Harm reduction education, systems consulting, and political writing rooted in a refusal to accept that harm is inevitable or that people are disposable.
Care beyond Carceral Logic
Available workshops
please reach out for sliding scale price
This one-on-one consultation is designed for individuals, teams, or organizations seeking thoughtful guidance on harm reduction, trauma-informed practice, and equity-centered service delivery.
Drawing on frontline and lived experience, policy analysis, and abolitionist frameworks, these sessions help unpack common assumptions that shape how we approach people who use drugs, poverty, housing instability, and community care. Together we examine how systems such as carceral logic, stigma, respectability politics, and individualism influence everyday practice and how we respond to behaviours often labelled as “high-risk” when they fall outside dominant social norms.
Sessions are collaborative and practical. Participants are invited to reflect on current challenges, ask difficult questions, and explore tangible strategies that move beyond charity models toward dignity-based, relationship-centered approaches.
This consultation may include:
Case consultation and ethical decision-making support
Harm reduction and overdose response best practices
Navigating stigma, bias, and deficit narratives in service settings
Applying trauma-informed principles without carceral or punitive frameworks
Strategies to reduce burnout while strengthening relational care
Each session is tailored to the needs of the participant or team, with the goal of supporting practices that prioritize dignity, safety, and collective wellbeing.
Pricing is structured to increase access for grassroots and peer-led spaces while sustaining this work within larger funded institutions
Reframing Trauma-Informed Practice in Complex Systems
Moving from charity → solidarity
With practical tools for non-carceral care
Trauma-informed practice is widely used across healthcare, housing, and social services but often in ways that focus on individual experiences while leaving broader systemic conditions unexamined.
This session invites a wider lens.
Together, we will explore how trauma is shaped not only by personal experience, but by the environments and systems people are navigating—including policy, institutional culture, and broader social conditions.
We will look at how common frameworks—such as nervous system regulation and the “window of tolerance” can be valuable, but incomplete when disconnected from context.
Participants will be invited to reflect on:
The relationship between systems, power, and trauma
How organizational structures can unintentionally reproduce harm
The tensions workers experience when trying to provide care within constrained environments
We will introduce critical concepts, including necropolitics and deficit-based narratives, and explore how these show up in everyday practice.
Importantly, this session moves beyond theory.
We will focus on practical, real-world applications:
How to navigate moments where policy, power, and care collide
Ways to practice dignity-based, non-carceral care within institutional settings
Strategies for sustaining meaningful, ethical engagement in complex systems
This space is especially relevant for those who have felt the gap between what they know is right and what systems allow, and are seeking grounded, actionable ways to respond.
Frontline workers in harm reduction and supportive housing are often placed in situations where calling the police becomes the default response to conflict or crisis. But policing rarely addresses the root causes of these situations—and can often escalate harm.
This webinar explores alternatives through an abolitionist harm reduction lens.
We will examine how systems like the drug war, respectability politics, and necropolitics shape frontline responses, and how subtle “us vs them” dynamics can emerge between staff and the communities they serve.
Participants will explore practical strategies including peer-led de-escalation, community agreements, and relationship-based approaches to safety.
This session invites workers to move beyond carceral defaults and toward solidarity-based responses rooted in dignity, care, and community knowledge.
Length 1-1.5 hours
Pricing is structured to increase access for grassroots and peer-led spaces while sustaining this work within larger funded institutions
Reframing Trauma-Informed Practice in Complex Systems
Moving from charity → solidarity
With practical tools for non-carceral care
Trauma-informed practice is widely used across healthcare, housing, and social services, but often in ways that focus on individual experiences while leaving broader systemic conditions unexamined.
This session invites a wider lens.
Together, we will explore how trauma is shaped not only by personal experience, but by the environments and systems people are navigating—including policy, institutional culture, and broader social conditions.
We will look at how common frameworks—such as nervous system regulation and the “window of tolerance”—can be valuable, but incomplete when disconnected from context.
Participants will be invited to reflect on:
The relationship between systems, power, and trauma
How organizational structures can unintentionally reproduce harm
The tensions workers experience when trying to provide care within constrained environments
We will introduce critical concepts, including necropolitics and deficit-based narratives, and explore how these show up in everyday practice.
Importantly, this session moves beyond theory.
We will focus on practical, real-world applications:
How to navigate moments where policy, power, and care collide
Ways to practice dignity-based, non-carceral care within institutional settings
Strategies for sustaining meaningful, ethical engagement in complex systems
This space is especially relevant for those who have felt the gap between what they know is right and what systems allow, and are seeking grounded, actionable ways to respond.
Pricing is structured to increase access for grassroots and peer-led spaces while sustaining this work within larger funded institutions
Advancing Ethical Harm Reduction Approaches
Exploring how institutionalization, prohibition, and power shape what harm reduction becomes and what it was always meant to be.
This training invites teams to deepen their understanding of substance use and care by exploring the broader conditions that shape health, behaviour, and survival.
Grounded in frontline and lived experience, this session draws on harm reduction principles to examine how systems, policies, and organizational practices influence responses to people who use drugs and other marginalized communities.
Participants will explore:
How stigma and bias can shape care practices
The impact of policy and institutional structures on service delivery
Common tensions between organizational expectations and ethical, person-centered care
This session supports teams to reflect critically on their current approaches and consider shifts toward more relational, dignity-based practices.
Through discussion, reflection, and real-world examples, participants will:
Strengthen their ability to provide respectful, person-centered care
Explore ways to support autonomy and build trust
Identify practical strategies to navigate complex situations while maintaining ethical integrity
Reduce burnout by aligning practice with values
Ideal for: healthcare teams, outreach workers, non-profits, educators, and organizational leaders
Sessions are available as 90-minute trainings, half-day workshops, or full-day sessions, and can be tailored to your organization.
Transform your practice with personalized educational guidance. Reserve ing tailored to your needs. Offerings are designed for individuals, teams, and organizations seeking practical, grounded approaches to harm reduction and trauma-informed practice.
Testimonials
I’ve had the absolute pleasure of knowing Heather both personally and professionally for several years. Heather is an absolute force in our community, using her experience to write, lead, educate, advocate and support others. I highly recommend Heather as a thought leader, a powerful voice, and a tireless bridge between communities. Heather possesses a rare ability to connect academics, professionals and those with lived experience while maintaining an environment of dignity, respect and mutuality. I continue to be awed and inspired by the invaluable work Heather provides.
-Helen Thomas MA, RCC
Knowing Heather on both a personal and professional level for a number of years has been nothing short of inspirational. A fierce advocate, forged from the fires of her own lived experience, she fights tirelessly for that which is Just. She speaks Truth to Power with a commanding eloquence that engages and agitates, and that always honours and amplifies the voices of those not in the room. Heather's courageous self and systemic examination is thought-provoking, inviting others to question and reflect, and she fosters an environment of inclusivity, compassion and dignity. Her insight, intellect and passion invoke a revolutionary awakening and I have been changed for the better for knowing her.
-Gina Egilson, Community Organizer, Treasurer Chair, Board of Directors at Surrey Union of Drug Users
Heather always facilitates an honest space where everyone can show up authentically
-Courtney bell MPH, Fraser Health
Heather helps create knowledge and autonomy where there was only distresse and exhaustion.
-Sarah Whidden, Vancouver Coastal Health