Sukhjeevan Sharma,
INVC,
CANADA ,
The City of Surrey hosted its fourth annual domestic abuse conference. The conference titled, “Change the Lens: Looking at the Offender”, featured a panel discussion with members including; police, crown counsel, program specialists, a behavioural psychologist, a parole officer and an offender .Also in attendance as representatives of BC Lion’s “Be More Than a Bystander” campaign, were BC Lion, Dean Valli, and Executive Director of Ending Violence Association of BC(EVABC), Tracy Porteous.“Through the Crime Reduction Strategy, the City of Surrey works to effectively partner with stakeholders from the community, service agencies, and multiple levels of government to take action in priority areas to address root causes of crime,” said Mayor Dianne Watts. “In the area of domestic abuse, the City spearheads various projects that help address the issue by creating awareness, developing prevention initiatives, and aligning resources to ensure community collaboration.
The Surrey Coalition against Domestic Abuse (SCADA) Conference is a great example of this work.”“SCADA is a broad and far reaching coalition of over100 agencies, educators, academics ,government representatives, police and service providers,” said Councillor Barinder Rasode, Chair of the SCADA Committee.“Workshops and discussions at this year’s conference will help provide another perspective on the issue of domestic abuse.
We are shifting our focus by talking about the programs ,services and supports in place for the offender.”Surrey Coalition against Domestic Abuse (SCADA)brings together community organizations who specialize in addressing and reducing domestic abuse. Agencies who specialize in reducing domestic abuseuse SCADA to learn from each other in open dialogue and collaboration and to get up-to-date on all new techniques, practices and services. More information about SCADA can be found atwww.surrey.ca
