NWATTC Holds 1st Training Event: Healing of the Canoe: Life Skills Curriculum Training for Native Youth

On October 18-19, 2017, the Northwest ATTC (NWATTC) held its inaugural event, a 1.5 day training on the Healing of the Canoe curriculum.  The training was held in Spokane, WA at Northern Quest, a resort owned and operated by The Kalispel Tribe of Indians.

Healing of the Canoe is a life-skills curriculum originally developed by Dr. Dennis Donovan in collaboration with the Suquamish and Port Gamble S'Klallam tribes and colleagues at that University of Washington Alcohol & Drug Abuse Institute (ADAI). The curriculum employs the "Canoe Journey" as a metaphor, providing youth with skills needed to navigate their journey through life without being pulled off course by alcohol or drugs -- with tribal culture, tradition, and values as a compass to guide them, and anchor to ground them. 

The training event drew 33 participants representing 10 regional tribes, and was facilitated by Dr. Donovan, NWATTC Senior Liaison. The NWATTC -- a new project of the Alcohol & Drug Abuse Institute / UW -- is excited to sponsor Healing of the Canoe trainings, with plans in the next five years to expand dissemination of this culturally-grounded life skills curriculum throughout SAMHSA Region 10 states of Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.