NSCSW lunch & learn: Indigenous Ethics

Nova Scotia College of Social Workers

How might Indigenous practices & ethics relate to ethical social work and helping practices?

Social work ethics

Members of the Nova Scotia College of Social Workers are required to complete annual professional development, which must include training related to social work ethics.

Truth & reconciliation

Members of the Nova Scotia College of Social Workers are required to complete annual professional development, which must include training or activities related to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's calls for action.

Social work practice is guided the Code of Ethics, Values, and Standards of Practice. These essential documents guide social workers towards ethical, equitable, and safe(r) practice; however, they are also grounded in colonial logics and ways of knowing and being. Indigenous Ethics come from beyond colonial ways of knowing and being and can be applied in social work and helping practices. This session will be grounded in Mi’kmaw teachings, spirituality, and practices and offer insights to how social workers and helpers can apply Indigenous ethics in their practices. This explores the questions: How might the ideas of time, sacred medicines, spirituality, and the Seven Sacred Teachings relate to ethical social work and helping practices? What are the ways we can move forward with both western methodologies and Indigenous methodologies towards greater ethical and equitable practices? This session Is a webinar, which will also be recorded for future viewing. OBJECTIVES<ul><li>Knowledge: Identify and understand the strategies &amp; approaches inform the ethics of Indigenous helping and social work practice (Analyze &amp; Understand).</li><li>Skill: Attribute and apply Indigenous ethics that support ethical social work and helping practices (Apply).</li><li>Values: Examine and shift beliefs, worldviews, and ideologies related to ethical social work and helping practices (Evaluate &amp; Understand).</li></ul> <h3>Speaker</h3>Veronica Bernard MSW, RSW is a workshop facilitator, educator, and clinical therapist. She also runs a private practice as a specialist with Mapping Minds Counseling. Veronica has devoted over two decades assisting others in the area of mental wellness. Veronica specializes in suicide and life promotion, proudly sits on the board of directors for Bereaved Families of Nova Scotia, and formerly served as a director with the Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention and co-vice president and is involved with many other working groups. A strong believer in her Mi’kmaw culture, Veronica continually develops internal wellness campaigns to assist others with holistic approaches to healing. Veronica obtained her Mi’kmaw Maliseet Bachelor of Social Work degree through Saint Thomas University in 2011 and graduated with her Masters in Social Work from the University of New England in Portland Maine U.S in 2021. Veronica is also currently enrolled in her Doctorate of Counselling and Psychotherapy through Yorkville University. Veronica is inspired by her lost loved ones and her family. In her free time, she likes to write, create art with sea-glass, bake, garden, camp, hunt, and fish. She currently lives in Potlotek First Nation located in Mi’kma’ki formerly known as Chapel Island in Nova Scotia. <h3>Eligibility</h3>You'll need a reliable internet connection and a device that can use Zoom. There are no other pre-requisites to this session, but attendees are encouraged to read Veronica’s paper, "<a href="https://mcusercontent.com/00f5af44d0574871cc42765e6/files/9eacabe7-c0f0-3c9f-6e24-9c42fd5c7f74/WRSP_A_2462609_Veronica_Marshall_Bernard.pdf" title="https://mcusercontent.com/00f5af44d0574871cc42765e6/files/9eacabe7-c0f0-3c9f-6e24-9c42fd5c7f74/WRSP_A_2462609_Veronica_Marshall_Bernard.pdf" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Reflections on Mi’kmaw spirituality in my clinical social work practice</a>," in advance of the session. NSCSW MembersAll active, associate, retired associate, and student members of the Nova Scotia College of Social Workers are welcome to attend at no charge; our professional development programming is part of our member services funded by annual registration fees. Community PartnersAll allied practitioners in Nova Scotia/Mi'kma'ki interested in this topic are eligible to sign up for a $5 partner ticket; just let us know which profession you're part of when you register. <h3>Related Code of Ethics &amp; Standards of Practice</h3> <h4>CASW:</h4>Value 1: Respecting the Dignity and Worth of All PeopleGuiding Principle 1.4: Social workers respect the status, rights, diversity and needs of First Nation, Métis, and Inuit Peoples.Guiding Principle 1.5: Social workers uphold the rights of all people to receive services in a manner that considers intersecting factors of exclusion and respects all manner of diversity.Value 2: Promoting Social JusticeGuiding Principle: Social workers advocate for the rights of Indigenous Peoples to be free from racism, systemic racism, and discrimination as stipulated in the United Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act. 10Value 3: Pursuing Truth and ReconciliationGuiding Principle 3.1: Social workers uphold the values and principles of reconciliation.Guiding Principle 3.2: Social workers acknowledge Indigenous world views in their practice.Value 7: Providing Competent Professional ServicesGuiding Principle 7.1: Social workers continuously develop their professional knowledge and skill at the level required to provide competent professional services. NSCSW (2008):Value 6: Competence in Professional Practice.Associated principles:Social workers strive to maintain and increase their professional knowledge and skill.Social workers contribute to the on-going development of the profession and its ability to serve humanity, where possible, by participating in the development of current and future social workers and the development of new professional knowledge. *Note: The College is revising our foundational documents to align closely with the new “CASW Code of Ethics, Values and Guiding Principles” published in 2024, with amendments as needed for the Nova Scotian context. They have recently been approved by NSCSW Council and will be available to our members later in 2025. <h3>Professional development tracking</h3>For members of NSCSW, participating in this event is eligible to fulfill the annual requirement for professional development related to social work ethics. Members who have already completed that requirement for the year may instead categorize this session as formal professional development.Visit nscsw.org/pd for more information about the updated professional development requirements for Nova Scotia social workers. <h3>Questions?</h3>If you have questions about our professional development program content, please contact the College's Professional Development Consultant, Tyler Colbourne, at tyler.colbourne@nscsw.org. If you have registered for a session and are having difficulty accessing it online, please contact nscsw@nscsw.org.

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NSCSW lunch & learn: Indigenous Ethics

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