We Al-li community and workplace workshops are an Indigenous therapeutic response to individual, family and community pain that many people carry as part of their life experience. For Aboriginal peoples this pain is more specifically defined as the traumatic impacts of the multiple intergenerational experiences of colonisation resulting in ill-health, individual, family and community dysfunction (dys – Latin from the Greek dus meaning painful or difficult functioning). We Al-li specifically meets this need through tailored workshops that are trauma informed in their design and trauma specific in their delivery. Educational units have been developed from university pre and post graduate courses. They benefit from an evolving theoretical database of research and practical application that spans over a decade. This has allowed We Al-li to stay current both academically and in practice.

This workshop introduces participants to the complex of causal factors and consequences of chemical dependency in relation to violent behaviours. These are often at the core of our most costly long-term community problems in the areas of health, education and public safety. The connections between addictive behaviours and recovery through focusing on the 11th step in the twelve step AA program are explored.