Sara Laurino

My name is Sara Laurino and I am a second year graduate student in the School of Social Work at UW.  I am interested in learning traditional healing techniques from indigenous Canadian populations in order to work alongside these communities to build culturally appropriate social work interventions that will foster communication and continue to heal the harms that indigenous populations have experienced by Western influence.  Enhancing my knowledge of Canada and the residential school system put in place by colonists, will help expand my knowledge on the long term effects of community trauma and healing. Understanding the ways through which Canada, and specifically Quebec, have addressed these issues will allow me to combine my multigenerational social work perspective with what I am learning as a FLAS fellow in order to comprehend a model of how colonial powers can hold themselves accountable for the trauma they have inflicted on indigenous populations, and how those populations continue to heal within a society that is westernized.  Learning Inuktitut is a key component in my work, as it broadens my understanding of the depth and intricacies of the Inuit population, and allows me to approach my work with humility and respect.