On February 6, I will be doing a presentation on my research on peer support futures as a part of the 4th annual virtual Peer Support Strong conference, hosted by PeerWorks and the Lived Experience & Recovery Network.

Introducing Peer Support Futures:
On Hope, Dream, and Building Utopia

Tuesday, February 6
2:00 – 2:45 Eastern Time

This presentation is a reading of a paper based on my MA major research paper, Dreaming Peer Support Futures (2023). It will be accompanied by a PowerPoint presentation of key ideas.

In this paper, I explore the field of mental health peer support through the lens of futurity, utopia, and dream(ing). It is an attempt to encourage a futural (re)turn within the sector, while recognizing that dreaming has always been at work and play within peer support theory and practice.

In some ways this paper serves as a portal to the past – back to the field’s roots within the psychiatric consumer/survivor movement, a social movement that emphasized dreaming and crafting alternative futures; alternative ways of understanding and responding to experiences of psychic distress. At the same time, it is also an effort to trouble these same roots and encourage us to imagine futures otherwise.

View the Recording