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The Western Canadian Mental Health & Education Summit | Day One [Calgary, AB]

$229.00

6 Hours  |   Pre-approved for CEU’s

Presenter
Presented by Cynthia Wesley-Esquimaux, Ph.D., and Lisa Porter, DCP, CCC, CCS
Date and Format
November 4, 2026
Categories: , , ,
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LIVE STREAM: November 4 – 6, 2026 from  8:30am – 4:00pm (Calgary AB) Please adjust your start time according to your specific time zone. 

ON-DEMAND: Recorded footage & course content (certificate, videos, quiz) will be available until December 20, 2027. Please allow 3 – 10 business days for footage to be processed. Extensions cannot be granted under any circumstances.

Day One | November 4, 2026

1. AI in Action: Transforming Education and Therapy for Every Learner

Presented by Lisa Porter, DCP, CCC, CCS

8:30am – 4:00pm   November 4, 2026

WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION 

Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing how educators, therapists, and mental health professionals support learning, wellbeing, communication, and intervention. This practical and thought-provoking workshop brings together professionals from education, counselling, psychology, occupational therapy, speech-language pathology, physical therapy, and related fields to explore how AI can be used responsibly, effectively, and ethically in professional practice.

Moving beyond headlines and hype, participants will examine real-world applications of AI that can be implemented immediately to enhance learning, improve accessibility, support individualized interventions, streamline administrative tasks, and foster creativity and engagement. Through demonstrations, case examples, and hands-on discussion, attendees will gain practical strategies for integrating AI into their work while maintaining professional standards and human-centred care.

The workshop will also engage participants in some of the most pressing ethical and societal debates surrounding AI. Topics may include the growing use of AI as a source of companionship for young people, the environmental implications of large-scale AI technologies, concerns about privacy and data security, and the evolving role of AI in educational settings. Rather than focusing solely on detecting AI use by students, participants will explore approaches that acknowledge AI as an emerging reality and learn strategies for incorporating it into teaching, learning, and assessment in meaningful and constructive ways.

For mental health professionals, the workshop will include demonstrations of ethical AI-assisted case conceptualization and treatment planning, highlighting both the potential benefits and the important limitations of these tools. Throughout the day, participants will critically examine how AI can support professional judgment without replacing the relational, ethical, and human dimensions that remain central to education and therapy.

Participants will leave with practical tools, concrete examples, and a balanced understanding of both the opportunities and challenges AI presents, equipping them to navigate this rapidly evolving landscape with confidence, curiosity, and professional integrity.

2. Walking the Medicine Wheel to Holistic Wellness, Personal Growth & Healing
Presented by Cynthia Wesley-Esquimaux, Ph.D.

8:30am – 4:00pm   November 4, 2026

WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION

The Medicine Wheel offers a holistic framework for understanding wellness, healing, and our connection to ourselves, our communities, and the world around us. Rooted in Indigenous teachings, the Medicine Wheel reminds us that healing is not simply the absence of illness but the ongoing process of nurturing balance among the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual aspects of our lives.

This interactive six-hour workshop invites participants to explore the Medicine Wheel as a guide for personal reflection, healing, and growth. Through discussion, storytelling, experiential activities, and self-reflection, participants will examine the impact of life experiences, relationships, and intergenerational influences on well-being. The workshop emphasizes practical ways to reconnect with traditional teachings, strengthen resilience, and cultivate a deeper understanding of holistic wellness.

Participants will leave with a renewed appreciation for Indigenous perspectives on healing and practical strategies for fostering balance, connection, and personal growth.

  • Explain the capabilities, limitations, and current applications of artificial intelligence within education and clinical practice.
  • Apply AI tools to enhance learning, accessibility, intervention planning, administrative efficiency, and professional practice.
  • Critically evaluate AI-generated content to support sound professional judgment and evidence-informed decision-making.
  • Analyze ethical, legal, and professional considerations associated with the responsible use of AI in educational and therapeutic settings.
  • Develop practical strategies for integrating AI into professional practice while maintaining ethical standards, human connection, and professional integrity.
  • Appreciating the value and healing generated from physical activities, dietary changes and access to traditional foods, herbs, as well as why removing excessive sugars, alcohol, and other damaging substances is essential for a life well-lived.
  • Re-membering positive experiences of learning, listening, seeking, probing, reading, and engaging in dialogue with elders, colleagues, family, and those who are trained to stimulate and lift our intellect and emotional health in a good way.
  • Deepening our understanding of our emotions (what they are and how they work) and how our emotional states are affected by inner turmoil/voice and/or perceived external stressors. Laughing, crying, and allowing our feelings to have expression in ways that heal our hearts and our souls. Remembering seven generations went through atrocities in Indian Residential Schools, and subsequent generations have been tasked with beginning and sustaining the healing of chronic emotional repression and societal discrimination,
  • Many of us have moved away from maintaining a spiritual practice – this doesn’t necessarily mean a formal or religious practice, it could mean appreciation of the wind on our faces, listening to the whispering of the trees, and when invited – smudging and attending ceremony, and sweat lodges to feed our spirit with good medicines, words, and actions. How do we reconstitute a daily practice in the face of continuing social injustice and unrelenting exclusion?

Cynthia Wesley-Esquimaux, Ph.D. served as Vice Provost for Indigenous Initiatives at Lakehead University for three years. Effective September 2016 she was appointed as the 1st Indigenous Chair for Truth and Reconciliation in Canada for Lakehead University and continues to develop pathways forward to reconciliation across Canada. Cynthia was inducted as a “Honourary Witness” by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada in 2014, and is the Chair of the Governing Circle for the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation at the University of Manitoba.

Cynthia was the inaugural Nexen Chair for Indigenous Leadership at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity where she remains a faculty member and is currently the Interim Director for the Indigenous Leadership Program. She is also Chair of the Teach for Canada non-profit which recruits teachers for remote First Nation schools in Ontario and Manitoba.

Cynthia is a member and resident of the Chippewa of Georgina Island First Nation in Ontario and has dedicated her life to building bridges of understanding. She sees endless merit in bringing people from diverse cultures, ages, and backgrounds together to engage in practical dialogue and applied research initiatives. She is deeply committed to public education and offers as many as 150 key notes, workshops, and training sessions annually to a variety of groups, organizations and institutions. She teaches on historic and contemporary Indigenous trauma and wisdom, treaties and right relations, active youth engagement, and Indigenizing education.

She is always interested in mentoring young people and co-founded a youth project out of the University of Toronto, the University of Saskatchewan and Lakehead University. More information on the Canadian Roots Exchange (CRE) can be found at: www.canadianroots.ca.

Lisa Porter, DCP, CCC, CCS, started her career as a high school teacher, working in the public education in both Alberta and BC. She later transitioned into high school counselling, where she spent ten years supporting student mental health and wellbeing. Upon completing her doctoral degree in Counselling and Psychotherapy, Lisa moved into higher education and now teaches in both Master of Education and Master of Counselling programs, preparing future educators and mental health professionals for professional practice.

Lisa’s research and professional presentations focus on the impact of social media, artificial intelligence, and digital technologies on mental health, education, and professional practice. Her work emphasizes practical, evidence-informed approaches that help educators and clinicians respond thoughtfully to the opportunities and challenges presented by emerging technologies. Her other research interests include harmonizing practitioner and scholar models in higher education, collaborative leadership within complex systems, and promoting youth voice in education and mental health. Lisa is co-author and co-editor of School Counselling in Canada: A Comprehensive Guide (2025).

Education and Clinical Professionals: All education and mental health or healthcare professionals who work with children or youth including, but not limited to K–12 Classroom Teachers, School Counsellors, Learning Assistance/Resource Teachers, School Administrators, School Paraprofessionals including Special Education Assistants, Classroom Assistants and Childcare Workers • All other professionals who support behavioural challenges and complex learning needs including but not limited to: Nurses, Social Workers, Psychologists, Clinical Counsellors, Family Therapists, Occupational Therapists, Speech Language Pathologists, Addiction Counsellors, Youth Workers, Mental Health Workers, Probation Officers and Community Police Officers.

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