Join Dr. Zach Walsh and social worker Ben Goerner as they share their knowledge and insight about addiction.

Dr. Zach Walsh is a Professor in the UBC Department of Psychology. He attended the University of Winnipeg as an undergraduate, received a PhD in Clinical Psychology in 2008 from the Chicago Medical School/Rosalind Franklin University, and completed a clinical internship and a research fellowship at the Brown University Centre for Alcohol and Addiction Studies. Dr. Walsh is a registered clinical psychologist whose research has been supported by the Canadian Institute of Health Research, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, Health Canada, BC Interior Health Authority, the Peter Wall Endowment, and the American Psychological Association.

Ben Goerner spent 31 years as a counsellor providing treatment services for individuals, groups and families struggling with mental health and substance use issues as well as facilitating community workshops on mental health and substance use for professionals and the public. The last 10 years of his career he spent working alongside those who were also struggling with homelessness. During his career he also spent 15 years working directly with at risk youth and their families. He has been retired since 2020 and continues to volunteer with Moms Stop the Harm, a now national organization of people who have lost loved ones to the toxic drug (opioid) crisis. He facilitates a family support group through this organization and continues to advocate hard for a significant change in drug policy which he feels is the core of the toxic drug crisis.

* According to current BC COVID-19 restrictions, everyone 12+ must be fully vaccinated to attend this event.