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APM Plenary Sessions


rivers_victor2(300).jpgVictor Rivas Rivers
Opening Plenary Speaker | Thursday, November 8, 6:30 pm


Our opening plenary session will feature Victor Rivas Rivers, a domestic violence activist and founder of The Victor Project.

Victor Rivas Rivers has come a long way since being an abused, angry, gang member. Fortunately, he had the help of individuals in his community who were willing to take a stand on his behalf. Now a well-known domestic violence activist, Rivers advocates for the safety all women and children. In 2017 he launched The Victor Project, designed to help fathers have a positive impact on their children and communities. The project’s goal is to prevent children from experiencing abuse from their fathers, as Rivers did, targeting what often is the root cause of domestic violence. Rivers also seeks to raise awareness of and activism about related forms of abuse, along with how individuals and communities can do more to end violence. His presentation is titled “Ending Domestic Violence and Abuse: It takes a Team.”



215x205_walters_karina-(2).jpgKarina Walters 
Carl A. Scott Memorial Lecture | Friday, November 9, 8:45 am

Dr. Karina Walters, University of Washington School of Social Work’s associate dean for research, will be the plenary speaker for the 2018 Carl A. Scott Memorial Lecture Series. Walters is an enrolled member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and the founder, co-director, and principal investigator of the Indigenous Wellness Research Institute at the University of Washington.

Walters’ lecture, titled “Imaiyạchi: Transcending Historical Trauma and Living Ancestral Visions Imagined for Us,” will provide an overview of innovations in social epidemiological and community-based intervention approaches to addressing historical trauma and transcending trauma. Learn more here


2018-Innette-Cambridge-Picture.JPGInnette Cambridge 

Hokenstad International Lecture | Saturday, November 10, 8:45 am

Dr. Innette Cambridge, a senior lecturer, co-ordinates and lectures in the Social Policy Programme of the Social Work Unit at the University of the West Indies, Trinidad, and will be the plenary speaker for the Hokenstad International Lecture. She was the first local teacher in social work when the Social Work Programme began at UWI in 1990 and has developed multiple curricular programs.

Dr. Cambridge will speak about educating social work students about sustainable development goals, including health, ensuring quality education, and peace and justice.