Healing Among Crises
In rural Nova Scotia, crisis is not an isolated event but an ongoing reality. Acute disasters like increasing frequency and intensity of storms and wildfires, the 2020 mass shooting in Portaupique, the epidemic of gender-based violence, and entrenched poverty unfold against chronic backdrops: the lasting trauma of attempted cultural genocide for Mi’kmaq and Acadian communities, historic and daily anti-Black racism and systemic marginalization of African Nova Scotians, and centuries of land dispossession impacting all three. These populations—the Mi’kmaq, Acadian, and African Nova Scotian communities—hold the province’s deepest roots, with continuous presence on Mi’kma’ki stretching back generations, often in rural areas that suffer from long-standing underinvestment in basic infrastructure.
Layered on top of this history, recent pressures—COVID-19, economic instability, political polarization, and environmental uncertainty—have further eroded social fabric. This makes trauma-informed community building not just important, but essential work.
What Does ‘Trauma-Informed’ Mean?
Being trauma-informed means understanding that trauma shapes how individuals experience, respond to, and recover from crisis. It involves recognizing both acute and historical traumas—and responding with empathy, respect, and a commitment to healing sometimes ancient wounds. In community contexts, a trauma-informed approach goes beyond emotional support. It reshapes how leaders plan disaster recovery, foster youth development, and design social programs, prioritizing trust, safety, and agency at every level.
Across Mi’kmaq, African Nova Scotian, and Acadian communities, trauma-informed practices are being woven into the fabric of leadership and healing. Mi’kmaq organizations draw on cultural teachings and ceremony to re-anchor individuals in community after loss. African Nova Scotian youth programs foster safe spaces for identity and resilience, acknowledging both daily microaggressions and deeper historical wounds. Acadian initiatives are revitalizing language and music as pathways for collective recovery from storied oppression.
But rebuilding community in these contexts is not a one-time event; it is work that happens “between crises,” recognizing that crisis and recovery are cyclical. True healing and resilience require sustained, intentional investments: funding for mental health and social services, training for leaders in trauma-informed practices, spaces for cultural expression, and policy shifts that recognize and address structural inequities.
To build a stronger rural Nova Scotia, every recovery effort must honour lived experience, foster dignity, and invest deeply in both individual and collective well-being. Trauma-informed community building is our clearest path to healing, regeneration, and the next generation of rural leadership.
