APIN ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2024
Featuring
Dr. Michael Ungar
“Nurturing Resilience: The Many Ways Parents, Service Providers and Communities can Help Children Thrive”
APIN was excited to host its Annual Conference in person this year – the first time since prior to the pandemic. The Conference was held on May 16th at the Caboto Centre, and APIN was delighted to see so many in attendance!
The day’s program was provided by Dr. Michael Ungar. Dr. Ungar is a Family Therapist and Professor of Social Work at Dalhousie University where he holds the Canada Research Chair in Child, Family and Community Resilience. He is the number one ranked Social Work scholar in the world, with numerous educational institutions, government agencies, not-for-profits and businesses relying on his research and clinical work to guide their approaches to nurturing child, family, organizational and community wellbeing under stress. Dr. Ungar has received numerous awards for his work, including the Canadian Association of Social Workers National Distinguished Service Award and has been named a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.
In his engaging and story-filled presentation, “Nurturing Resilience: How Parents, Service Providers and Communities can Help Children Thrive”, Dr. Ungar described that our children’s resilience is much more than their individual ability to overcome adversity. It is just as much the result of how well their parents, caregivers, extended families, schools and communities work together to help children navigate their way to the resources they need for wellbeing, and whether those resources are made available to children in ways children experience as meaningful. Dr. Ungar provided practical strategies that can be used to help children thrive, no matter the child’s emotional, psychological or behavioral problems.
Those who attended the Conference enjoyed Dr. Ungar’s presentation style and the many interactive activities included throughout the day. The Conference also provided a valuable networking opportunity for service providers, an opportunity to get out of the office and connect in person with one another, something many haven’t been able to do for quite some time. It was wonderful to both see familiar faces and make new connections!
To view a sample of Dr. Ungar’s work, please go to his website www.michaelungar.com.