When Land Is More Than Earth: Trauma, Memory, and Healing Among Peoples Spiritually Grounded in Place

This webinar is presented by Dr. David Danto, Ph.D., R.Psych.
Date: Thursday, August 13, 2026
Time: 9:00 am PT/ 10:00 am MT/ 11:00 am CT/ 12:00 pm ET
     
Webinar length is approx. 90 mins, ZOOM link will be sent in a registration confirmation email and will be emailed directly to you a few days before the event.

Intergenerational trauma leaves enduring marks, yet Indigenous Peoples around the world have cultivated culturally grounded paths to heal these wounds. In this webinar, Dr. David Danto begins with a brief personal disclosure to situate his perspective and uses archival recordings of his father, Cantor Louis Danto, to enhance this context. He then shares case material from community-engaged research with Indigenous partners together with parallels from his own life as a Jewish person, tracing how land, language, ceremony, and culture can work in concert to mend the wounds of inherited trauma. Throughout, the session probes the relational mechanisms that make these elements therapeutic and considers how such insights can inform clinical care, community programming, and policy. Participants will leave with an evidence-informed, culturally respectful framework for supporting healing from trauma across diverse settings.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this webinar, participants will be able to

1. Describe the reciprocal relationship between people and land as a form of custodianship.

2. Articulate the significance of the land in shaping individual and collective identity.

3. Discuss the roles of language and ceremony in healing intergenerational trauma.

4. Explore shared themes linking Indigenous and Jewish experiences of trauma and their culturally grounded healing practices.

References:

Danto, D. and Zangeneh, M. (Eds.). (2022). Indigenous Knowledge and Mental Health: A Global Perspective. Springer Nature.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-71346-1
 

Indigenous Grassroots and Family-Run Land-Based Healing in Northern Ontario. Sommerfeld, J, Danto, D. & Walsh, R. (2021).  International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction. doi:10.1007/s11469-021-00496-0

Land-Based Healing: Toward Understanding the Role of Elders. Walsh, R., Sommerfeld, J. & Danto, D. (2020). International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction,
doi:10.1007/s11469-020-00409-7 

Learning from Those Who Do: Land-Based Healing in a Mushkegowuk Community. Danto, D., Walsh, R. & Sommerfeld, J. (2020). International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, doi:10.1007/s11469-020-00306-z

Indigenous Land-Based Interventions and Nature-Oriented Wellness Programs:  Commonalities and Important Differences. Sommerfeld, J, Danto, D. & Walsh, R. (2019). Journal of Concurrent Disorders, 1(4), 37-45.

Canadian Psychological Association (Danto, D., Chair). Psychology’s response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Report (Ottawa: CPA, May, 2018).

Dr. David Danto is the Dean of Health and Community Studies and holds the rank of Professor in the Department of Public Safety and Justice Studies at MacEwan University, located in O-day’min, amiskwaciwâskahikan (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada) on Treaty 6 Territory. He is an experienced academic leader and administrator, a Registered Clinical Psychologist, serves on the Council of the College of Alberta Psychologists as President-Elect, and is an elected Fellow of the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA).

An award-winning instructor and author, Dr. Danto’s scholarship focuses on health, community, and human rights, with a particular emphasis on reconciliation and culturally grounded approaches to addressing intergenerational trauma in both local and global contexts. He is the co-editor of Indigenous Knowledge and Mental Health: A Global Perspective (Springer, 2022). He was the founding Chair of the CPA Task Force on Responding to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report and chaired the CPA’s Standing Committee on Reconciliation.

Clinically, Dr. Danto has practiced in psychiatric hospitals, counselling centres, private practice, and correctional institutions in Canada and the United States. He has delivered keynote addresses and invited presentations for organizations including the American Psychological Association, Canadian Psychological Association, Canadian Council of Professional Psychology Programs, Canadian Armed Forces, and the International Society for Health and Human Rights, as well as numerous universities in Canada, the U.S., and internationally.