Drawing from over 15 years of queer and trans advocacy, as well as over a decade in practice as a wellness professional, trauma recovery expert, and conflict transformation facilitator, award-winning author and spiritual teacher Kai Cheng Thom offers a revitalizing perspective on the meaning of love in a time of intense social strife and political polarization : How do we understand love not as a fuzzy feeling, not as an intellectual concept, but as a discipline and set of practices that we can apply to strengthen our resilience and deepen relationships for the purpose of pursuing justice? Love as our greatest power in the struggle for social change? This highly engaged, practically focused presentation will leave you with: 1) A simple but powerful psychological framework for understanding love and resilience as a practice, 2) 3 simple tools that you can use to resolve conflict and engage in meaningful conversations with people who may hold bigoted or prejudiced beliefs, 3) A visualization practice for self-care and personal development.

There will be a Q&A and book signing with the author to follow the event.

This is a hybrid event: the program is in-person, but we will also stream live on OPL's YouTube page.

Registration is for the in-person portion of the event.

In-person attendees will get the chance to win a copy of Falling Back in Love with Being Human.

This event is made possible thanks to the generosity of the Friends of the Ottawa Public Library Association.

About Kai Cheng Thom:

Kai Cheng Thom, Master of Social Work, MSc Couple & Family Therapy, is a Certified Somatic Sex Educator, Qualified Mediator, Clinical Hypnotherapist and Certified Professional Life Coach based in tkaronto/Toronto. She is the author of six award-winning books in various genres, including the Publishing Triangle Award-winning essay collection on Transformative Justice, I HOPE WE CHOOSE LOVE, the New York Times-featured picture book From the Stars In the Sky to the Fish in the Sea, and the recent Canadian bestseller Falling Back In Love With Being Human.

Kai Cheng's work as a noted practitioner and teacher of Somatic Sex Education, Sexological Bodywork, and Somatic Coaching focuses on the intersection of social justice, pleasure activism, and transformative approaches to healing conflict and harm. She maintains a private practice as a hands-on sex and intimacy coach with individuals, couples, and polycules, as well as a consultancy as a master facilitator and leadership coach with organizations across North America. She also teaches as Adjunct Faculty at the Institute for the Study of Somatic Sex Education and Faculty at The Embody Lab, having trained hundreds of practitioners in body-based, trauma-informed, and anti-oppressive approaches to individual and social change.