Culture is Healing

Come Home to What Heals You with Monique Gray Smith

In this episode of Culture Is Healing, George Harris Jr. sits down with Monique Gray Smith for a heartfelt conversation about the healing power of culture, ceremony, and belonging.   Drawing on her own journey of reconnecting with Indigenous traditions, Monique shares how love, gratitude, and community can help us navigate life's challenges and strengthen our sense of identity.   The conversation explores cultural revitalization, ancestral wisdom, resilience, and the role of ceremony in healing from individual and intergenerational trauma.   George and Monique also reflect on reconciliation, the importance of relationships, and how reconnecting with culture can help us build lives rooted in hope, purpose, and connection.

#47 - How to Show Up for Others Without Losing Yourself with Dianna Smith

In this episode of Culture Is Healing, George Harris Jr. sits down with Diana Smith for a conversation about supporting people through difficult times. Drawing on her experience working in community, Diana shares her perspective on trust, kindness, and the relationships that help people feel seen and supported. The conversation touches on mental health, addiction, the role of matriarchs, and the importance of creating spaces where people can connect without judgment. George and Diana also talk about the balance between caring for others and caring for yourself, and why healthy boundaries are an important part of showing up for family, friends, and community.   Pathways To Healing Free Trial -> https://go.checkingin.co/pth-free-trial/

#46 - The Hidden Administrative Crisis in Addiction Recovery with Kaya Hansen

In this episode of Culture Is Healing, George sits down with Kaya Hansen to explore the challenges facing substance use and recovery systems, where overworked staff and fragmented services often make healing harder to access. Together, they discuss Indigenous approaches to care, the importance of reducing administrative burdens, and how the Pathways to Healing tool is helping communities create more connected, human-centered support systems.      Start your free trial of Pathways to Healing: https://go.checkingin.co/pth-free-trial/

#45 - Why Every Persons Gifts Matter in Times of Change with Aaron Pete

In this episode of Culture Is Healing, George Harris Jr. sits down with Aaron Pete.   They discuss why empowering young people matters now more than ever.   Aaron also shares reflections on leadership, sacrifice, and the changing political landscape in Canada, reminding listeners that every person’s unique gifts are needed in times of change.   This conversation offers grounded insights on how reconnecting to culture and community can help us live with greater purpose and meaning.   To learn more about our work at CheckingIn: https://checkingin.co/

#44 - What Indigenous Fashion Week Reveals About Identity and Expression with Aleen Sparrow

In this episode of Culture Is Healing, George Harris Jr. speaks with Musqueam weaver Aleen Sparrow about how culture can be lived as a daily practice of healing, connection, and identity.   Aleen reflects on learning to weave at the kitchen table with her mother and aunties, and how those moments shaped her understanding of weaving as both art and relationship.   Together, they explore how practices like weaving and canoe pulling build resilience, community, and intention in everyday life, alongside Aleen’s experience walking in Vancouver Indigenous Fashion Week as a powerful expression of identity and cultural pride.   This conversation offers a grounded reminder that healing can start with small, meaningful actions—how you show up, who you gather with, and the energy you bring into what you create.