.2 Therefore, the evaluation will create knowledge through a process of action, reflection and learning.3. It interprets what community members are coming –to-‐know, the lessons learned and insights gained. The evaluation promotes participation and learning as integral components to the evaluation process. Finally, it will be a learning process that respects and values what individuals bring and what they learn in order to build community capacity to address response to and prevention of sexual violence.

1.2 Evaluation Methods & Tools The evaluation gathered both quantitative information (e.g. how many people participated in various activities) and qualitative information (observations and reflections) from project participants and community collaborators. Both kinds of information informed the creation

1 Ibid. 2 Cajete, G., Native Science Natural Laws of Interdependence, Clearlight Publishers, Santa Fe. NM, 1999. (paraphrased from his list on p. 79).

3 LaFrance, J. and Nichols, R. (2009)., AIHEC Indigenous Evaluation Framework, Telling Our Story in Our Place and Time. Alexandria. VA. p. 29


of the story of implementation, the reflection on what was learned, and lessons learned to share with the broader community and other communities. The evaluator and project staff collaborated to design all evaluation questions and tools based on the indicators in the outcomes evaluation framework and objectives for the education and training sessions. Methods for gathering information were as follows:

• Tracking participation in project activities; • Advisory Committee Planning Session evaluation form (1); • Needs assessment focus groups and safety audit participant evaluation forms (8); • Focus group questions and discussion with Advisory Committee members to identify

lessons learned for the Needs Assessment and for Action Plan Implementation (2); • Advisory Committee evaluation form (year 1 and year 2) (2); • Knowledge Sharing Session, “Lessons Learned” participant evaluation forms (2); • Service Providers Workshop participant evaluation forms (2); • Educators Team Training participant pre-‐training and post-‐training survey (2); • Participant evaluation forms for the Education Sessions with youth and parents (4); • Focus group discussion with the Supporters Team (1) • Interviews with community members, project partners and project staff (9); • Review project reports, plans and summaries.

1.3 Evaluation Implementation & Analysis Both qualitative and quantitative information was gathered through a variety of methods and sources described above. The Project Coordinator and Community Facilitator documented the number of participants in all project activities including planning sessions, project workshops, knowledge sharing and Advisory Committee meetings, including gender. All evaluation surveys were administered and collected by the Project Coordinator or the Community Facilitator. Completed forms were put into an envelope at the end of each session, sealed and returned to the evaluator. To ensure confidentiality, all participant evaluations were completed anonymously. No names have been used in the report. The evaluator conducted two focus groups with the Advisory Committee members on lessons learned and administered two Advisory Committee evaluation forms. The evaluator conducted a focus group with the Supporters Team and interviews with community members, partners and project staff. The Supporters Team focus group and the interviews were audio recorded and transcribed by the evaluator. To ensure confidentiality, all records will be destroyed at the completion of the project and no names have been used in the report. The evaluator reviewed and analyzed all the evaluation information collected through evaluation forms, focus groups and interviews. The evaluator also reviewed all project reports, minutes, presentations, resources and materials.


Section 2: Project Implementation & Outputs This section describes various activities to implement the project, needs assessment participation and summarizes the needs assessment outputs. It is organized in the following sections:

2.1 Bringing Partners Together to Support the Project 2.2 Developing a Culturally Relevant Needs Assessment Process & Plan 2.3 Presenting Findings & Identifying Strategies for Change 2.4 Implementing the Action Plan – Community-‐led & Community-‐wide 2.5 Sharing Knowledge & Lessons Learned 2.6 Summary of Participation & Outputs

2.1 Bringing Partners Together to Support the Project The Project Advisory Committee was established in the fall of 2014. The committee met on fifteen (15) occasions between September 2014 and February 2016. Its’ role was to provide overall direction and guidance for the project, support planning the needs assessment and the action plan, and contribute and/or participate as appropriate in project activities. Advisory Committee members included a balance of community members and external partners. A little over one-‐half of the members represented Paqtnkek, while other members represented the AWRCSASA, Mi’kmaq communities and organizations, StFX University, Antigonish RCMP, and project staff as follows:

• Representatives of the Paqtnkek Chief and Council, Band staff, Health Centre staff, Elders, and youth.

• Mi’kmaq communities and organizations including: the NS Native Women’s Association (also a community member); clinical therapist, Pictou Landing and Paqtnkek; RCMP, Eskasoni; Elder/Residential School Survivor, Shubenacadie; and, the Waycobah Family Healing Centre.

• Antigonish Women’s Resource Centre and Sexual Assault Services Association (AWRCSASA) Executive Director and the SANE program Coordinator;

• Antigonish RCMP. • Representatives from St.FX University including: Aboriginal Student Advisor (also a

community member), Coady International Institute Indigenous Women’s Leadership Program, Canada Research Chair of Indigenous Peoples and Sustainable Communities, and StFX students.

• The Project Coordinator and the Community Facilitator. The Canada Research Chair collaborated throughout the project as a sexual violence research consultant.

The support provided by the Paqtnkek Health Centre Director and staff was central to project implementation from providing advice and expertise, office space, support for meetings and workshops, to getting community members engaged.


An important collaboration was with the StFX Service Learning Program at StFX University. Several Service Learning Students assisted with the project over the two years, including researching and developing culturally relevant resources. One student continued to participate and contribute as an intern and focused her honours thesis on the project.

2.2 Developing a Culturally Relevant Needs Assessment Process & Plan This section describes the needs assessment planning process and the key components of the needs assessment plan, including clarifying values that would guide the project and identifying assets that would contribute to project implementation. It also shows the participation in various needs assessment activities, a gender-‐based analysis of focus group findings, and the participation and recommendations from the service provider survey.

2.2.1 Clarifying Values, Assets and Key Components of the Needs Assessment Plan

The Advisory Committee was involved in an all-‐day session to assist with planning the needs assessment in November 2014. Based on suggestions provided at the Advisory Committee planning session, the project staff developed a Needs Assessment Framework and Timeline. What would guide the framework and the project were the following values identified by the Advisory Committee as shown in the diagram below: nurturing, culture, sharing, inclusivity, holism, strength, honouring, safety, capacity, transparency, and pro-‐activeness.

Diagram 1: Values to Guide the Needs Assessment & the Project

A fundamental value to guide the project was the value of nurturing where community members go above and beyond to provide care and nurturing. This value was discussed at length, as it was identified as a community strength to build upon through project activities The Advisory Committee, with the support of project staff, identified assets within the community and external to the community that could be used support the needs assessment and the implementation of an action plan. Generally, the assets include the following:

Nurturing Culture Sharing Inclusivity Holism

Strength Honouring Safety Capacity Transparency Pro-‐activeness


• “People resources” (informal and formal supporters, Band and Health Centre staff, community leadership, and partners);

• Current services available; • Programs that could be offered or adapted (depending on priorities identified); • Potential training opportunities; • Tools and resources that could be used and/or modified for use; • Community facilities available for meetings and programs.

The key components for the needs assessment included the following: • Holding a community forum to introduce the project, to invite community members to

participate in the needs assessment, and to envision a violence-‐free community; • Holding focus groups with specific groups to facilitate identifying specific needs; for

example, men’s wellness, young women, young men, residential school survivors, open community sessions, Chief and Council, Band/Health Centre staff;

• Holding a Community Safety Audit session (a physical and social environmental scan of safety in/outside the community);

• Finding ways to engage both Antigonish and Mi’kmaw service providers external to the community, through an open house and survey;

• Discussing and creating safety standards with participants as part of the needs assessment process;

• Offering support during needs assessment activities. This included developing a support team consisting of informal and formal supporters to assist with providing support for individuals should issues or triggers arise during needs assessment activities;

• Providing resources related such as definitions of violence and consent at the focus groups;

• Holding a community forum to share needs assessment results, including identified strategies for prevention and response, and to ask for community feedback on proposed strategies.

Based on further input by the Advisory Committee, the project staff developed a Focus Group Schedule, Focus Group questions (with some differences for specific focus groups), a demographic survey, an information sheet for participants, consent forms, and a facilitation guide for Focus Group Facilitators. Advisory Committee members were invited to assist with facilitation. Some Advisory Committee members were also invited to be part of the Support Team; for example, Health Centre staff and Elders.

2.2.2 Needs Assessment Participation

The needs assessment was carried out between December 2014 and April 2015. Table 1 shows the participation in various activities with a total of 137 participants, 99 females and 38 males.


Table 1: Total Participation in Needs Assessment Activities

Needs Assessment Activity

# Held # Females # Males Total # Participants

Community Forums 2 47 11 58

Focus Groups 12 39 24 63

Community Safety Audit

1 4 2 6

Service Provider Survey 1 9 1 10

Total 16 99 38 137

2.2.3 Community Forums

The two community forums “book-‐ended” the needs assessment process. The first meeting, “Envisioning a Violence-‐Free Community Together,” had twenty-‐three (23) participants. It focused on introducing the project and facilitating a community discussion about a violence-‐free community. Some of the thoughts for as violence-‐free community shared by community members are included in the box to the right. The second community forum, Creating a Violence-‐Free Community Together, had thirty-‐five (35) participants. It was held to report on the findings of the needs assessment and to ask for specific feedback from the community for response and prevention strategies to inform the action plan (see 2.3 for specific recommendations). It is important to note that there were participants in the community meetings who had not participated in the focus groups.

2.2.4 Focus Group Participation

Twelve focus groups were held throughout February 2015, with a total participation of 63, 39 females and 24 males. Efforts were made to organize focus groups to include those who might be more comfortable talking to each other as well as open sessions. Table 2 (next page) shows the participation in each focus group and total participation.

Thoughts on a Vision for a Violence-‐Free Community

• Being “prosperous” – looking forward and not getting stuck in the past

• Knowing support and resources – self-‐advocacy

• Having opportunities for education for all community members

• Strengthening the relationship between leadership and community

• Caring for all youth • Sharing • Having community gatherings • Forgiveness • Inclusivity • Ability to find voice, talk – united

doesn’t mean there aren’t differences

• Strengthening confidentiality • Decreasing shame, addressing

stigma • Decreasing isolation, talking

together • Thinking seven generations.

Participants in Paqtnkek Community Meeting 2014.


A demographic survey was completed at the beginning of the focus groups and the safety audit session to gain a sense of who was participating in them. Of the 61 participants who completed the survey the age range of participants was as follows: 16-‐21 years of age: 9 participants; 22-‐39 years of age: 21 participants; and, 40+ years of age: 31 participants.

Table 2: Focus Group Participation

Focus Group # Held # Females # Males Total # Participants

Chief and Council 1 3 3 6

Band Staff 3 8 6 14

Health Centre Staff 1 5 2 7

Directors 1 7 0 7

Open Sessions 2 9 0 9

Residential School Survivors

1 1 1 2

Men’s Wellness 1 0 11 11

Young Women 1 6 0 6

Young Men 1 0 1 1

Total 12 39 24 63

2.2.5 Gender-‐Based Analysis of Focus Group Findings

Participants in the focus groups were asked: “What do women need to know/need to have?” and “What men need to know/need to have?” Some of the responses, in which gender was noted were: • Young women are the targets of violence. • Mothering is important. • Fathering is important. • Young men and young women do not know what healthy sexuality is or what healthy

relationships are – violence is normalized. In particular, young men need this knowledge.

• All victims, but particularly male victims have a lot of stigma. • The lines between survivors/victims and perpetrators are not clear. Ultimately, they are

all community members.

2.2.6 Service Provider Survey

Service providers, who are external to the community, were invited to participate in a survey to assist in identifying resources and supports, gaps, and potential strategies for addressing sexual violence. Surveys were distributed through email and an Open House in Paqtnkek in February 2015. Of the twelve surveys distributed, ten (10) were completed and returned. Those who responded included: East Antigonish Education Centre/Academy; Kids First Association; Mi’kmaw Legal Support Network (MLSN); Mi’kmaw Family Healing Centre; Nova


Scotia Legal Aid; RCMP; family physician; Naomi Society; Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) Program, AWRCSASA. The survey identified strengths and challenges in providing services in and for the community. All service providers who participated expressed interest in further training and improving service provision in the community. The general recommendations for service providers were as follows:

• Cultural competency training is needed in recognizing the effects of residential schools, service providers need to practice trauma-‐informed care.

• Referrals between service providers can always be strengthened. • Training on dealing with sexual violence disclosure is needed for service providers.

2.3 Presenting Findings & Identifying Strategies for Change The “Executive Summary Needs Assessment Results” (see Appendix A) outlines the findings and recommendations from the focus groups and the safety audit. This summary shows the key themes that emerged in the findings. These included the following: • Paqtnkek is a nurturing community; there are networks of informal supporters who are

trusted in the community. • There are varying definitions of violence/sexual violence, healthy relationships, healthy

sexuality, consent, and safety that community members brought to the sessions. • There are challenges regarding disclosing and reporting of sexual violence: lateral

violence and victim-‐blaming, lack of confidentiality, re-‐perpetration through systems and services, and the threat of breaking valued familial and social relationships.

• Residential school trauma, intergenerational trauma, and the cycle of violence are presently and widely experienced in the community.

• Racism and colonialism are broader forms of oppression that contextualize violence in the community.

• Culture is significant (language and ceremony) in addressing violence and sexual violence through healing and forgiveness.

• There are changes in how the community connects; for example, community members are online and using social media; they are not mobilizing together as much.

The summary identifies recommendations that emerged from the sessions: general recommendations, community recommendations for prevention, and community recommendations for response. These recommendations were presented to a community forum, Creating a Violence-‐Free Community Together, (noted above 2.2.3). Participants were asked to prioritize the recommendations. At this forum a graphic artist created two colourful visuals, one of the needs assessment results, and the second of the prioritized recommendations made by participants in the community forum.


The prioritized recommendations for response and prevention were as follows:

Response Recommendations • Support for supporters; • Healing and ceremony for the entire community; • Policies and procedures; • Tools and resources to support both response and prevention strategies.

Prevention Recommendations • Education and awareness; • Online safety and social media; • Healthy relationships.

2.4 Implementing the Action Plan – Community-‐led & Community-‐wide The action plan was developed from the response and prevention recommendations from the community forum. One of the key general recommendations from the needs assessment was that the project needs to be community member-‐led and community-‐wide with all community members working together. This recommendation, as well as the values identified prior to the needs assessment, guided the implementation of the action plan. This section describes the key components of the action plan. The key components and primary objective of each are shown in Table 3.

Table 3: Prevention and Response Strategies and Objectives Identified by Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation

Response & Prevention Strategies Objective

1. Healing and Ceremony Providing culturally relevant, revitalizing and safe ways to support healing.

2. Support for Supporters Supporting trusted, respected community members to support other community members.

3. Policies and Procedures Changing policies and practices to promote a violence-‐free, harassment-‐free, safe workplace.

4. External Service Provider Education

Building cultural competency for culturally safe services..

5. Educators Team Building community capacity for ongoing education.

6. Education Sessions Strengthening individual knowledge and skills to prevent sexual violence and promote individual safety.

7. Raising Awareness Reaching groups of people with information and resources to promote broader community awareness.

8. Tools and Resources Developing resources and materials to support learning.


2.4.1 Healing and Ceremony – Providing culturally relevant, revitalizing and safe ways to support healing

The objective of this strategy was to promote collective sharing and dialogue for healing from violence and trauma in culturally relevant, revitalizing and safe ways through traditional and intergenerational gatherings. Activities included Community Healing Circles and Healing Through workshops to engage diverse community members. Different activities were organized to address the multiple ways that people heal and to encourage participation from all community members. Two Community Healing Circles were held in October 2015 and March 2016 with a total of 55 participants, 47 women and 8 men. The Healing Circle was open to all community members over 16 years of age. Care was taken to support participation by community members by engaging two external Mi’kmaq facilitators and Mi’kmaq support people. To promote participation, flyers were distributed throughout the community, band staff were given time off to attend, and childcare and door prizes were offered. Confidentiality forms were signed prior to the circle and smudging was offered. Three “Healing Through” sessions were held as other healthy, alternative/traditional ways to promote healing and health. These included Healing through Storytelling, Healing through Art, and Healing through Music. There was a total of 27 participants in these sessions, 18 women and 9 men.

2.4.2 Support for Supporters – Supporting trusted, respected community members to support other community members

The objective of Support for Supporters was to strengthen the capacity of trusted and respected community members in supporting other community members. This strategy recognized that there were already informal supporters in the community who provided support, but that they needed support and information to continue this activity. As part of the project action plan, informal supporters formed the “Supporters Team.” The team consisted of seven (7) community leaders, five (5) women and two (2) men. They participated in three knowledge and skill building sessions with the Women’s Support Worker and the Clinical Therapist with AWRCSASA and the Clinical Therapist with Paqtnkek. The information and skill building sessions included the following topics: • Listening, confidentiality, legal definitions of consent and the duty to report; • The effects of experiencing sexual violence and the effects of trauma; • Wellness and balance, self-‐care and grounding, common coping strategies, and vicarious

trauma; • Trauma-‐informed practice; • Working with male victims/survivors; • Services and supports available;


• Check-‐ins to strategize around challenges and successes; • Binders with resources were distributed to members.

2.4.3 Policies and Procedures – Changing policies and practices to promote a violence-‐free, harassment-‐free, safe workplace

The objective of this strategy was to advocate for policy and procedure changes that address violence and harassment for band staff in order to promote a violence-‐free, harassment-‐free, safe workplace. Activities involved a review of Paqtnkek’s policies and procedures related to harassment and sexual harassment. Seven (7) surrounding Mi’kmaq communities were invited to participate. The intent was to learn from each other to create strong policies and promising practices to address sexual violence. Four (4) of the seven (7) communities provided sections or their entire personnel policies with one (1) community requesting a copy of the report completed through this project to build their own report. The student intern, with support by project staff, undertook the above research and developed a “Resource Report, which was completed in February 2016. The report is going forward to Chief and Council. It is anticipated that there will be a presentation with specific recommendations to Chief and Council followed by a workshop with the community. Then, the next steps would be to develop and implement policies and procedures, including any training required. There were challenges with communication being primarily over email and telephone. A suggestion was that face to face conversations within and among communities would have strengthened the process to develop the report. Also, while the original intent was to have a task group work on the policies and procedures, the report ended up being put together primarily by one individual, with the support and guidance from others. It was felt that the process and the report would have been strengthened if developing the report and the recommendations was more of a collaborative process.

2.4.4 Service Providers Education – Building cultural competency for culturally safe services

In September 2015, two sessions were organized for external service providers to provide an opportunity to learn more about residential schools, colonialism and intergenerational trauma; and, trauma-‐informed, culturally safe, and holistic practice. These sessions provided spaces for understanding and reconciliation between community members and Indigenous and non-‐Indigenous service providers. This was an opportunity to strengthen the capacity of service providers to work in ways that honour community members’ experiences of violence and trauma and their collective histories of violence and trauma as Indigenous peoples. A total of forty-‐four (44) service providers attended the two sessions. This included two service providers who work in the Paqtnkek Health Centre, but are not Paqtnkek Band Members nor Mi’kmaq. A power-‐point presentation was researched and presented by the


summer intern. Another session was offered for Women’s Centres Connect, the Nova Scotia Association of Women’s Centres with twenty-‐four (24) participants.

2.4.5 Educators Team – Building community capacity for ongoing education

The objective of this strategy was to train a team of educators who would facilitate educational sessions on various topics for youth, parents and families. The original intent was to recruit interested community members to be part of the Educators Team. The plan was that they would would participate in a training workshop to learn about the educational modules and work together to deliver the educational sessions for youth in Grades 5, 6 to 8 and 9 to 12, as well as to parents. They would be offered a per diem for participation and facilitation. There were call-‐outs for facilitators; however, only a small number showed an interest in participating. A one-‐day training event for facilitators was held in November 2015. The training workshop provided a background on the issues followed by a review and revision of the draft workshop curricula developed for four different workshops: for youth in Grade 5, Grades 6-‐8, Grades 9-‐12, and one for parents. Two people attended the facilitator training session outside of the Project Coordinator and Community Facilitator. As pointed out by the project staff in their “Implementation Report,” (March 2016), time limitations of the project did not allow for the community to take on this difficult work as the project was only able to “open the door” to issues of sexual violence. For some community members the “opened door” was the first time they were able to think about this sort of violence as being highly normalized. Further the visible position of being on the team could open community members up to scrutiny and criticism. For these reasons, the Project Coordinator and the Community Facilitator led all the education sessions.

2.4.6 Education – Strengthening individual knowledge and skills to prevent sexual violence and promote individual safety

The overall objective of this strategy was to increase an individual’s knowledge and skills related to healthy relationships, consent, sexuality, sexual violence, and cybersafety for youth and for parents. An additional topic for parents included how to talk to their children about these topics. Curriculum for the workshops was developed during the summer of 2015 with the support of a summer student. The workshops incorporated the Seven Sacred Teachings as an opportunity for youth to understand traditional values and beliefs and how they can use these teachings to better themselves and their relationships. Three pilot educational sessions were held for youth (Grades 5-‐8 and summer students in Grades 9-‐12 and older). Two sessions on Healthy Relationships and Consent and Cybersafety were held for youth in Grades 5-‐8. Participation in these sessions is shown in Table 4.


Based on these sessions and input from the Educators Team training workshop, the curricula were revised. Materials and handouts were prepared for each age-‐group. Sessions were offered in January and February 2015 for Grades 5, Grades 6-‐8, Grades 9-‐12 and for parents. The session for parents was held first so that parents would have an idea of what would be discussed and distributed to their children. After the session, the materials for the youth workshops were distributed to those who attended. Participation in the sessions is shown in Table 4.

Table 4: Participation in Community Education Sessions for Youth & Parents

Sessions Who Attended # of Sessions # Female # Male Total #

Pilot Sessions: Summer 2015

Summer Student Staff (Grades 9-‐12)

1 10 5 15

Grades 5-‐8 2 15 15 30

Sessions offered January & February 2016

Parents 1 5 2 7

Grade 5 2 1 7 8

Grades 6-‐8 2 3 5 8

Grades 9-‐12 2 0 0 0

Total 10 34 34 68

2.4.7 Raising Awareness about Sexual Violence – Reaching groups of people with information and resources to promote broader awareness.

The intent of this strategy is to raise general awareness about sexual violence and resources and supports available. This included social media, magnets, videos, newspaper articles, events and campaigns, and participation in meetings to share information.

• Social Media. A project Facebook page was developed to promote project activities and encourage sharing of resources on sexual violence against Aboriginal women. (https://www.facebook.com/PaqtnkekProject). A project page was also developed on the AWRCSASA website (http://awrcsasa.ca).

• Magnets. Magnets were designed to encourage supportive and nurturing behavior in the community, particularly in the disclosure of sexual violence. A total of 250 magnets were produced and distributed. The magnets were distributed to all the households in Paqtnkek.

• Healing Video A video of health centre staff providing their thoughts on healing was filmed and posted on youtube (https://youtu.be/Jw7pafZ3USg). There were five (5) participants in the video and 87 views online at the time of writing this report.

• Respect Campaign & Video. A “Think Respect” Campaign was developed for the Mi’kmaw


Summer Games in Millbrook Mi’kmaw Community. The idea was adapted from Violence Prevention Labrador’s Respect Campaign for the Winter Games. Project staff and summer students created a logo for t-‐shirts for the Paqtnkek team. At the games, they set up an information table, provided buttons, and a handout on respect. They also filmed a video on “respect.” For the video, they asked people to think about respect – what that might mean in sports and what it might mean in relationships. The video was posted on youtube (https://youtu.be/BZB_8kgIC8E). Eighty-‐nine (89) t-‐shirts were given away and fourteen (14) people were filmed. To date there have been 119 views of the film online.

• Election Campaign Video. During the election campaign, the project staff worked on getting feedback from candidates for Chief and Council on what they would do to address sexual violence if elected. Four (4) candidates participated and their thoughts in written posts and on video were shared on the project’s Facebook page.

• Newspaper Articles. The project was promoted through several articles in the Mi’kmaq Maliseet Nation News (4 articles) and the Antigonish newspaper, the Casket.

• Organizing and Participating in Awareness Events. Worked with other partners to organize and participate in several awareness events related to violence against women as follows: − Participated in the Take Back the Night march. Project staff planned a poster-‐making

event and six (6) community members participated. Twenty (20) community members participated in the march (over 200 participated in the march).

− Organized a Sisters in Spirit event in the community to march in honour of missing and murdered Aboriginal women and to share matriarchal traditions with one another. About 80 Paqtnkek community members and friends were in attendance. The Confederacy of Mainland Mi’kmaq supported the event through funding for Mi’kmaq History Month.

− Organized a call to action in the community for the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women December 6.

− Organized several events for International Women’s Week that involved community members from Paqtnkek. One of these was a Reconciliation Panel and Community Discussion on the topic of community healing and reconciliation between Indigenous and non-‐Indigenous peoples with 10 participants from Paqtnkek including women speaking and moderating the panel. The second was a Storytelling Project. Project staff collected nominations for Paqtnkek women have shown creativity, leadership, compassion, and dedication to their community and to make the world a better place. Thirteen (13) stories were posted on the Facebook Page.

• Participation in meetings to share information: Sexual Violence Roundtable; Paqtnkek Health Centre’s Interagency Meetings, Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Pre-‐Inquiry, Sexual Violence Strategy Community Support Network, and the Antigonish Sexual Assault Response Team (ASART).


2.4.8 Tools and Resources – Developing tools and resources to support learning.

Tools and resources were another component of the response and prevention strategy. The project staff, summer students and the student intern researched and developed presentations, tools and resources to support learning for various activities. These included: the Supporters Team materials and resources; the Community Healing Circle confidentiality form; the External Service Providers Presentation; the Policies and Procedures Resource Report; Curriculum for the Community Education Sessions the Community Educator’s Team training; Community Education Sessions handouts; and the Lessons Learned presentations.

2.4.9 Final Community Meeting

A final community forum in March 2016 to review the work completed over the two years and to show appreciation of the community’s support of it. Eighty (80) community members participated in this forum. Attendees participated in an activity to identify next steps to address sexual violence – what needs to continue? what needs to stop? what needs to start? The Project Coordinator reported on the feedback as follows:

• Stop? Gossip, bullying, lateral violence; normalization of violence; letting things “slip – follow through needed; drugs.

• Start? Intervention training; policies and procedures; women’s support; men’s support; LGBTQ education; Inspire for young men; more counsellors and support workers.

• Continue? Inspire for young women; healing circles; youth and parent education; consent education – The Project!

2.5 Sharing Knowledge & Lessons Learned An important aspect of the project was to share project results and lessons learned within the community and, externally, with the network of partners and First Nation communities. This sharing was done both informally and formally throughout the project through community meetings, information sharing, presentations, and workshops. As noted earlier, two community forums were held to introduce community members to the project and to report on the needs assessment results, as well as to prioritize recommended strategies for the action plan. Advisory Committee members shared information about the project with their communities and with other communities, in particular Eskasoni, Waycobah and Bear River. Advisory Committee members and project staff shared information at various meetings they attended and posted on Facebook. A number of the project awareness activities provided an opportunity to share information about the project including the Think Respect Campaign, Facebook Page, producing and sharing videos online, and presentations to various groups. The policies and procedures review, which invited several communities to be involved with the project, was another way of sharing information about a specific aspect of the project.


Six presentations about the project were made to the following organizations and conferences: • Nova Scotia Native Women’s Annual General Assembly (20 women); • Atlantic Policy Congress (APC) Health Conference (14 participants, 10 women/4 men); • Violence Prevention Labrador Annual General Meeting (20 participants. 18 females/2

males); • the Global Change Leaders at the Coady International Institute (20 women); • Social Worker Peer Consultation Group (10 participants, 8 women/2 men), • Youth Activism Conference (15 participants, 11 women/4 men).

Another, more formal way of sharing information was through Lessons Learned Workshops. Two Lessons Learned Workshops were organized to share information about the project with Mi’kmaq communities and other interested organizations. The first workshop, Lessons Learned Part 1: Needs Assessment was delivered in June 2015 with 13 participants, 12 women and 1 man. The second workshop, Lessons Learned Part 2: Action Plan Implementation was scheduled for March 21, 2016 and was cancelled due to a storm. To support the Lessons Learned workshops, the External Evaluator facilitated a discussion with the Advisory Committee at the completion of the needs assessment process and at the end of the project. Committee members were asked what worked well and what were the challenges with the needs assessment and with action plan implementation. The results were developed into a “Lessons Learned” documents for distribution at the workshops. These lessons learned have also been incorporated throughout the evaluation report.

2.6 Summary of Project Outputs & Participation in Project Activities Table 5 (next page) provides a summary of project outputs (products or activities) and a summary of participation for each of the project components: Partnerships and Collaboration, Needs Assessment, Implementation of Strategies, and Sharing Knowledge and Lessons Learned. For each of these components, the major initiatives are shown. For each initiative, column 1 shows the number of activities, the number of female and male participants (columns 3 and 4) and the total individual participation in activities. The far column shows the total participation for each of the project components. Participation in the project activities was 588, 453 females and 135 males, except for awareness activities. Participation in awareness activities was 666, which included 250 magnets distributed to all households in Paqtnkek, 89 t-‐shirts distributed as part of the Think Respect campaign, and participation in videos and awareness events. Total participation in project activities was 1,254.


Table 5 Summary of Project Activities/Outputs and Participation

Initiatives # of Activities/ Outputs

# of Female

Participants

# of Male

Participants

Total Individual

Participation

Total Participation Strategies

Partnerships and Collaboration 47

Advisory Committee: Meetings (includes project staff)

15 25 4 29

Student Engagement 3 3 3

External Facilitators & Supports -‐-‐ 8 7 15

Needs Assessment 137

Community Forums 2 47 11 58

Focus Groups 12 39 24 63

Community Safety Audit 1 4 2 6

Service Provider Survey 1 9 1 10

Strategy Implementation 292

Healing Circles 2 47 8 55

Healing Through Workshops 3 18 9 27

Supporters Team Skill Building and Support Sessions

3 5 2 7

Policies and Procedures Task Group 1 7 1 8

External Service Provider Education 3 42 2 44

Educators Team Training 1 2 1 3

Education Sessions 10 34 34 68

Final Community Forum 1 64 16 80

Tools &Resources 14 ** **

Raising Awareness (events, Respect campaign, magnets, videos, etc.) Online Participation (videos)

17 ** ** 461

205

666

Sharing Knowledge & Lessons Learned (formal)

7 99 13 112 112

Total 96 453* 135* 1,254 1,254

**There is no gender breakdown for Raising Awareness Activities. Also, no participation for Tools and Resources as these supported other activities or the outcome such as the Polices and Procedures Resource.


3.0 Outcomes: Partnerships & Collaboration This section describes the outcomes of involving project partners through an Advisory Committee and their reflection on the effectiveness of their collaboration and participation in the project. The four key outcomes described in this section are:

3.1 An Appreciation for Diverse Knowledge & Perspectives of Partners within a Community-‐led Approach Strengthened the Project

3.2 Partnerships & Collaboration Strengthened Relationships and Trust

3.3 Engaged & Informed Advisory Committee Members

3.4 Overall Satisfaction with Involvement in and Contribution to the Project Advisory Committee members had several opportunities to assess project partnerships and collaboration, their inclusion in planning culturally relevant processes, their understanding of the project and project findings, as well as their participation overall. These opportunities included individual reflection and group discussion as follows:

• An individual evaluation form completed after an all-‐day planning session to develop the needs assessment framework in November 2014. Members were asked to rate whether the session was useful on a scale of 1 to 5 with 1 being “strongly disagree” and 5 being “strongly agree.” The form also asked open ended questions and provided an opportunity for comments.

• Two Individual evaluation forms completed after the needs assessment was completed in April 2015 and at the end of the project on February 2016. The forms asked them to rate their understanding of the following: roles and partnerships; project activities and outcomes; cultural relevancy; and participation. They were asked to rate their assessment of the above on a scale of 1 to 6 with 1 being “strongly disagree” and 6 being “strongly agree.” The form also asked open-‐ended questions and provided an opportunity for comments.

• Two group discussions to identify lessons learned facilitated by the evaluator at the completion of the needs assessment (April 2015) and the completion of the action plan implementation (February 2016). At these sessions Advisory Committee members offered their collective analysis of “what worked well,” and “challenges” related to project partnerships, community engagement, and implementation of the needs assessment and the action plan.

3.1 An Appreciation for the Diverse Knowledge & Perspectives of Partners within a Community-‐led Approach Strengthened the Project

The Advisory Committee included a balance of Paqtnkek community members and external partners from Mi’kmaq communities and organizations, the Antigonish Women’s Resource Centre and Sexual Assault Services Association (AWRCSASA), StFX University, and the RCMP. Over the life of the project, an appreciation developed for the diverse experiences and perspectives of the partners, while understanding that the project would be community-‐


based and community-‐led. In addition to valuing a community-‐based approach, all Advisory Committee members were aware of the need to be respectful of Mi’kmaq values and traditions as pointed out by this Advisory Committee member:

I think all the participants were cognizant of the need to be respectful of Mi’kmaq rights and traditions. There were efforts made to engage with Elder knowledge and that knowledge translation was respectful.

One of the first planning activities for the Advisory Committee was an all-‐day session to plan the needs assessment. Crucial to this planning exercise was the sharing of community values that would guide the project, what the community wanted to learn from the needs assessment, and how to best engage the community in the needs assessment process. This was followed by a discussion of the assets available to support the process, both internal and external resources. This had the effect of building an understanding of what all the partners could contribute to the project; while at the same time understanding that it was the community-‐based process and that only community engagement that would clarify the issues and identify strategies that would work best for the community. When asked what they appreciated about the planning session, members commented on the open dialogue, learning, knowledge sharing, and commitment of the Advisory Committee members to the project as illustrated in these comments: • Everyone’s great ideas and openness to

talk about the issues; • Candid input and participation; • Open dialogue; • Learning experience; • The productive dialogue – keep the

knowledge sharing flowing; • Support for the project; • The openness of all present. It was

awesome to learn from those around the table and really focus on the needs assessment.

During the Advisory Committees group discussion of lessons learned related to the needs assessment implementation (April 2015), committee members agreed that one of the project strengths was that the Advisory Committee reflected the community. The following is a compilation of their comments that was included in the “Lessons Learned” document:

• It is important to have an engaged Advisory Committee that is reflective of the community. Community members know best how to engage the community, know what works and what doesn’t work, and can advise and support cultural relevancy. Also, they want to see change; therefore, they are committed to seeing the project move forward.

Everyone’s great ideas and openness to talk about the issues

The productive dialogue – keep the knowledge sharing flowing

Advisory Committee Members


At the same time, members pointed out that having a balance of community members and “outside” resources was very helpful and enabled the opportunity to share different ideas and perspectives and to access networks and resources that can support the project as follows: • The ability to include those with expertise and experience in addressing sexual

violence; for example, the Waycobah Family Healing Centre, the women’s centre’s services, and the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) program);

• Opportunities to share different ideas and perspectives which added to the richness of discussion;

• Diversity of access to networks and resources; • The ability to articulate how the needs assessment should move forward; • To be a “sounding board” and support for the Project Coordinator and Community

Facilitator; • Ongoing learning from each other. Everyone learned a lot!

One Advisory Committee member described this as a balance of non-‐Indigenous knowledge with Indigenous ways of knowing and being.

I think having an Advisory Committee that reflects the community and then having people external to the community was really important. Within the methodology of the project, there was an attempt to balance non-‐Indigenous knowledge and Indigenous ways of knowing and being, and I think there was real learning. People learned from each other and how to navigate those spaces when there was perceived tensions between that. … There was a shared effort to create that balance.

In their final group reflection at the end of the project in February 2016, Advisory Committee members pointed out again that having a diverse membership worked very well – a membership that included women, men and a balance of community members and external partners. They re-‐iterated several of the above points and added that having a diverse membership created opportunities for other communities to get involved and to share resources and information. One member pointed out that the cross-‐cultural engagement was a key strength of the project with diverse perspectives well mediated through collaborative and participatory processes as follows:

Diverse people with diverse experiences and agendas were well mediated through the collaborative and participatory process. Great care was taken to ensure that indigenous voices and perspectives were foregrounded and respected.

There was an attempt to balance non-‐Indigenous knowledge and Indigenous ways of knowing and being, and I think there was real learning

Advisory Committee Member


The Advisory Committee meetings also created spaces for joint learning and discussion on difficult topics. At their final group reflection, members pointed to three challenging topics, which remain areas for the community to continue to address: (a) the normalization of sexual violence in the community and how to work together to address this issue; (b) the impact of intergenerational trauma 4; and (c) how to work with and support perpetrators, some of whom who may also be survivors of sexual violence. This latter challenge emerged through the needs assessment. The Project Coordinator reported that the exploration of this issue was important (Project Implementation Report, 2016). She pointed out this is complex because the lines between survivor and perpetrator are not always exclusive, given the “historical context of colonialism and residential schools and the current context of intergenerational cycles of trauma and practices of policing and child protection services resulting in the breakup and the threat of breakup of families.” The challenge is how to address the support and safety needs of survivors, particularly in the dominant context of harmful victim-‐blaming messages, while acknowledging the complexities of violence and communities. Advisory Committee members’ comments follow:

It was important to be able to talk openly about the normalization of sexual violence and how members can work together to implement strategies to address and not accept that normalization. Intergenerational trauma was new discussion for the community and there is no venue to discuss this. This is linked to mental wellness and a challenge is that there is no sustainable funding for mental wellness. How do we support every aspect of the issue, including how to work with and support perpetrators?

3.2 Partnerships & Collaboration Strengthened Relationships & Built Trust It is evident from the feedback from Advisory Committee members that collaboration with external organizations has strengthened relationships and built trust, knowing that they value the community.

At the end of the needs assessment (April 2015) and at the end of the project (February 2016), Advisory Committee members were asked on the evaluation form if positive partnerships had formed or strengthened. On both occasions all members (100%), who completed the evaluation form, indicated they “agree” or “strongly agree” that positive partnerships had formed or strengthened. They particularly mentioned the relationship between the women’s centre, the health centre and other partners as follows:

In terms of overall structure, the collaborative nature of the project has been very significant (Women’s Centre and Health Centre and other partners).

4 “A collective complex trauma inflicted on a group of people who share a specific group identification or affiliation – ethnicity, nationality and religions affiliations. It is the legacy of numerous traumatic events a community experiences over generations and encompassing the psychological and social responses to such events” (Evans-‐Campbell, 2008). From the presentation prepared for external service providers Sept. 2015.


I feel like the women’s centre is part of Paqtnkek through building a level of comfort and trust with each other.

The community identified a need and there was a terrifically positive response from the Antigonish Women’s Centre and the team they created.

In their final group reflection in February 2016, Advisory Committee members discussed what worked well with project partnerships. One of the key points from that discussion was that, for Paqtnkek, collaboration had helped to build and strengthen relationships and trust with external organizations and know that they value the community. The other key points the made in some ways follow from these strengthened relationships: • Partnerships with external organizations and other Mi’kmaq communities provided

opportunities to access external support mechanisms. This has built a better understanding within the community of external supports available to them.

• In turn, external partners understand the community better and are more accessible by community members. It is less intimidating to reach out.

• Partnerships provided opportunities for reciprocal engagement, to expand the network, and to support collaboration on other initiatives.

• Through information sharing by partners, other communities have become aware of the project.

Another important collaboration was having one staff person external to the community who had worked for the AWRCSASA on other projects working in collaboration with a staff person from the community. One was more familiar with and able to access external supports and resources, while the other knew the community well and could reach out to community members. Their final comments on this topic was that collaboration helped to build capacity on many levels. The following are some of the collaborative activities that helped to build individual knowledge and skills and community capacity respond to and prevent violence:

• Provided opportunities for students to engage in research and build their understanding and individual capacity. A number of presentations, resources (including the policies and procedures report), and educational curriculum were developed by students with the support of the Project Coordinator, the Community Facilitator, Paqtnkek Health Centre Director and the Canadian Research Chair of Indigenous Peoples and Sustainable Communities StFX University. These resources will remain in the community for future use.

In terms of overall structure, the collaborative nature of the project has been very significant (Women’s Centre and Health Centre and other partners).



• The Support Worker, Clinical Therapist, and SANE Coordinator from the AWRCSASA assisted with resources and support for the needs assessment support team and with knowledge and skill building sessions and support for the Supporters Team. This strengthened the capacity to provide support and information for community members.

• The AWRCSASA SANE Coordinator and RCMP members assisted with co-‐facilitation of educational workshops as part of the action plan implementation.

• Partners on the Advisory Committee from other Mi’kmaq communities helped to facilitate focus group sessions for men and for residential school survivors.

3.3 Engaged & Informed Advisory Committee Members Another outcome is that Advisory Committee members were actively engaged and felt informed about project activities and findings. This was accomplished through their inclusion in planning culturally relevant processes, through regular reporting of project activities and findings, and opportunities to reflect on what they had learned. Using participatory processes, such as the including partners in the discussion of the needs assessment framework and action plan implementation enabled all partners to have a better understanding of how the project would unfold and where they could best contribute their knowledge and skills. It also enabled community members on the Advisory Committee to speak from their experience and to feel confident that activities would be relevant and culturally appropriate for their community. Discussion of the lessons learned enabled all partners to reflect collectively on their experience and to build on what each other had learned through the project. The Advisory Committee members had an opportunity to provide feedback on their inclusion in planning culturally relevant processes after an all-‐day planning session to develop the needs assessment framework in November 2014. Of the thirteen (13) members who participated, 11 or 85% completed the evaluation form. Their responses below indicate that most members who responded (“respondents”) felt the session was useful in planning the needs assessment. The topic where there was less agreement was how to best involve and engage community members in the needs assessment process. • Ten (10) or 91% indicated the “agree” or “strongly agree” that the session identified

cultural beliefs and values that will inform project processes and evaluation. • Eleven (11) or 100% reported said they “agree” or “strongly agree” that the session

identified what the community wanted to learn/find out from the needs assessment. • Ten (10) or 91% said they “agree” or “strongly agree” that the session identified

services, supports and resources currently available for girls and women. • Eleven (11) or 100% said they “agree” or “strongly agree” that the session identified

what is needed to support girls and women who experience sexual violence.


• Eleven (11) or 100% indicated they “agree” or “strongly agree” that the session identified ways to best gather information for the needs assessment.

• Only one (1) or 9% said they “agree” that the session identified ways to involve and engage different groups (of community members), while 8 or 73% said they were “neutral,” and 2 or 18% said they “disagree.”

The concern about how to best engage community members was picked up by the project staff and the Paqtnkek Health Centre Director, who held another meeting to determine how to create safe spaces so that community members would feel comfortable to participate. As a result, several processes were added to support community engagement. In April 2015, at the completion of the needs assessment, Advisory Committee members had opportunity to reflect on whether they felt well informed of project activities and outcomes, their inclusion in planning, and the cultural relevance of the needs assessment framework. Nine (9) of 14 members completed the evaluation form. • All 9 or 100% of respondents indicated they “agree” or “strongly agree” they felt well

informed of project activities and outcomes to date. • Six (6) or 66% of respondents indicated they “agree” or “strongly agree” they have

been included in project planning, while 3 of 9 said they “somewhat agree.” • Eight (8) or 89% of respondents said they “agree” or “strongly agree” they are satisfied

that the needs assessment framework was culturally relevant, while 1 of 9 respondents said “somewhat agree.”

They provided the following comments on these topics:

The planning process has been inclusive and effective. It is important that the initiative is community driven and that the direction lies with Paqtnkek community. Needs assessment activities were done with an Elder and opening and closing prayer. There was some Mi’kmaq language used in the sessions. Smudge made available in sessions was very helpful. I have gotten very clear indication of what the community needs are in terms of prevention and response. Reporting on focus groups and community engagement has been informative and helpful in thinking about next steps.

At the end of the project, Advisory Committee members had another opportunity to reflect on whether they felt well informed and on the implementation of strategies. All thirteen (13) members at the meeting completed the evaluation form. It is evident form their responses that they felt well informed and were satisfied that the implementation of strategies had been culturally relevant.


• All 13 or 100% of respondents reported they “agree” or “strongly agree” they felt well informed of project activities and outcomes to date.

• All 13 or 100% of respondents indicated that they they “agree” or “strongly agree” they had increased understanding of strategies to improve response to and prevention of sexual violence in Paqtnkek.

• Twelve (12) or 92% of respondents said they “agree” or “strongly agree” they are satisfied that the implementation of strategies has been culturally relevant, while 1 of 13 respondents said “somewhat agree.”

In their final reflection on lessons learned and in evaluation interviews, Advisory Committee members agreed that what helped to engage members were frequent meetings, good communication between meetings, and participation by partners in meetings. As well, they pointed out that everyone listened and took the project seriously, and the fluidity of engagement was culturally respectful as reflected in these comments by Advisory Committee members:

Everyone listened and took the project seriously.

The fluidity of the engagement of the table was not disruptive to the process and that is culturally respectful. So people would come into the project and leave the project and come into the project. And that for some people could be a problem, but for that team, there was no problem. People understood that life is like that.

Having regular meetings have been important to keeping a space where partnerships can develop and knowledge to be shared.

3.4 Satisfaction with Involvement in & Contribution to the Project In individual surveys at the end of the needs assessment and at the end of the project, Advisory Committee members were asked to rate the following: feel supported to talk about my ideas and experiences; feel valued for my participation and contribution; and overall satisfaction with my involvement in the project. Overall, the response was positive. The responses for two surveys were quite similar which indicates a general positive feeling for the duration of the project. The responses provided at the end of the project are reported here as their final reflection. Thirteen (13) members completed the evaluation form. • Eleven (11) or 85% of respondents indicated they “agree” or “strongly agree” that they

feel supported to talk about their ideas and experience; 2 of 13 or 15% said they “somewhat agree.”

Everyone listened and took the project seriously.

The fluidity of the engagement of the table was not disruptive to the process and that is culturally respectful

Advisory Committee Members


• Twelve (12) or 93% of respondents indicated they “agree” or “strongly agree” that they feel valued for their participation and contribution; one (1) of 13 or 7% said they “somewhat agree.”

• All 13 or 100% of respondents indicated they “agree” or “strongly agree” that they were satisfied overall with their involvement in the project.

Some of their comments on what they appreciated about their involvement follow: I appreciated the steps and process the project has taken and I feel proud to be part of something so unique and important. Seeing the project unfold and the community taking ownership of planning and visioning. This has been a very rich and valuable experience on many levels and I hope plans to carry the work forward will be prioritized.

As a band representative, I feel it’s extremely important for the community to feel safe and such awareness and participation have been very helpful in overall understanding.

Great learning between Indigenous and non-‐Indigenous peoples was present and strengthened the project.

Learning from all the members – committed individuals who are motivated to work together for change.

Another indicator of satisfaction with their involvement is that members identified actions that they would be willing to take to continue this work in Paqtnkek and/or to share what has been learned with their networks and Mi’kmaq communities.

Whatever happens with (future) funding, I will continue to support the work of the project and community through volunteering my time and spreading the about this project to others. Move forward with the policy and procedures. I will continue to work in partnership and to support the sexual violence response and prevention initiatives carried out by Paqtnkek. Being involved in community workshops or education sessions on preventing sexual violence. Educating our youth and younger population. I have been sharing the information of the framework and the process with other communities during meetings and workshops, like Bear River, Acadia/Glooscap, and Eskasoni. It is my intention to share this project and its lessons with other Indigenous communities in Nova Scotia and abroad.

I will continue to work with the community in other projects bringing the lessons learned into those other activities. I will participate in future activities related to the project goals.

I appreciated the steps and process the project has taken and I feel proud to be part of something so unique and important.



4.0 Outcomes: Community Engagement & Dialogue on Sexual Violence

The outcomes related to community engagement are described in the following three sections:

4.1 Engaged Community Members throughout the Project 4.2 Opened up the Dialogue on Sexual Violence 4.3 Identified Needs, Challenges & What is Needed for Response & Prevention

4.1 Engaged Community Members throughout the Project While the participation numbers themselves speak to the engagement by community members in the project (Section 2.7), the Advisory Committee took time to reflect on the community engagement, individually and collectively, and offered their analysis of what worked well to engage community members. The key points in this reflection are described in this section.

The overall approach of a community-‐led, community-‐based project that was culturally respectful supported community members to be engaged. Having the support of Chief and Council, Elders, Band staff and Health Centre staff, as well as the informal support network helped to engage others. Their collaboration, involvement and communication with community members in project activities was a signal to the community that this was being taken seriously. It was also important to have a community facilitator who knew the community and who could reach out to involve community members. Grounding activities in culture and ceremony and including the Seven Traditional Teachings into educational sessions was important to meaningful participation. Another factor that contributed to community engagement was that participation was open, inclusive, and safe. There wasn’t anything that was exclusive and care was taken to provide safe spaces for community members to be involved.

If you have people sharing and it is comfortable sharing in a setting where they are able to talk about what they have seen in the community. It was quite amazing to be honest to be part of that.

There was incredible capacity building within the community around organizing and mobilizing around very sensitive issues that would normally be absolutely silenced ignored or suppressed within the community. They don’t talk openly about violence or sexual violence generally. But, to see the upsurge in dialogue around those sensitive topics, indicates to me that the team did a really good job of creating a safe space.

If you have people sharing and it is comfortable sharing in a setting where they are able to talk about what they have seen in the community, it was quite amazing to be honest to be part of that.

Focus Group Facilitator


Community meetings were planned as opportunities for community members to give their feedback and input for the next stage. The visuals developed by the graphic artist at the second community meeting were very powerful as participants could literally see the priorities emerging as they were being discussed. Then, the action plan incorporated and implemented those priorities. Furthermore, the visuals were then used throughout the project which reinforced to community members that their input was important. Community members could see through this process that their participation mattered and that the project implemented what community members said was needed. It is not surprising that participation in community meetings continually increased from 23 participants at the first meeting, to 35 participants at the second meeting, to 80 participants at the final one.

Just seeing how many people came and people who hadn’t come to focus groups were there and they were still engaging in conversations.

Multiple strategies engaged different people depending on their level of comfort and needs. For example, in the needs assessment phase, some community members only attended the focus groups and some only attended the community meetings. Similarly, in the action plan implementation the healing circle and the educational sessions engaged different people and different age groups. Another Advisory Committee member offered a story about one community member who originally came for the I-‐pad draw, but became engaged in the process.

There were a lot of men there. One man said, I only came for the I-‐pad draw and this is really interesting and I am getting a lot out of this. And you could see him engaging in his group.

As pointed out above, offering incentives (door prizes and draws) and food was important for engaging members. As one Advisory Committee member put it: We were asking the community to participate and contribute their thoughts, ideas and stories so we offered them something in return. Use of social media, production of videos and awareness events and campaigns were additional activities that helped to engage community members and to start conversations about the issue as noted in these comments:

Lots of things emerged that engaged the community and created more conversations. So, for the summer games and for the elections, we tried to make sure we were part of the conversation and kept up the awareness of the project and showed it to the community in a different way. When we were doing the video on healing with the health centre staff, people didn’t think of our project that way. (We were) trying to communicate about sexual violence in ways that spoke more to community members.

Just seeing how many people came and people who hadn’t come to focus groups were there and they were still engaging in conversations. Community Member and Advisory

Committee Member


4.2 Opened up the Dialogue on Sexual Violence A significant project outcome was that the it opened up the dialogue related to sexual violence and made it safe to talk about it. This was evident in the evaluations of the needs assessment focus groups and through interviews conducted at the end of the project. When asked what was helpful about the needs assessment focus group, participants talked about having the courage to speak out, open dialogue, the sharing and interaction with others, people’s input and ideas, and opportunities to learn. The following are some of the comments provided by both females and males:

Being able to or to have the courage to talk (female); Talking about the issues that relate to our community (male); People’s ideas and response to each other’s ideas (female); Good conversation; from the heart (male); The interaction amongst us as a group and the understanding that we are not alone and we can heal in ways that help us all (female); Open and honesty; learning (male); People sharing their stories of what happened to them and their ways of dealing (with it) (female); Informed participants (male).

A number of processes contributed to individuals being able to open up and share in the focus groups. These were identified by participants and by facilitators of the sessions. These included: • Having a support team to support individuals during the focus group if they needed

support. It was also important that the support team included a balance of community members and external supporters which offered participants a choice of who to talk with if they needed support.

• Having an Elder present who opened and closed each session with a prayer; • Confidentiality agreements that all participants signed and then respecting

confidentiality after the sessions; • Well prepared facilitators; and, • The information provided.

The following comments by participants indicate that these processes worked well for them: Having a counsellor available (female); Support (male);

Being able to have the courage to talk (female)

Good conversation; from the heart (male).

Community Members


I like the way this session was facilitated. It provided an excellent venue to share and talk and to suggest solutions. It was great to have an Elder present as well (male); The consent and sexual assault legal definitions were great resources (female); Very informative and helpful (male).

Facilitators of the sessions offered additional factors that contributed to the process. One noted that starting the focus groups off with a positive statement that “Paqtnkek is a nurturing community” helped to set the tone for the sessions and reminded participants that the community takes care of one another. Another pointed out that having the questions and guidelines for discussion enabled participants to open up and talk around the questions or the information presented. One of the facilitators for the men’s focus group indicated that having good rapport and trust enabled the men to open up and talk about the issue. They shared their observations from the needs assessment process as follows:

We do have a nurturing community. The community engagement was more about the process than the end result. Humour is both a strength/factor of resilience, but can also be an obstacle to talking seriously about violence. Support was modelled in the group. People said they weren’t ready to talk about it but they came and talked about it. People were hesitant to take part, but in the end were wanting to start working on the solutions. Solutions across the groups were similar. The community is “on the same page.” The men’s group was pretty powerful for the men involved.

In evaluation interviews with community members and partners, several mentioned that what was important about this project and what difference it made was that it started the dialogue on an issue that is not talked about. The following comments speak to the importance of this outcome.

Started the dialogue.

The biggest thing is bringing the community together to first begin talking about the issue within the community, and to have support from one another within that discussion.

I see the beginning stages … It started a ball rolling. It initiated a conversation that wouldn’t have happened without the project. And it brought together the community on an issue that they really hesitate to talk about publicly. I think it is the first time that the community has ever publicly acknowledged sexual violence. And being the first and only Mi’kmaw community to specifically deal with sexual violence is huge.

I think the outcome is favourable for the community where the discussion is quite frank now. It is becoming more open where before there would be no discussion.



The impact was positive because we never had discussion on sexual violence and of course to speak about it is quite uncomfortable. It was something that our culture just doesn’t talk about.

I think the outcome is favourable for the community where the discussion is quite frank now. It is becoming more open where before there would be no discussion. No one talked about sexual assaults or gender harassment – no discussion ever. Now they are starting to say, hey, what we are doing is empowering the community to say, hey, I see it, let’s do something about it. Whereas before, people would just turn a blind eye to it and walk away. That is the difference.

I think we are at the infancy stage of change. But if I was to gauge it from where we are to where we want to be, ideally we don’t want any sexual violence in the community. We have made that very hard first step toward eliminating sexual violence, which is one of the most important steps.

4.3 Identified Needs, Challenges & What is Needed to Improve Response & Prevention

This section presents an overview of the participants’ evaluation of the needs assessment focus groups and the safety audit. Of the 56 participants in the adult focus groups, 47 completed the evaluation forms, 28 females and 19 males. The evaluation form asked participants whether the focus group had been useful in identifying various topics discussed, and they were asked to rate their response using a six-‐point scale with “1” being “strongly disagree” and “6” being “strongly agree.” Participants were asked open-‐ended questions related to what was most helpful and what could be changed for future sessions.

The detailed results were presented in the Interim Evaluation Report (April 2015). The tables showing how participants responded to particular topics are included in Appendix B of this report for reference.

4.3.1 An Overview and Discussion of Needs Assessment Focus Group Results

Overall, community members identified factors that contribute to violence and the various challenges associated with disclosing and reporting sexual violence. Participants also discussed and made concrete suggestions for what is needed to improve response and prevention of sexual violence in the community. There were challenges with the discussion for some community members, particularly with identifying “what violence looks like” in Paqtnkek. Further analysis of these challenges by project staff, facilitators, and Advisory Committee members was that this challenge was associated with normalization of violence in the community.

There were some differences between adults and youth in their responses to the discussion of sexual violence as follows:


• Just over 60% of the respondents in the adult focus groups compared to 44% of respondents in the youth focus groups indicated positively (“agree” or “strongly agree”) that the sessions helped to identify “what violence looks like” in Paqtnkek.

• Sixty-‐four percent (64%) of adult respondents compared to 71% of youth respondents indicated positively (“agree” or “strongly agree”) that the sessions helped to identify factors that contribute to violence.

• Just over 72% of adult respondents compared to 86% of youth respondents indicated positively (“agree” or “strongly agree”) that the sessions helped to identify challenges and barriers in being able to talk about sexual violence.

• Sixty-‐five percent (65%) of adult respondents compared to 57% of youth respondents indicated positively (“agree” or “strongly agree”) that the sessions helped to identify issues with being able to report sexual violence.

Their responses to the discussion about identifying solutions is as follows:

• Seventy percent (70%) of respondents in the adult focus groups and 71% in the youth focus groups were positive (“agree” or “strongly agree”) that the session helped to identify what is needed to improve response and prevention.

• Sixty-‐six percent (66%) of the adults and 71% of the youth and indicated positively (“agree” or “strongly agree”) that the session was useful in identifying ways they could contribute to solutions.

• Seventy-‐five percent (75%) of the adults and 100% of the youth said they felt supported to talk about their ideas. This positive result is a testament to the careful planning of the focus group process and the support provided.

When looking at the responses overall, however, there was quite a bit of variance in responses (See Tables in Appendix B). For most topics, a number of evaluation respondents rated in the middle of the scale, either “somewhat agree” or “somewhat disagree.“ With the exception two topics5 the percentage of responses in the middle of the scale ranged from 24% to 38% in the adult focus groups and 14% to 57% in the youth focus groups. This could be an indicator that the topics were challenging for some adult and youth participants. What appeared to be quite challenging was the extent to which the session helped to identify what violence looks like in the community. Close to 40% of adult focus group respondents and 57% of youth focus group respondents indicated they “somewhat agree” or “somewhat disagree” that the session was useful in helping to identify what violence looks like. Given that this was the first time sexual violence was openly discussed in the community, these responses may be an indicator of the range of emotional reactions to the topic and/or the difficulty some may have had with the topic. Also, as pointed out by community members in evaluation interviews and Advisory Committee evaluations

5 “felt supported to talk about my ideas” in adult and youth focus groups; and, “what men need to know or need to have” in youth focus groups.


recognizing and defining sexual violence was challenging because violence had become normalized in the community. Advisory Committee members and project staff, who facilitated and/or participated in the sessions, pointed out that people came with varying definitions of sexual violence and consent, some with more information than others. They said the definitions of violence and consent that were used has a handout at the focus groups generated much discussion and were very useful as a learning tool. Therefore, thinking and discussing these definitions was part of the learning process for adult and youth participants and they were still digesting this information at the end of the session which may have been the reason for the range of responses. There were gender differences in the responses of males and females in the adult focus groups as shown below. For one (1) topic (the first one below), a higher percentage of females than males (7%) identified the sessions had been helpful in identifying issues or solutions. For the next five (5) topics, a higher percentage of males than females (ranging from 8% to 21%) indicated that the session had been helpful. The biggest differences were related to issues with being able to report and if the individual felt supported to talk about their ideas. • Challenges and barriers in talking about sexual violence: 75% females said they “agree”

and “strongly agree” compared to 68% males (7% difference). • Issues related to being able to report sexual violence: 57% females said they “agree” or

“strongly agree” compared to 78% males (21% difference). • Ways to improve response to and prevention of sexual violence: 65% females said they

“agree” or “strongly agree” compared to 79% males (14% difference). • Ways I could contribute to solutions:63% females said they “agree” or “strongly agree”

compared to 71% males (8% difference). • What men need to know or need to have: 66% females said they “agree” or “strongly

agree” compared to 78% males (12% difference). • Felt supported to talk about my ideas: 68% females said they “agree” or “strongly

agree” compared to 85% males (17% difference). It wasn’t possible to know the full reasons for the above differences. There are some possible explanations. For example, some women may have had more experience in trying to speak out or talk to others about sexual violence and faced challenges, therefore, they felt positive about being able to identify the challenges and barriers. At the same time, because of their history with violence, it may have been more challenging to speak out and/or they may have felt more skeptical about what could be done to change things. Related to the participation question, some women may have not wanted to talk openly at this stage or didn’t feel comfortable enough in the group to talk openly. For example, one woman did not rate the participation question and added a comment that she “didn’t say much” during the session.


Furthermore, when asked what was most helpful, a number of women talked about their hope for others to be able to open up to talk about the issues and their hope for change:

The whole session was very helpful in identifying all factors of violence and how we can make a change to be more proactive in educating our people about the different ways to prevent violence (female). Love the idea of this group and wish this was available when I went through my hardships with domestic/sexual violence (female). I really hope this program really takes off and opens a lot of eyes to people and open themselves to talk about what has happened to them (female).

It is apparent from their evaluation responses that the male participants were generally positive, particularly about what they had learned and the support they received during the sessions. This was supported by the facilitators and project staff who reported that the men’s wellness focus group was a very powerful session. When asked what was most helpful, the men talked about their learning and their hope for a healthy community, as reflected in the following comments:

A couple of things discussed were “eureka” moments (male). Keep up the education (male). This is a good start and makes the future look promising in developing a safe community (male). This initiative promises a sign of hope for change for an improved future. I look forward to what emerges from this and I think it is important to share the results with those that participated; Thank you so very much (male).

When asked what was most helpful, youth respondents said getting more insight and learning about healthy and unhealthy relationships and consent, knowing they have support; and that this could help a “bigger picture.” The following are the comments provided:

That it could potentially be something big and help a bigger picture. Knowing that I have support. That I realized what an unhealthy and healthy relationships are and that I know.

Everything was really helpful. I’ve learned things I didn’t know before.

Youth Focus Group Participant

This is a good start and makes the future look promising in developing a safe community (male)

Adult Focus Group Participant

I really hope this program really takes off and opens a lot of eyes to people and open themselves to talk about what has happened to them (female)

Adult Focus Group Participant


Gave more of an insight of things that I was not aware off (consent, healthy relationships). Everything was really helpful. I’ve learned things that I didn’t know before.

4.3.2 An Overview of Safety Audit Evaluation Results

There were six (6) participants in the safety audit, four (4) females and two (2) males. Four of the six participants completed evaluation forms. This section provides an overview of the evaluation results. The more detailed response was included in the Interim Evaluation Report (April 2015). Table ?? in Appendix B shows the responses to topics covered in the audit. The evaluation form asked participants whether the focus group had been useful in identifying various topics discussed, and they were asked to rate their response using a six-‐point scale with “1” being “strongly disagree” and “6” being “strongly agree.” Participants were asked open-‐ended questions related to what was most helpful and what could be changed for future sessions.

There was a mixed response to whether the audit had been useful in identifying some of the safety issues. Fifty percent (50%) indicated that the audit had been useful in identifying what safety looks like in Paqtnkek, what makes people feel unsafe, and factors affecting safety, while 50% were less positive to the point of disagreement. There was, however, 100% agreement that the session was useful in identifying the role that drugs and alcohol play in community safety. Similarly, there were divergent views about whether the session was useful in identifying what the community is currently doing to address safety and barriers and gaps in addressing safety. Respondents were, however, somewhat more positive that the audit had been useful in identifying safe spaces to go for support and what the community could do to improve safety. They also agreed that they had been supported to talk about their ideas. When asked what was most helpful, they mentioned the discussion and realization that their concerns and issues were also the concerns. They expressed hope that the community will implement their suggestions as follows:

That my concerns are also other community members’ issues and concerns. People need to feel safe. Hopefully, the community can implement these.

Everything we talked about. Need a support group for gays.

The discussion generated. Informative/great job. Thanks!


5.0 Outcomes: Response & Prevention Strategies Outcomes related to response and prevention strategies are outlined in this section as follows:

5.1 Community Healing Circles: Increased Opportunities for Sharing & Healing in a Culturally Safe Environment;

5.2 Support for Supporters Strengthened Individual & Community Capacity; 5.3 Education for External Service Providers Increased Understanding of Cultural

Competency & Trauma-‐informed Practice; 5.4 Education Workshops Increased Individual Knowledge and Skills; 5.5 Educators Team Training Started to Build Capacity for Ongoing Community Education; 5.6 Resources and Tools Helped to Build Community Capacity.

5.1 Community Healing Circles: Increased Opportunities for Sharing & Healing in a Culturally Safe Environment Two Community Healing Circles were held in the community as part of the action plan to pilot response strategies for sexual violence. For obvious reasons the ceremonies were not directly evaluated. There was an opportunity through interviews, focus groups and discussion of lessons learned for community members to reflect on the first healing circle. When asked what worked well with the Community Healing Circles, Advisory Committee members offered the following comments: • The ceremony provided an opportunity to have a voice and to talk about your

experience “out loud.” • The healing ceremony resonated culturally. • Starting with the confidentiality agreement was important for participation. People’s

stories were kept confidential, so people didn’t talk about it afterward. • Having Mi’kmaw facilitators, who were trained to do family circles, but who did not

reside in the community gave the community members the option to participate. Also, there was a male and female facilitator which supported participation by women and men.

• Those with historical abuse experiences were more confident with external facilitators. • The facilitators shared their story which helped participants to tell their stories. • A flyer was sent out to community members indicating that the ceremony was open to

all community members; and, therefore, attracted new participants. • Recognizing that it was a process to healing worked well. • It built relationships among those who participated. • The men who were involved shared and supported one another. It increased

understanding of their perspective. • Having support people was an important and good back-‐up plan.


• The first ceremony was a bit short due to another activity in the community, but participants expressed interest in another session.

The above comments reinforce the importance of creating safe and culturally relevant spaces for community members to talk about and share their experiences. The process of having confidentiality agreements as well as a team of support people, which started with the needs assessment process, was important to community members trusting the process and feeling safe enough to share their stories. In individual evaluation interviews with community members, several mentioned that having trusted Mi’kmaw facilitators who resided in other communities was important. This gave all community members the option to participate and it helped people to open up more because of the facilitators’ neutrality. Two community members talked about the process of the healing circle as important to sharing stories, acknowledging them, and releasing them as part of starting to heal.

Acknowledging people’s stories. …. This is your story and this is your time to heal. Once you leave here, you can live your life. Releasing these type of stories really helped.

We had a whole bunch of focus groups and it brought out some things that I didn’t want to remember either and it helped. And I had a person to talk to in the healing circle and you felt comfortable sitting around with the group that was there. And you didn’t think you would be able to open up to these people, and then all of a sudden it was like calmness around and you started to open up and it was great. And at the end it was like, we need this more so we can keep on going and build on it.

5.2 Support for Supporters Strengthened Individual & Community Capacity One of the response strategies, Support for Supporters, acknowledged the strengths of the community by recognizing that there were already people in the community who provided support. Part of the action plan was to provide information, skill building sessions, and support to continue to build and strengthen community capacity to respond to sexual violence. The Supporters Team reflected on their experience with the project, what they learned, and their visions for continuing the work in an evaluation focus group facilitated by the External Evaluator. This section presents the highlights of their group reflection.

5.2.1 Supporters Role

When asked to describe their role, members said they were part of the supporters group because they were viewed by others in the community as trusted people that community members could talk to. Therefore, their role was to be available for anyone who needs

This is your story and this is your time to heal. Once you leave here, you can live your life. Releasing these type of stories really helped.

Community Healing Circle Participant


someone to talk to, helping to point people in the right direction for formal or informal supports they might need, as well as to help each other as illustrated in the following quotes.

Just being here for anybody who needs somebody to talk to. Pointing them in the right direction for supports. And to help each other.

5.2.2 The Importance of Sharing, Debriefing, and Having Supports in Place

The group members pointed out that the opportunity to share, debrief, and to have support was very important for them individually. This included the support provided by the mental health counsellor who attended their meetings, the support they provided each other, and other supports that they had in the community. Two members said they believed that talking about things and sharing together made “us” stronger and there was less weight on their shoulders. The following are their comments:

It triggered a lot in all of us. We could talk about this and then all of a sudden you get déjà vu and it triggered something, and it was good to have the support for us too. And plus there were other supports that we had before – people you could talk to. But this is a trust issue too. I don’t know all the group. I know some of the group and would be willing to talk to. But it was good to have the other supports as well.

Yeah, like having (the mental health counsellor) in with us. That was really helpful. Having her support and encouraging us by the way we do support people in the community. She was encouraging us by telling us the things we were doing right, because we felt it was wrong or wasn’t professional enough, or wasn’t coming from a therapist’s point of view when it comes to dealing with these type of topics, so I felt her presence was great.

I think like when people talk and when people get together, you know, talk about different things that happened to them, it can be emotional and stuff, but I think that every time we talk about things and share stuff, it makes us stronger.

5.2.3 Increased Knowledge and Skills.

When asked about the benefits of having the supporters team, team members mentioned what they had learned about healthy coping skills, practicing self care, learning more about laws, and learning more about different forms of violence. One mentioned knowing more people who can support community members. Some mentioned that they felt more prepared or able to use what they have learned, while others pointed out that there is still more to learn.

The outlines (the Women’s Centre staff) had, like the “support 101” and the healthy coping. Teaching us ways to practice self care, like within ourselves by not carrying these, not burdens, but carrying these stories and these things with us (and) how to release

Teaching us ways to practice self care, like within ourselves by not carrying these, not burdens, but carrying these stories and these things with us (and) how to release them.

Supporter’s Team Member


them, not to carry it and keep it on yourself. I find (that) was helpful as well. … So, just ways to deal with those types of disclosures.

And realizing what laws and what lateral violence is and people are doing things wrong, but it is normalized almost, and once you start learning what the law is, well, it was good to know what was wrong and what was right.

I learned a lot. … But at least now I am more prepared…. It really opened my eyes.

The education. I learned more about what it is and that helped us. There’s a lot that a lot of us didn’t know about. And now we know a little more, but there is still tons of stuff out there that we need to know.

There is more to learn, but what we have learned we can utilize it a bit better.

There are other people that I know I can go to. There are lots of people, and people have different strengths, and people have different ways that they can help. Not just me.

5.2.4 The Benefits of Involving Men in the Supporters Team

The members of the group talked about the benefits of involving men in the supporters group and the importance of engaging fathers, young men, and boys in this issue.

I can say, (there are) men in the group that can help. We have to get the boys to realize that it goes both ways. It is great that there are men involved because (the boys) are not going to come to me (female member).

Leave men out and the boys are left out. And, they are two parts of the equation.

There is a component that needs to happen with young boys. And, in our communities, and a lot of First Nations communities in general, the father’s presence is not there like it used to be, in they are not as involved as they should be. We are aware of that in our community, and so there is a push for that to happen. We have to remind our young boys that when they grow up to be parents that there is more to being a father than just being there. Their involvement is very important and that it is valued. It is time to work with the men so they can pass on to their sons.

5.2.5 Trauma and How it Affects Individuals, the Community and the Informal Supporter’ Role

Group members were asked what they learned about trauma and how it affects individuals and their community and their role as informal supporters. They pointed out that they learned there were things about an individual’s behavior that they didn’t notice at the time but, in retrospect, have a better understanding of that individual’s behavior, the underlying causes, and feel more compassion for the individual. They also pointed out it was important

And realizing what laws and what lateral violence is and people are doing things wrong, but it is normalized almost.

I learned a lot. … But at least now I am more prepared…. It really opened my eyes.



to learn about the different types of trauma that the community and individuals have experienced so that they can send individuals to the right resources that they need.

Learning about many different types of trauma that you were able to identify within the community was helpful as well. Like the warning signs, that we should be picking up on, like behaviours and things like that, that are going on in the community. So, that was really helpful in that sense. … Or if we hear it in a disclosure we can associate it with this type of trauma, then that way you are able to send it to the right resources or the right formal support that they do need.

I think I knew about it little bit, but it also identified other things that we didn’t notice. When you think back and okay that is why some individuals or kids were the way they were. Something in the past that happened to them.

You know there is something behind it. So it gives you some compassion for that person.

And being able to deal with it in a healthier manner for them to have their outlet and for them to have their process or their road of healing for themselves. I had disclosures as well for women who are 50 plus and they don’t want to come forward and they didn’t want it mentioned again, but they just wanted it out there so it is not on them any longer.

And then learning how to debrief yourself. You find you need to deal with that yourself.

5.2.6 Challenges the Team Experienced and Challenges Ahead

When asked to describe their experience as “informal supporters” throughout the project, some described it as emotional and stressful. This was partly because they had learned more about the issue and wanted to do the right thing, but partly because learning more had raised issues for them personally as pointed out by these two members:

Emotion. Very emotional. It just made you realize that even though you think you can help someone through something, you really weren’t at that right state of mind yourself. And being in the supporters group and gaining the information that was shared at the (meetings) -‐ realizing exactly what sexual violence is right down to a simple touch. You know it made you bring out feelings on a personal note that you heard from others or yourself, individually. It was really emotional and very stressful to be honest with you.

I think what I heard from a lot of (us) was that, ‘I don’t know if I gave the people the right information. I don’t know if I did the right thing. And when people came to me, maybe I gave them the wrong information. Did I make the situation worse?’ I think what happened is it ended up bringing up a lot of self guilt – not guilty as they had done something wrong, but not done what they could have possibly done now, once they became more aware of what they could do.

Learning about many different types of trauma that you were able to identify within the community was helpful as well.



There was also discussion about vicarious trauma and how learning about it within the supporters group put a name to the trauma that many in the community experience and how hard it is to talk about it, to acknowledge it and cope with it.

Having said that, vicarious trauma, we are talking about it now. And, look at how hard it was for us. Look at how hard it is for us to talk about it, discuss it, to acknowledge it, and to cope with it.

The Supporters Team had a full discussion about trauma that youth may be experiencing and the need for supports for youth as well as more education. A summary of this reflection is included in Section 5.4.4. Group members talked about the challenges of living in a small community where community members know what is happening, yet people who have experienced violence feel so alone and think they are the only one going through the experience. They discussed what is appropriate related to their role in these cases, for example, how to intervene without breaching confidentiality if the individual hasn’t come for support.

Such a small community – everyone is always in the knowing. Some people think they haven’t told anyone, but others already knew…. Or, they think they are alone. They feel alone and they are the only one going through this.

They pointed out the need to strengthen the healing process and the understanding of formal supports so that community members can get further support for their healing.

Just knowing where the formal supports are outside of the community. Especially when dealing with different types of trauma. To help guide them to the right resource. Where do they go after they talk with you. Where are we going with this?

Like, you open a wound. And you have to heal it before you let them go, because they will be walking around with an open sore. Helping to walk them through, like you are on a journey of healing now.

5.2.7 Vision for Moving Forward

When asked what their vision is for moving this forward as individuals or as a group, team members offered several visions. One vision was that it is really important to continue this work as pointed out in the following comment:

I hope it doesn’t stop. We gotta keep it going. We can’t keep going the way we always do. We can’t have it one minute and then “this is it.” This is done and we move on to something else. No, this has to continue to get the learning out. Even if this project is

Having said that, vicarious trauma, we are talking about it now. And, look at how hard it was for us. Look at how hard it is for us to talk about it, discuss it, to acknowledge it, and to cope with it.



done, we still have the support group here and we can still do whatever we started and keep it going.

Another vision was to engage more supporters, either by having a bigger support team and more men in the team; and/or to engage the broader community in learning how to be an effective supporter, whether of their children or other family members. Part of this vision would be to teach everyone of the need for self care. The following were some of the ideas:

And having more community members recognize that they are doing informal support. There are probably way more people in the community that are supporting one another and they don’t recognize what they are doing and that it is helpful and they are helping to support this person or their families and friends. So, having community members recognize these things and that what they are saying and doing is right.

It would be cool if we could do something like this for the general population. Like, having an opportunity for a community open education session in this area. How to be a support. Even if we put out as a general sign up. Do you want to be able to support your son or daughter, or your nieces and nephews or your cousins? Something like that.

And, then you are reminded that you need to do these things for self care. So, maybe that is something we could have supported for everything ... That is a “lesson learned.”

Still others presented a vision of continuing the dialogue and normalizing the conversations that were started with this project with the view to preventing sexualized violence.

I think the dialogue will be out there. People will be learning about it whether they are part of the group or not. They will begin to talk and the younger people will talk about it normally and be more aware during their interactions and probably watching over the younger people. Hopefully it will become part of our regular talks among each other, with the kids talking among themselves.

5.3 Education for External Service Providers Increased Understanding of Cultural Competency & Trauma-‐Informed Practice

This section presents the results of the two workshops organized for external service providers. The overall intent of these sessions was to build and strengthen cultural competency and trauma-‐informed practice among external service providers (located outside the community), in order for Paqtnkek community members to be able to access culturally safe trauma-‐informed services. The objectives of the sessions were as follows: • Workshop 1: To provide an opportunity to learn more about residential schools,

colonialism and intergenerational trauma.

I think the dialogue will be out there. People will be learning about it whether they are part of the group or not. They will begin to talk and the younger people will talk about it normally.



• Workshop 2: To strengthen trauma-‐informed, culturally safe, and holistic practice. A total of twenty-‐seven (27) service providers attended the two sessions, seventeen (17) in the first session and ten (10) in the second session. Both sessions were evaluated through completion of an evaluation form at the end of each session. The evaluation form asked participants whether they had learned more about the various topics discussed, and they were asked to rate their response using a six-‐point scale with “1” being “strongly disagree” and “6” being “strongly agree.” Participants were asked open-‐ended questions related to what was most helpful and what what action or actions will they take back to their work as a result of the workshop. Of the 17 who attended the first session, 13 or 76% completed the evaluation form. Of the 10 who attended the second session, 9 or 90% completed the evaluation form. Note that, for some of the responses to the second session, one individual came in late so there are only 8 responses to some evaluation questions. Overall, the results show that most of the service providers, who responded to the evaluation survey, indicated that they learned more about the topics covered in the two workshops. Furthermore, a number indicated that they would be using this information to strengthen their own practice, that they would share the information with colleagues, that they would work to strengthen the entire organization or agency response, and/or would work to break down barriers to accessing their services. These are all important steps in building capacity to provide culturally safe services for Paqtnkek community members and, therefore, working toward improving access to external services and supports. The specific results are organized around the following indicators:

5.3.1 Learned more about residential school policy, colonial and post colonial policy; 5.3.2 Learned more about trauma experienced by residential school survivors; how that

trauma has affected families, descendants and communities; and understanding the broader context of trauma in First Nations communities as a result of colonialism;

5.3.3 Learned more about the meaning of trauma-‐informed practice and cultural safety; the importance of understanding community context as part of trauma-‐informed practice and how to incorporate cultural safety into service provision;

5.3.4 Learned more about different forms of healing and how different forms of healing can be supported by service providers

5.3.5 Felt supported to talk about my ideas and share information and what participants found most helpful about the session

5.3.6 Actions or actions participants plan to take back to their workplace as a result of the workshop.


5.3.1 Learned more about residential school policy, colonial and post colonial policy.

Overall evaluation respondents in the two workshops said they had learned more about residential school policy (workshop 1), colonial and post colonial policy (workshop 2) as follows: • Eleven (11) or 85% of 13 respondents in the first workshop said they “agree” or

“strongly agree,” that they learned more about residential school policy in Canada; 2 or 15% of 13 respondents said they “somewhat agree.”

• Seven (7) or 87.5% of 8 respondents in the second workshop said they “agree” or “strongly agree” that they learned more about colonial and post colonial policy; and, 1 or 12.5% said they “somewhat agree.”

5.3.2 Learned more about trauma experienced by residential school survivors and its impacts; and understanding the broader context of trauma in First Nations communities as a result of colonialism.

Over 75% of respondents in the first workshop learned more about trauma experienced by residential school survivors and the impacts, as well as the broader context of trauma as a result of colonialism. • Ten (10) or 77% of 13 respondents in the first workshop said they “agree” or “strongly

agree,” that they learned more trauma experienced by residential school survivors; 3 or 23% of 13 respondents said they “somewhat agree.”

• Eleven (11) or 85% of 13 respondents in the first workshop said they “agree” or “strongly agree,” that they learned more about how trauma experienced by residential school survivors has affected families, descendants and communities; 2 or 15% of 13 respondents said they “somewhat agree.”

• Eleven (11) or 85% of 13 respondents in the first workshop said they “agree” or “strongly agree,” that they learned more about the broader context of trauma in First Nations communities as a result of colonialism; 2 or 15% of 13 respondents said they “somewhat agree.”

5.3.3 Learned more about the meaning of trauma-‐informed practice and cultural safety; the importance of understanding community context as part of trauma-‐informed practice; and, how to incorporate cultural safety into service provision.

Between 75% and 87% of respondents in the second workshop learned more about trauma-‐informed practice and cultural safety and how to incorporate into their practice.

• Seven (7) or 87.5% of 8 respondents in the second workshop said they “agree” or “strongly agree” that they learned more about the meaning of trauma-‐informed practice; and, 1 or 12.5% said they “somewhat agree.”

• Six (6) or 75% of 8 respondents in the second workshop said they “agree” or “strongly agree” that they learned more about the importance of understanding community


context as part of trauma-‐informed practice; and, 2 or 25% said they “somewhat agree.”

• Seven (7) or 87.5% of 8 respondents in the second workshop said they “agree” or “strongly agree” that they learned more about the meaning of cultural safety; and, 1 or 12.5% said they “somewhat agree.”

• Six (6) or 75% of 8 respondents in the second workshop said they “agree” or “strongly agree” that they learned more about how to incorporate cultural safety into service provision; and, 2 or 25% said they “somewhat agree.”

5.3.4 Learned more about different forms of healing and how they can be supported by service providers; and how service providers can support healing for clients.

Over 85% of respondents in the both workshops learned more about supporting healing for First Nations clients. • Seven (7) or 87.5% of 8 respondents in the second workshop said they “agree” or

“strongly agree” that they learned more about different forms of healing and how they can be supported by service providers; and, 1 or 12.5% said they “somewhat agree.”

• Eleven (11) or 85% of 13 respondents in the first workshop said they “agree” or “strongly agree,” that they learned more about how service providers can support healing for clients; 1 or 8% of 13 respondents said they “somewhat agree;” and, 1 or 8% did not complete the rating.

5.3.5 Felt supported to talk about ideas and to share information; and, what participants found most helpful about the session.

Almost all of the evaluation respondents, 19 of 22 or 86% indicated they felt supported to talk about their ideas and share information. What participants found most helpful in the first workshop was hearing from community members; discussion and networking; the information such as the chronology, the trauma response, and the impact of intergenerational trauma; and the film. The following are some of the comments:

Hearing from people in the community about their experiences with trauma as survivors or descendants of survivors. Having gained an insight about the residential school experience. The impact and lingering effects of the trauma was clearly defined. Intergenerational and lateral effects. Historical and background statistics supported by research – excellent! I found the discussion and the video, “Journey from the Shadows,” to be most helpful.

Hearing from people in the community about their experiences with trauma as survivors or descendants of survivors.

External Service Provider Education Session


What participants found most helpful about the second session was the information presented, the discussion and sharing, and networking. Some of the comments follow:

Everything!!! The information shared, discussion and networking that happened. The reflective questions and discussion. The information on the slides was great; videos also; and the conversation among various service providers. Healing section was very helpful.

5.3.6 Identified actions to take back to their workplace as a result of the workshop

Almost all respondents for both workshops (21 of 22 respondents) identified actions they planned to take. These included the following: • The increased understanding and awareness of

historical and cultural impacts, trauma-‐informed practice, cultural safety and holistic healing will strengthen the provision of services (8).

• Will try to break down barriers to increase access to services; organize an open-‐house for women from Paqtnkek to meet our staff (2).

• Collaborate with other service providers to provide care that clients need and work toward common goals (1).

• Share information/organize a presentation with co-‐workers to build awareness and understanding of these topics (8);

• Need to weave trauma-‐informed practice and culturally safe services into our organizations as a whole (3).

• Will seek out further education/learning on trauma and its impacts and cultural safety to improve services for this community (3).

• Will seek out events and opportunities to continue to learn (2). • Suggest that others should take this training. Offer this in numerous locations to

groups and organizations (2). • Need to use this information in our community (Paqtnkek) as a resource to enhance

learning of community members (2).

5.4 Education for Youth & Parents Increased Individual Knowledge & Skills This section presents the evaluation results of the education sessions offered for youth and parents. It also presents the reflection in evaluation interviews by community members and project staff on what worked well and the challenges with the education sessions. The final topic is a summary of the reflection by the Supporters Team about the next steps to engage and support youth. These results and reflection presented in the following sections:

5.4.1 Youth education sessions evaluation results; 5.4.2 Parent education sessions evaluation results;

The motivation and the need to weave trauma-‐informed practice and culturally safe services into my work and the organization as a whole

External Service Provider Education Session


5.4.3 Reflection on what worked well and challenges with the education sessions; 5.4.4 Reflection on the next steps to engage and support youth.

Educational workshops were organized and delivered for youth of various ages and parents to increase knowledge and skills related to the topics of healthy relationships, consent, sexual violence and cybersafety as a strategy to prevent sexual violence. The sessions intended to include feminist, cultural, and legal perspectives to provide more holistic knowledge on the topics. The Mi’kmaq Seven Sacred Teachings were integrated into the curriculum and resource materials to build an understanding of traditional values and their link to healthy relationships and violence prevention. The sessions also included information on supports available and disclosing and reporting violence. For the parents there was an additional focus on how to talk with their children about the topics. Pilot sessions for youth were held in the summer of 2015. These were not formally evaluated although the response from asking participants what they learned was documented. Participants in the sessions offered in January and February 2016 for youth (Grade 5 and Grades 6-‐8) and for parents completed an evaluation form at the end of the session or at the second session (for Grades 6-‐8). Participants were asked if they learned more about session topics by checking “not at all,” “some,” and “a lot.” They also were asked open ended questions about what stood out to them and what they liked the most and one thing they would change. The tables below show the evaluation results: Table 6 for the Grade 5 and Grades 6-‐8 sessions; and Table 7 for the parent’s session.

5.4.1 Youth Education Sessions Evaluation Results

Of the 16 participants in the January/February sessions, 15 or 94% completed the evaluation forms. The evaluation results for the sessions for Grade 5 and Grades 6-‐8 are combined in Table 6, partly due to the relatively small numbers and partly due to the similarities in their responses. The table and the summary below show that between 60% and 67% of respondents learned “a lot” more about the healthy relationships, consent and sexual violence. About half of the respondents, 53% learned “a lot” more about disclosing and reporting violence.

For the topic of cyberviolence, fewer than half, 40%, said they learned “a lot,” and the majority of respondents said they learned “some,” “not at all,” or left the box blank. The Project Coordinator pointed out that there were some challenges with this topic as it was near the end of the session and many were more familiar with the term cyberbullying and there was lack of time to plan more sessions to cover the topic in better detail. These may have been the reasons for the low rating.

The following is a summary of their responses: • Ten (10) or 67% of 15 youth respondents said they learned “a lot” about healthy

relationships and 5 or 33% said they learned “some.” • Nine (9) or 60% of 15 respondents said they learned “a lot” about consent, and 5 or


33% said “some” and 1 or 7% said “not at all.” • Ten (10) or 67% of 15 respondents said they learned “a lot” about laws around

consent and 5 or 33% said “some.” • Nine (9) or 60% of 15 respondents said they learned “a lot” about sexual violence,

and 6 or 40% said “some.” • Six (6) or 40% of 15 respondents said they learned “a lot” about cyberviolence; 3 or

20% said “some,” 3 or 20% said “not at all,” and 3 left this question blank. • Ten (10) or 67% of 15 respondents said they learned “a lot” about where to go for

help; 4 or 26% said they learned “some,” and 1 or 7% left this question blank. • Eight (8) or 53% of 15 respondents said they learned “a lot” about disclosing and

reporting violence; 5 or 33% said “some,” and 2 or 13% left this question blank.

Table 6: Grade 5 and Grades 6-‐8 Educational Workshops Participant Response Shown in Actual Numbers and Percentage of the Total for Each Question

Topic Blank Not at all Some A Lot Total No & %

What I learned in these sessions:

Healthy Relationships 5 33%

10 67%

15 100%

Consent 1 7%

5 33%

9 60%

15 100%

Laws Around Consent 5 33%

10 67%

15 100%

Sexual Violence 6 40%

9 60%

15 100%

Cyberviolence 3 20%

3 20%

3 20%

6 40%

15 100%

Where I can go for help 1 7%

4 26%

10 67%

15 100%

Disclosing and reporting violence

2 13%

5 33%

8 53%

15 100%

When asked what stood out to them the most, the youth mentioned learning about healthy and unhealthy relationships, laws related to consent, and sexual violence. By comparison, the same age group in the summer pilot session also mentioned these same topics, as well as the meaning of consent, when asked, “what did you learn or like? Participants in the summer pilot sessions also mentioned they liked the videos and the confidentiality rules for the session.

Healthy vs unhealthy.


I learned more about healthy relationships and more about relationships and what to do. I learned what consent means!! I learned what ages you’re allowed to date and what’s ok and not ok!!

Several youth mentioned they liked the “poster making” which was the exercise related to the Seven Sacred Teachings. The youth in older age-‐group (Grades 9-‐12 and older) in the summer pilot sessions also mentioned they liked learning about Mi’kmaq traditional roles.

I learned the Mi’kmaq traditional roles. I liked the Mi’kmaq discussion and I learned about consent.

Related to cybersafety, the pilot sessions in the summer had a separate session that focused only on cybersafety for Grades 5-‐8. From a review of the documentation from that session it is apparent that the session was productive. When asked what they learned or liked the youth offered many comments. This may be an indicator that a separate session that focuses on cybersafety would work better for the youth. They said they learned of the need to be careful online, that sites and apps aren’t safe, about sexting, what catfishing means, and that people can be tracked.

5.4.2 Parent Education Sessions Evaluation Results

Of the seven parents who participated in the parent educational session, 6 or 86% completed the evaluation forms which were similar to the youth evaluation forms, only added a question related to talking to your children about the topics covered. Table 7 shows the results of their evaluation. It is evident from a review of the table that for most of the topics 3 or 50% of the respondents said they learned “a lot,” and 3 or 50% said they learned “some.” The topic that stood out was the topic of consent where 5 or 83% of the respondents said they learned “a lot.”

When asked about the important things they learned, parents indicated the online information, consent, values and how they impact on relationships and talking to children about these issues. One parent commented on the content overall and knowledge around the subject. Their comments follow:

Various media, online things/sites that kids use. Consent and the law. Personal values and how they impact on our children’s relationships.

How to help children through talking about it.

Personal values and how they impact on our children’s relationships.

Adult Participants Education Session

I liked the Mi’kmaq discussion and I learned about consent

Youth Participant Education Session


How to help children through talking about it. Great content and wealth of knowledge around the subject. Great Job!

When asked what they liked most mentioned the clarity of information presented and the open discussion in a safe environment as noted by these comments:

Information-‐sharing. Facilitators were clear about what they were talking about. Open discussion in a safe environment. Where there is help and support for our children.

Some parents offered suggestions for future sessions as follows such as handouts to help support children and to handle challenges as parents and as extended family. Also, they asked for more information for younger children about sexuality.

Table 7 Parent Educational Workshops Participant Response Shown in Actual Numbers and Percentage of the Total for Each Question

Topic Blank Not at all

Some A Lot Total No & %

What I learned in these sessions:

Healthy Relationships 3 50%

3 50%

6 100%

Consent 1 17%

5 83%

6 100%

Laws Around Consent 3 50%

3 50%

6 100%

Sexual Violence 3 50%

3 50%

6 100%

Cyberviolence 3 50%

3 50%

6 100%

Where I can go for help 3 50%

3 50%

6 100%

Disclosing and reporting violence

3 50%

3 50%

6 100%

How to talk with my children about these topics

1 17%

2 33%

3 50%

6 100%


5.4.3 Reflection on What Worked Well and Challenges with the Education Sessions

In their final reflection on the project, community members, the Project Coordinator and Community Facilitator reflected on what worked well and the challenges with the education sessions. The following is a compilation of their reflection:

• Having education sessions for both parents and for youth was important. The session for parents was held first so that parents would have an idea of what would be discussed and distributed to their children. After the session, the materials for the youth workshops were distributed to those who attended.

• Youth sessions were divided into Grade 5’s, Grades 6 to 8 and Grades 9 – 12. This enabled youth at different stages to ask questions and have discussion without being judged or criticized.

• Incorporating the Seven Sacred Teachings into the curriculum was very important to helping the youth understand traditional cultural values and beliefs and how they can use these to better themselves and their relationships. It was pointed out that there is this cultural component could still be strengthened and this will require more education and discussion about how to best approach this by those who will be facilitating these sessions in the future.

We need to find a way and an opportunity within that to remind them what being a strong Mi’kmaq person means. ... For example, respect. A traditional role for male and female Mi’kmaq people is respect for every living thing. We are giving them an opportunity for lifelong learning to look at things from a holistic, total well being for individuals.

• Incorporating online safety and social media into the education sessions was important for both parents and youth. For parents learning about the different apps (over 90) and parental controls on computers was helpful. For youth, while the topics were covered in the workshops, there is still more awareness needed for cyber bullying, sexting, and other things they are involved with on social media.

• Involving external partners as resource people was helpful for youth to learn about services and supports available to them.

The two key challenges were engaging Grades 9-‐12 age group in the educational sessions and there is no-‐one in the school at this time to encourage students to get involved which would have helped to support participation as follows:

• The Grades 9-‐12 session did not have any participants. It was felt that what was needed was someone in their own age group or who was working with them to

A traditional role for male and female Mi’kmaq people is respect for every living thing. We are giving them an opportunity for lifelong learning to look at things from a holistic, total well being for individuals.

Community Member


support their involvement and remind them to come to the session. We needed a champion among them.

• Another related challenge was that there is currently no-‐one in the school to encourage students to get involved/participate which would have helped to support participation. It was pointed out that having youth on the Advisory Committee may have helped student involvement. The summer student reminded us of things we needed to develop for youth.

5.4.4 Reflection on Next Steps to Engage and Support Youth

There is still more work to do with youth, including engaging the older age group (Grades 9 –12). One theme throughout the Supporters Team discussion was how to work with young people to prevent sexual violence and to support those who have who have experienced or witnessed violence. They pointed out that, while it is important to help young people recognize sexual violence is a problem in the community to address the normalization of violence, it is also important to build resilience so they will be able to handle the trauma that they may be experiencing. There was lots of concern expressed around how to best approach this work.

The Supporters Team suggested to continue education about relationships and consent and to build supports for youth. The Implementation Report (March 30, 2016) indicated that there are plans to continue to have education sessions for youth and to organize youth camps/retreats on healthy relationships, consent and culture. Also, youth have expressed a need for programming for young men in the community similar to the “Inspire Program” offered by the AWRCSASA for young women (Grades 7 and 8) for the past several years.

5.5 Educators Team Started to Build Capacity for Ongoing Community Education The objective of this strategy was to train a team of educators, composed of community members, who would facilitate educational sessions on various topics for youth, parents and families. The intent was that this would build community capacity for ongoing education to prevent sexual violence. As described in Section 2.5.5, there was a smaller than hoped turn-‐out for facilitators. Due to project timing, a decision was made to go ahead with the training sessions to provide an opportunity to begin to build knowledge and skills of community members to lead the education workshops. To assess the effectiveness of the training session, participants completed a pre-‐training survey and a post training survey. The purpose was to be able to assess impact of the

It is important to help young people recognize sexual violence is a problem in the community to address the normalization of violence. it is also important to build resilience so they will be able to handle the trauma that they may be experiencing. Supporters Team Reflection on

Supporting Young People


training session on the participant’s level of confidence to facilitate the sessions. The results indicate that two participants increased their level of confidence with increasing their understanding the topics to be covered, the processes to be implemented, and the facilitation of discussion. One participant, who indicated in the pre-‐training survey that they had knowledge and skills in this area, indicated that the training session did not significantly change their level of knowledge or skills. For a variety of reasons, as outlined in Section 2.4.5, it was determined that the project staff would lead all the education sessions; therefore, the Educators Team, as originally envisioned, was not able to be implemented. In hindsight, one suggestion was that Health Centre staff could have been assigned to participate in the training and co-‐facilitation from the beginning as part of an Educator’s Team. The educator’s training started the process of building capacity for ongoing education. The educational curriculum (for the training and educational sessions) is an asset that remains in the community to be used and adapted as needed. As pointed out in the previous section, there is interest in strengthening the cultural component of the educational sessions. The Director of the Health Centre plans to include an educational component in the work plans of Health Centre staff in order to continue to strengthen capacity to deliver educational opportunities for the community.

5.6 Resources & Tools Helped to Strengthen Community Capacity Another component of the action plan was to develop and/or adapt resources and tools that would stay in the community to be used for training, education and to raise awareness about sexual violence. While these would be considered more “outputs” (products) than “outcomes,” there is an argument that the resources and tools did contribute to making a difference and to create change for individuals and for the community. The following are some examples of how they made a difference: • Guidelines and “cheat notes” for facilitators and support teams enabled them to

effectively facilitate the discussion and support participants which enabled opening up the dialogue on a topic that wasn’t openly discussed.

• Confidentiality agreements helped to create safe spaces for participation in the focus groups, the Supporters Group and the Community Healing Circles.

• Resources related to trauma and trauma-‐informed practice strengthened the Supporters Team members’ understanding of different forms of trauma.

• Educational resources supported learning and developing new skills for the Supporters Team and, potentially for an Educators Team, which strengthens both individual and community capacity to respond to and prevent sexual violence.

• The Policies and Procedures Resource has strengthened community capacity to develop new policies and procedures for a harassment-‐free and violence-‐free workplace.


6.0 Outcomes: Sharing Knowledge & Lessons Learned The fourth project objective was to share project results and lessons learned with the network of partners and First Nation communities. As pointed out in Section 2.5, information was shared both informally and formally throughout the project by Advisory Committee members and project staff in several venues and locations. One of the more formal ways of sharing was through a workshop organized in June 2015, “Lessons Learned Part 1: Partnership Development & Needs Assessment.” The session was held at the Paqtnkek Health Centre.

There were with thirteen (13) participants representing three Mi’kmaq communities, and several agencies and organizations who were interested in learning more about this project and its impact. Eleven (11) of 13 participants completed the evaluation form. The evaluation form asked participants whether they had learned more about the various topics discussed, and they were asked to rate their response using a six-‐point scale with “1” being “strongly disagree” and “6” being “strongly agree.” Participants were asked open-‐ended questions related to what was most helpful and what what action or actions will they take back to their community as a result of the workshop. The results are shown in Table 8. A review of the table shows that almost all respondents indicated positively (“agree” or “strongly” agree) that they learned more about the needs assessment partnerships, planning, processes, and findings; as well as successes and challenges. When asked what they found most helpful about the session, respondents indicated the the storytelling about one community’s engagement, the community plan, the discussion of common issues and challenges, and meeting others as reflected in the following comments.

The community’s plan to address sexual violence is specific to their own priorities and they came up with a good plan and strategies to address the issues. The linking together of issues in my community; e.g. residential school, jails, suicides, child abuse, the violent circle that comes around. Storytelling about one community’s efforts to address a difficult issue; affirms storytelling as central to Indigenous ways of learning and knowing. Community engagement strategies and meeting others. Understanding community needs, listening and engaging with the community – the importance of community voice and participation. Hearing about challenges and successes and discussing common issues and solutions.

Storytelling about one community’s efforts to address a difficult issue; affirms storytelling as central to Indigenous ways of learning and knowing.

Participant Lessons Learned Session


Evaluation respondents identified actions they planned to take back to their community as a result of the workshop. These included:

• Request Health Centre staff and resources to meet to find a way to address this issue in our community;

• A workshop for my community; • Help to inform future community support networks; • Open dialogue surrounding sexual violence; • Put forth the need to be addressed; • Plan our own project knowing we have support from this one; • Review this project and see what we can do in our community.

Table 8 Lessons Learned “Part 1” Needs Assessment Participant Response Shown in Actual Numbers and Percentage of the Total for Each Question

Topic Strongly Disagree

Disagree Somewhat Disagree

Somewhat Agree

Agree Strongly Agree

Total No & %

Related to the Needs Assessment I learned more about:

Partnerships 7 64%

4 36%

11 100%

Planning Activities 5 45%

6 55%

11 100%

Processes for safety and support for participants and facilitators

1 9%

5 45.5%

5 45.5%

11 100%

Materials and resources 1 9%

7 64%

3 27%

11 100%

Methods for community engagement

4 35%

7 64%

11 100%

The importance of considering gender differences

1 9%

2 18%

8 73%

11 100%

The importance of considering community and cultural values and voice

1 9%

10 91%

11 100%

Successes and challenges with community engagement

1 9%

5 45.5%

5 45.5%.

11 100%

Themes in needs assessment findings

1 9%

2 18%

9 82%

11 100%

General and community recommendations

1 9%

10 91%

11 100%

Processes to move forward with recommendations

2 18%

3 27%

6 55%

11 100%


Section 7: Conclusions & the Way Forward This section provides overall conclusions for the project in the following areas:

7.1 Partnerships & Collaboration

7.2 Community Engagement & Dialogue on Sexual Violence

7.3 Response & Prevention Strategies

7.4 Sharing Knowledge & Lessons Learned

7.5 Achieving Project Goals & the Way Forward

7.1 Partnerships & Collaboration

Throughout the project, the Advisory Committee played a key role in providing advice, overall direction, and support, where appropriate, in planning and implementation of the needs assessment and the action plan. It was crucial that there was a balance of community members and external partners. Community members knew best what would work for their community and were able to advise and support cultural relevancy. External partners were able to provide other kinds of expertise and access to resources and networks. Developing a shared understanding of what each partner would contribute and then working collaboratively to bring that knowledge, expertise and resources to support the project, resulted in an appreciation for the diverse knowledge, experience, and perspectives of the partners. All of this was undertaken within the understanding that the project would be community-‐based and community led and that Mi’kmaq traditions and values would be respected. Collaboration between the community and external partners strengthened relationships and helped to build trust. Working together enabled external partners to understand the community better and the community to have a better understanding of their partners, what they can offer, and that they value the community. This is particularly true for the relationship between Paqtnkek and the AWRCSASA. Ultimately, this has resulted in a level of comfort and trust with each other, in it being less intimidating to reach out, and in services being more accessible to community members. Advisory Committee members were actively engaged and felt informed about project activities and findings. This was accomplished through participatory processes such as inclusion in planning culturally relevant processes, regular information sharing, creating spaces in meetings for open dialogue, and respectful engagement.

Overall, members were satisfied with their involvement including feeling that their ideas were supported and their contribution was valued. Another indicator of this satisfaction is that they identified actions to continue to support this work and/or to share the results with other Mi’kmaq communities.


At various points in the project when asked what they appreciated, members pointed out the collaboration between Paqtnkek and external partners, productive discussion and learning from each other, being inspired by the commitment and motivation of members, and the research approach as community led action research.

7.2 Community Engagement & Dialogue on Sexual Violence

Community members started to become engaged in the project during the needs assessment phase and continued to be engaged or started to participate up to the final closing meeting. What helped to engage community members was that participation was open, inclusive, and care was taken to provide safe spaces and support for them to be involved. Multiple strategies during the needs assessment phase (focus groups, community forums) and in action plan implementation (i.e. community healing circles, healing through workshops, education for youth and parents) engaged community members at different times in the project according to their comfort level and needs. How the project and sessions were facilitated was important to community engagement. Having a Community Facilitator who lived in and knew the community helped to engage members. Well prepared and experienced facilitators supported participation in needs assessment focus groups and in the response and prevention activities, such as the education sessions and the Supporters Team. Guest facilitators, speakers and supporters who are Mi’kmaw, but reside in other communities and, who are known and respected, enabled community members to feel more comfortable with participating in the Community Healing Circles and the Healing Through workshops. This also gave all community members the option to participate in these sessions. Two other important factors contributed to community engagement during the needs assessment. The first was visible support and participation by Chief and Council, Band staff and Health Centre staff. The second was the participatory methodology of asking community members to identify needs and solutions and to prioritize response and prevention strategies. This sent a signal that this was being taken seriously and that their opinion and contribution mattered. When their priorities were implemented through the action plan, community members participated in activities and they provided feedback on the next steps at the final community meeting. Finally, and perhaps the most important outcome, was that the community process opened up a dialogue about sexual violence, an issue that had not previously been openly talked about. It also enabled community members to feel safe and have support from one another within that discussion. Through this dialogue, community members identified factors that contribute to violence and the various challenges associated with disclosing and reporting sexual violence. They identified that culture is significant (language and ceremony) in addressing violence and sexual violence through healing and forgiveness. They made general recommendations for


breaking the cycle of violence and promoting safety. They recommended that the project must be led by the community, must be community-‐wide with all community members working together including leadership, women, men, elders, youth, survivors, and perpetrators. They recommended that it must build the community’s capacity to address violence and sexual violence to ensure long term sustainability. Opening up dialogue around such a sensitive and complex issue and providing opportunities to learn more about sexual violence was not without challenges. Overall 61.5% of the adults and 43% of the youth in the needs assessment focus groups indicated they had increased their understanding of what sexual violence looks like in Paqtnkek. This meant that 38.5% of the adults and 57% of the youth had challenges with this discussion. Feedback from the facilitators and participants indicated that both adults and youth had varying definitions and understanding of sexual violence and consent. This was largely because sexual violence had become normalized in the community. This raised another challenge of how to address this normalization with adults and with youth. Another challenge that emerged through the needs assessment was how to support every aspect of the issue, including how to work with and support perpetrators who may also be survivors. This is a very complex and sensitive topic, given the historical and current context of colonialism, residential schools, intergenerational trauma, and systemic policies and practices. The challenge is how to address the support and safety needs of survivors, within the dominant context of harmful victim-‐blaming messages, while acknowledging the above complexities.

7.3 Response & Prevention Strategies

The Community Healing Circles created culturally safe spaces for community members to talk about, share their experiences, and start to heal. The process of having confidentiality agreements as well as a team of support people was important to community members trusting the process and feeling safe enough to share their stories. As noted above, having trusted Mi’kmaw facilitators who don’t reside in the community was important. This not only gave all community members the option to participate, but it helped people to open up more to share their experiences. Several response and prevention strategies strengthened individual capacity (knowledge and skills) and community capacity to respond to sexual violence. The included the Supporter’s Team, external service provider workshops, the Policies and Procedures Resource, resources and tools, Educators Team training, and education workshops for youth and parents. The Supporters Team increased their individual knowledge and skills in several important areas including understanding different forms of violence, laws, healthy coping skills and practicing self care. Learning more about trauma and how it affects individuals and the community gave them more insights into how they could be more supportive and compassionate in their role. Some felt better prepared for their role, while others felt there


was still more to learn. The opportunities to share, debrief and having supports for themselves, including the support of the mental health counsellor was very important to the team. They identified the benefits of having men in the group and of involving engaging men and boys in this issue. Some group members found the role stressful, partly because they had learned more about the issue and wanted to do the right thing; and, partly because learning more raised issues for them personally. Also, while learning about vicarious trauma was important, as it put a name to the trauma that many in the community experience, it was hard to talk about it, to acknowledge it, and to cope with it. Group members pointed out the need to strengthen the healing process and the understanding of formal supports so that community members can get further support for their healing. They envisioned continuing with this work, engaging more supporters including men, and possible engaging the broader community in learning how to be an effective supporter with their children or their families. Part of this vision would be to teach everyone the need for self care.

Participants in the workshops for “external” service providers indicated they increased their understanding of residential schools, colonialism and intergenerational trauma; as well as trauma-‐informed, culturally safe, and holistic practice. Furthermore, almost all participants identified actions they intended to take as a result of the workshop. This included several who intended to use the information to strengthen their own practice and would work to strengthen the entire organization or agency response. These are all important steps in building capacity to provide culturally safe services for Paqtnkek community members and, therefore, working toward improving access to external services and supports.

The Policies and Procedures Resource has helped to build the capacity for the community to develop policies and procedures that will create a harassment-‐free and violence-‐free workplace for staff. Several other resources and tools will stay in the community to support building individual and community capacity to respond to and prevent sexual violence. These include presentations, curriculum for programs and workshops, and educational resources (binders) to assist the Supporters Team and the Educators Team in their role. Another strategy was to create a team of educators (Educators Team), composed of community members who would facilitate educational sessions for youth and parents. For a variety of reasons, described in the project implementation section of this report, the team was not implemented as originally envisioned. Three community members did participate in the Educator’s Training Event, which started the process of building capacity for ongoing education. The curriculum for the Educator’s Team Training and for the education sessions for youth and parents will remain in the community as an asset for future use and adaptation. Education workshops for youth and parents had some success in increasing understanding about healthy and unhealthy relationships, consent, sexual violence and online safety. The youth appreciated learning more about the connection of traditional Mi’kmaq teachings to healthy relationships. When the project staff and Health Centre staff reflected on what


worked well about these sessions, they agreed that having sessions for both youth and parents was important so parents would have an idea of what would be discussed with the youth. Sessions for different age groups enabled youth to participate without being judged or criticized. Incorporating the Seven Sacred Teachings was a valuable cultural inclusion and it was felt that this could be strengthened for future sessions. One of the project challenges was to effectively engage the youth in Grades 9-‐12, particularly in the educational workshops. Another related challenge was that there is currently no-‐one in the school to encourage students to get involved/participate which would have helped to support participation. Community members felt that what was needed was someone in their own age group or who was working with them to encourage and support their involvement. Also having youth regularly participating on the Advisory Committee may have helped their involvement. In thinking about future engagement of this age group, community members suggested it was important to ensure that youth have a fuller understanding of healthy relationships, sexual violence and consent in order to support healthy interactions and prevent sexual violence. They also pointed out that, while it is important for young people to recognize sexual violence is a problem in the community to address the normalization of violence, it is important to build resilience and supports for youth, particularly for those who may have experienced and/or witnessed sexual violence and experienced trauma.

7.4 Sharing Knowledge & Lessons Learned

The formal “Lessons Learned “workshop held after completion of the Needs Assessment was successful in sharing knowledge about the project as well as successes and challenges. In their evaluation of the workshop, participants were very positive about what they had learned. They and identified what was helpful for them and actions they planned to take back to their community as a result of the workshop. In addition, there have been and will be opportunities to share information through formal presentations at events and conferences or more at meetings with other Mi’kmaq communities and organizations. Several Advisory Committee members indicated that they will continue to share information about the project.

7.5 Achieving Project Goals & the Way Forward

Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation has embarked on a collaborative journey of sharing, open dialogue and learning. By building on community strengths, the project has strengthened individual and community capacity in a number of areas, while starting to build capacity in others.

Overall, it is evident from the previous sections that the project has achieved the four project goals as follows:


1. Collaborative relationships were established and strengthened between Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation, the Antigonish Women’s Resource Centre and Sexual Assault Services Association, First Nations partners, and StFX University partners.

2. Paqtnkek community members and partners were actively engaged in planning and implementing the needs assessment process. Through a participatory, community-‐led process, community members clarified issues and made recommendations for response and prevention strategies. The priorities that they identified were implemented through an action plan in the second year of the project.

3. Community members were engaged in violence prevention and response activities in a leadership role and as participants. Community members provided feedback and suggestions for next steps at the final community meeting.

4. Insights and lessons learned have been documented. Project results and lessons learned have been shared formally and informally with the network of partners and First Nation communities. There is intention to continue this sharing as requested.

Both community members and partners expressed a very strong commitment to continue the work begun through this project. This was expressed in focus groups, Advisory Committee discussions, and through individual interviews and evaluation forms. At the final project community meeting, community members expressed commitment to continue with the work and concrete suggestions for what to “stop,” “start,” and “continue.”

Funding proposals have been submitted to the Nova Scotia Sexual Violence Strategy for continuation of the project’s activities in Paqtnkek and extension of project activities to We’koqma’q First Nation.

There are no formal recommendations in this report, because the community of Paqtnkek must determine what happens next. However, it would be remiss not to summarize the many suggestions that were offered by community members and partners through the evaluation process. These are summarized here for further consideration by the community.

• Continue with Community Healing Circles and other options for healing.

• The Supporters Team identified the need to continue to strengthen the healing process and the understanding of formal supports, so that community members can get further support for their healing.

• Find ways informally and formally to continue the dialogue and conversations that were started with this project. Continue to apply the insights and the lessons learned through this project, particularly with respect to engaging the community and collaborating with partners to support and facilitate this dialogue.

• Continue the complex and difficult work of addressing challenges that emerged related to how the community experiences violence: the normalization of violence; intergenerational trauma; and, how to support every aspect of the issue, including how to work with and support perpetrators who may also be survivors.


• Engage more supporters, possibly by having a bigger support team and having more men part of the team. Consider engaging the broader community in learning how to be an effective supporter, whether of their children or other family members. Part of this vision would be to teach everyone of the need for self care.

• Given their appreciation for what they learned and the support they received, build in ongoing education and support mechanisms for the Supporters Team.

• More work is needed to engage and involve youth, particularly the adolescent youth. It was suggested that someone in their own age group could support their involvement in sessions and events. There are plans to hold youth retreats.

• The Supporters Team suggested there is a need to build supports for youth and the need to build resilience, particularly for those who may have experienced or witnessed violence and are experiencing trauma.

• There is a need to continue the education of parents and young people about healthy relationships and consent. There was a suggestion to strengthen the cultural component of these sessions. Also, parents wanted more handouts to help them with talking to their children about the topics covered in the sessions and handouts to start discussion with younger children. The planning and leadership of educational sessions are to be included in the work plans of the Health Centre staff.

• Suggestions by community members from the final project community meeting for what “to start” were as follows: Intervention training; policies and procedures; women’s support; men’s support; LGBTQ education; Inspire for young men; more counsellors and support workers.

• As noted in the previous bullet, youth have expressed a need for programming for young men in the community similar to the “Inspire Program” offered by the AWRCSASA for young women (Grades 7 and 8) for the past several years.

• Complete the development of policies and procedures and an implementation plan.

• Continue with cultural competency training for external service providers.

• Continue to work with partners to continue to strengthen the community prevention and response strategies.

• Continue to share stories about the project and the lessons learned both formally and informally with Mi’kmaq communities and networks of groups and organizations.


APPENDIX A: Executive Summary Needs Assessment Results

Prepared by Annie Chau, Project Coordinator and Molly Peters, Community Facilitator This report outlines the findings and recommendations from the needs assessment activities (specifically from the community feedback from the focus groups and safety audit) of the Responding to and Preventing Sexual Violence Project, conducted from November 2014 to April 2015 in Paqtnkek Mi'kmaw Nation. To strengthen response to and prevention of sexual violence, this research was based on the value of nurturing, a value identified early in the project as foundational. The needs assessment activities were conducted with this in mind, as participatory action research seeking community-‐based solutions to the issues of sexual violence.

Themes in the findings • Paqtnkek is a nurturing community -‐ there are networks of informal supporters who are trusted

in the community. • There are varying definitions for violence/sexual violence, healthy relationships, healthy

sexuality, consent, and safety. • There are challenges regarding disclosing and reporting of sexual violence: lateral violence and

victim-‐blaming, lack of confidentiality, re-‐perpetration through systems and services, and the threat of breaking valued familial and social relationships.

• Residential school trauma, intergenerational trauma, and the cycle of violence are presently and widely experienced in the community.

• Racism and colonialism are broader forms of oppression that contextualize violence in the community.

• Culture (language and ceremony) is significant in addressing violence and sexual violence, through healing and forgiveness.

• There are changes in how the community connects -‐ community members are online and using social media; they are not mobilizing together as much.

General recommendations • Breaking the cycle of violence and promoting safety should be the focus in addressing sexual

violence, from individual community members and families to Paqtnkek and the broader community.

• The project needs to be community member-‐led and community-‐wide with all community members working together: leadership, women, men, elders, youth, survivors, and perpetrators.

• The project needs to build the community’s capacity to address violence/sexual violence (past the project’s funding end).

Community recommendations for prevention

• Education and awareness on: -‐ Healthy relationships, healthy sexuality, and consent for women, youth, and men -‐ Harm reduction -‐ alcohol and drug use -‐ Anti-‐bullying and social media/online safety

• Retreats for women, youth, and men to have discussions in safe places • Parental support on how to strengthen positive communication between parents and youth for

healthy relationships and healthy sexuality


APPENDIX A continued: • Youth support on how to develop self-‐esteem and positive identity, understanding

responsibilities, consequences, and boundaries, such as rites of passage • Tools and resources for prevention, such as material on the signs of abuse • Community spaces need to be made safer (lighting/visibility, neighbourhood watch/security,

sidewalks/walkways especially with highway construction) and more accessible Community recommendations for response

• Healing ceremony for the entire community to move forward • Policies and procedures

-‐ Culturally safe, nonjudgmental, and confidential reporting and disclosing options that have follow-‐through processes, addressing the questions: what happens, who is involved, how the perpetrator is addressed, how the survivor is supported

-‐ Mandatory training and support for band staff on policies and procedures • Tools and resources for response, such as a flow chart on what to do and what are the options • Support for supporters of survivors of sexual violence (i.e. parents, family, friends) • External systems and services need ongoing cultural competency training


APPENDIX B: Needs Assessment Focus Group & Safety Audit Evaluation Results

Adult Focus Group Evaluation Results Of the 56 participants in the adult focus groups, 47 completed the evaluation forms, 28 females and 19 males. For each topic on the evaluation form respondents were asked to rate their response using a six-‐point scale with “1” being “strongly disagree” and “6” being “strongly agree.” Respondents were asked open-‐ended questions related to what was most helpful and what could be changed for future sessions.

There were common topics for all the focus groups. Table 9 (below) shows the response to the common topics. The far column shows the total responses for each topic and percentage at 100%. Each column shows the number and percentage of responses for each rating. Table 10 (next page) shows the responses by gender.

Note that some topics have a smaller total. This is due to some topics not covered in the residential school survivor focus group (noted in the shaded area). The residential school survivors were asked specific questions about their experience and, therefore, they were not asked all the questions to ensure their focus group was not too lengthy. In a few cases, a respondent did not answer a question.

Table 9: Adult Participants Response to Common Focus Group Questions Shown in Actual Numbers and Percentage of the Total for Each Question

Topic

Strongly Disagree


Somewhat Agree


Total No & %

This session was useful in identifying…

What violence looks like in Paqtnkek, particularly sexual violence

5 11%

13 27.5%**

16 34%

13 27.5%

47 100%

Factors that contribute to violence

3 6%

14 30%

18 38%

12 26%

47 100%

Challenges and barriers in talking about sexual violence

1 2%

12 25.5%

20 42.5%

14 30%

47 100%

Issues related to being able to report sexual violence

5 11%

11 24%

20 43%

10 22%

46 100%

Ways to improve response to and prevention of sexual violence

2 4%

12 26%

22 47%

11 23%

47 100%

What women need to know or need to have

3 7%

8 18%

22 49%

12 27%

45 100%

What men need to know or need to have

2 4%

5 11%

6 13%

24 53%

8 18%

45 100%

Ways that I could contribute to solutions

5 11%

10 23%

19 43%

10 23%

44 100%

Felt supported to talk about my ideas

1 2%

1 2%

1 2%

8 18%

15 34%

18 41%

44 100%

• ** Percentages have been rounded off where possible; however, in all cases this was not possible in order to be as accurate as possible and add up to 100% as indicated in this row.


APPENDIX B continued Table 10: Adult Focus Group Response to Evaluation Questions Shown by Gender

and as a Percentage of the Number of Responses for Each Category

Topic

Gender Strongly Disagree


Somewhat Agree


Total No & %


What violence looks like in Paqtnkek, particularly sexual violence.

Female 3 11%

8 28.5%

8 28.5%

9 32%

28 100%

Male 2 11%

5 26%

8 42%

4 21%

19 100%


Female 2 7%

8 29%

9 32%

9 32%

28 100%

Male 1 5%

6 32%

9 47%

3 16%

28 100%


Female 7 25%

11 39%

10 36%

28 100%

Male 1 5%

5 26%

9 47%

4 21%

19 100%


Female 4 14%

8 29%

9 32%

7 25%

28 100%

Male 1 5%

3 17%

11 61%

3 17%

18 100%

Ways to improve response to and prevention of sexual violence

Female 1 3%

9 32%

10 36%

8 29%

28 100%

Male 1 5%

3 16%

12 63%

3 16%

19 100%

What women need to know or need to have

Female 2 7%

5 19%

11 41%

9 33%

27 100%

Male 1 5%

3 17%

11 61%

3 17%

18 100%

What men need to know or need to have

Female 2 7%

4 15%

3 11%

12 44%

6 22%

27 100%

Male 1 5%

3 17%

12 67%

2 11%

18 100%


Female 3 11%

7 26%

11 41%

6 22%

27 100%

Male 2 12%

3 17%

8 47%

4 24%

17 100%


Female 1 4%

1 4%

6 24%

5 20%

12 48%

25 100%

Male 1 5%

2 10%

10 53%

6 32%

19 100%


APPENDIX B continued Youth Focus Group Evaluation Results

There were six (6) participants in young women’s focus group, and one (1) participant in the young men’s focus group for a total of seven (7). All seven completed evaluation forms. Table 11 shows the response to topics covered in the focus group. There is no breakdown of responses by gender due to the small number and to maintain confidentiality. For each topic, respondents were asked to rate their response using a six-‐point scale, with 1 being “strongly disagree” and 6 being “strongly agree.” The far column shows the total responses to each question as 100%. Each column shows the number and percentage of the total responses to each rating. Note: only the females responded to “what young women need to know and need to have,” and only the male responded to “what young men need to know or need to have.”

Table 11: Youth Participants’ Response to Evaluation Questions Shown in Actual Numbers and Percentage of the Total for Each Question



Somewhat Agree


Total No & %


What is healthy relationship

2 29%

4 57%

1 14%

7 100%

What is consent 1 14%

4 57%

2 29%

7 100%

How we learn about healthy relationships and consent

2 28.5%**

3 43%

2 28.5%

7 100%

What violence looks like in Paqtnkek, particularly sexual violence.

1 14%

3 43%

1 14%

2 29%

7 100%


1 14.3%

1 14.3%

4 57.1%

1 14.3%

7 100%


1 14%

3 43%

3 43%

7 100%


1 14%

2 29%

1 14%

3 43%

7 100%

What young women need to know or need to have

1 17%

1 17%

2 33%

2 33%

6 100%

What young men need to know or need to have

1 100%

1 100%


1 14.3%

1 14.3%

4 57.1%

1 14.3%

7 100%


6 86%

1 14%

7 100%

** Percentages have been rounded off where possible; however, in all cases this was not possible in order to be as accurate as possible and add up to 100% as indicated in this row.


APPENDIX B continued

Safety Audit Evaluation Results

There were six (6) participants in safety audit, four (4) females and two (2) males. Four of the six participants completed evaluation forms. Table 12 shows the response to topics covered. There is no breakdown of the responses by gender due to the small number in the group. For each topic, respondents were asked to rate their response using a six-‐point scale with 1 being “strongly disagree” and 6 being “strongly agree.” The far column shows the total that responded to each question as 100%. Each column shows the number and percentage of the total that responded each rating.

Table 12: Safety Audit Participants Response to Evaluation Questions

Shown in Actual Numbers and Percentage of the Total for Each Question



Somewhat Agree


Total No & %

This session was useful in identifying….

What safety looks like in Paqtnkek

1 25%

1 25%

2 50%

4 100%

What makes community members feel unsafe or uncomfortable in Paqtnkek

1 25%

1 25%

2 50%

4 100%

What makes community members feel unsafe or uncomfortable outside Paqtnkek

1 25%

1 25%

2 50%

4 100%

Factors that contribute to feeling unsafe in/outside Paqtnkek

2 50%

2 50%

4 100%

The role that alcohol and drugs may play in feeling safe or unsafe

2 50%

2 50%

4 100%

Safe spaces/places in the community to go for support (informal/formal)

1 25%

2 50%

1 25%

4 100%

What the community is doing now to address safety

1 25%

2 50%

1 25%

4 100%

Barriers or gaps to addressing safety

1 25%

1 25%

1 25%

1 25%

4 100%

What the community can do to improve safety

2 50%

2 50%

4 100%


2 50%

2 50%

4 100%


APPENDIX C: Outcomes Evaluation Framework: Revised September 2015 Responding to and Preventing Sexual Violence in Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation

IMPLEMENTATIONOBJECTIVE

TYPE OF EVIDENCE/DATA SOURCES OF DATA

TIME

EXPERIENTIAL/ QUALITATIVE INDICATORS

STATISTICAL/ QUANTITATIVE INDICATORS

1. Engaging the Community and Partners in Planning and Assessing Community Needs

1 (a) To develop a culturally relevant needs assessment process and plan.

Participants in the needs assessment planning session indicate - A plan and process for the needs assessment has been developed that incorporates and respects cultural values and traditions, the community context, and is sensitive to the needs of survivors.

- satisfied that a culturally appropriate framework and process will be used for the project.

- Felt supported to talk about their experience and ideas.

# of participants in the planning session

Evaluation Form Needs Assessment Framework

November 2014

1(b) To increase understanding of sexual violence and changes required to improve response to and prevention of sexual violence in Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation.

Women, men, youth, elders and community leaders indicate they are able to identify: -‐ what violence looks like in the community -‐ how girls and women experience violence -‐ Factors that contribute to violence -‐ challenges and barriers in talking about sexual violence & challenges with reporting violence

-‐ what is needed to improve response and prevention

-‐ what supports are currently available (assets/resources)

-‐ opportunities and challenges for working together to address sexual violence.

-‐ recommendations for action -‐ Felt supported to talk about their experience and ideas.

-‐ For the safety audit, similar indicators to above, only related to community safety.

-‐ For the External Service Provider survey identify resources and supports, gaps, & potential strategies for addressing sexual violence.

- # of focus groups - # of safety audits - # of women - # of men - # of youth - # of elders - # of key issues identified

- # gaps in services - # of assets - # of strategies - Evidence of process for building consensus on priority issues

- # of external service providers responding to survey.

- Coordinator reports

- Focus Group evaluation forms

- Safety Audit Evaluation Forms

- Service Provider survey & report

- Needs assessment report with recommendations

January to March 2015

1( c) To collaboratively develop a strategy to address the priorities identified

Women, men, youth, elders and community leaders

- clarify a vision for a violence-‐free community - identify priorities for an response and prevention action plan.

# of participants

# of community meetings

Community Priorities

Action Plan

March 2015



IMPLEMENTATION OBJECTIVE


TIME



2. Engaging the Community in Violence Prevention and Response Strategies

2 To implement response and prevention strategies/ priorities

Youth and Parents as participants and the Educators Team in their training session indicate they learned more about:

-‐ Mi’kmaq traditional teachings and how to use to better themselves and their relationships;

-‐ Signs of a healthy and unhealthy relationship -‐ Consent and laws associated with consent -‐ Sexual violence -‐ Cyberviolence/cybersafety -‐ Disclosing and reporting violence -‐ Where to go for help -‐ For parents, talking to their children about the above topics.

Educators Team in their training session indicate: - A good understanding of how different forms of oppression interact and impact on sexual violence.

- Confidence in practicing and promoting confidentiality;

- Confidence in ability to respond to disclosures; - Confidence in facilitating topics associated with sexual violence

- Awareness of ability to practice self-‐care.

Supporters Team indicate: ₋ Learned more about different forms of violence and trauma;

-‐ Learned more about healthy coping skills and ability to practice self care;

₋ Feel supported to share and debrief in a safe environment

₋ Feel more prepared to be able to provide support and refer to services.

-‐ Are able to identify a continued role to prevent/improve response to sexual violence

-‐ Indicate their intention to continue to take action on sexual violence.

# of program or workshops # of program or workshop participants

Evaluation forms

Educator Team Training pre-‐ and post-‐survey

Focus group with Supporters Team

Coordinator reports

As completed April 2015-‐February 2016





TIME



2. Engaging the Community in Violence Prevention and Response Strategies

2 (b) to increase understanding of a trauma-‐informed and culturally relevant approach to service provision among external service providers.

.

External Service providers learned more about: - residential school policy, colonial and post colonial policy;

- trauma experienced by residential school survivors; how that trauma has affected families, descendants and communities;

- understanding the broader context of trauma in First Nations communities as a result of colonialism;

- the meaning of trauma-‐informed practice and cultural safety; the importance of understanding community context as part of trauma-‐informed practice and how to incorporate cultural safety into service provision;

- different forms of healing and how different forms of healing can be supported by service providers

- Felt supported to talk about my ideas and share information and what participants found most helpful about the session

- Identify actions or actions participants plan to take back to their workplace as a result of the workshop.

# of sessions with Service Providers

# of participants in sessions

Service Provider workshop evaluation form

At closure of each session

3. Engaging and Collaborating with Partners

3 (a) To involve partners in an Advisory Committee to support culturally appropriate processes and community engagement

Advisory Committee members indicate: - Identified positive partnerships formed and strengthened

- Report an understanding of their role in the project - Report an understanding of the focus on community engagement and inclusion of women, girls, youth, elders, service providers and community leaders to effectively address sexual violence.

- Indicated they were included in planning activities and they were well informed of project activities and outcomes.

- Report satisfaction with the culturally relevant framework, project development, implementation and coordination

# of partners # involved on Advisory Committee # of reports, action plans and strategies, focusing on education and prevention, and improving response to sexual violence.

Advisory Committee evaluation forms

List of Advisory Committee members

Advisory Committee minutes

April 2015 & February 2016 January 2016 Ongoing





TIME



3. Engaging and Collaborating with Partners

3 (a) To involve partners in an Advisory Committee to support culturally appropriate processes and community engagement

- Report increased understanding of community needs and, issues related or the impact of sexual violence on the community.

- Indicate increased knowledge of what is required to improve response to and prevention of sexual violence

- Felt supported to talk about experiences and ideas.

- Felt valued for their participation and contribution.

- Report satisfaction with their involvement in the project.

- Indicate improved coordination and collaboration among partners.

- Report a commitment and actions they can take to move forward with improving response to and prevention of sexual violence in Paqtnkek.

- Identify successes, challenges and lessons learned

- Appreciate the opportunity to share information and network around the issue of sexual violence.

See previous page

See also previous page Reports and Action Plans Project Coordinator reports

Lessons Learned Discussion & Reports

April 2015 & February 2016

3(b) To share new knowledge and lessons learned with First Nations communities, and networks.

Participants in Lessons Learned Workshops indicate: - Understanding of the culturally relevant framework used in project development, implementation and coordination

- Understanding of the community engagement process and inclusion of all community member, leadership and staff to effectively address sexual violence.

- Increased knowledge of what is required to improve response to and prevention of sexual violence

- Understanding of the new knowledge created and lessons learned from this project

- Appreciate the opportunity to share information and network around the issue of sexual violence

- Intention to take or continue to take action in their community

# of knowledge sharing sessions

# of participants in the session

# of locations of sessions.

Coordinator Reports

Knowledge sharing evaluation form.

June 2015 & February 2016

final evaluation report - antigonish women's resource...

Documents