Culture is Healing

In this episode, George Harris Jr. sits down with Coral Duncan to explore how culture, community, and connection can support healing in meaningful and lasting ways. Together, they discuss what it looks like to weave traditional knowledge alongside modern approaches, the importance of trust, relationships, and identity, and how small acts of service can strengthen both individual and collective wellbeing. Whether you're reconnecting with your own roots or looking for new ways to support those around you, this conversation offers practical insights into building healing that lasts.

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.

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.
 
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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.   
 
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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.
 
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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.

This week on Culture Is Healing, George Harris Jr sits down with Stan Matthew to share stories shaped by decades of healing, lived experience, and cultural teachings.
 
Stan is a nuučaan̓uł leader and healing practitioner from the David family of ƛaʔuukʷiʔatḥ First Nation, with over 35 years of experience supporting individuals, families, and communities through healing.
 
Centered on applying traditional knowledge to modern mental health challenges, Stan speaks to how ceremony, prayer, and storytelling supported his journey through trauma and addiction—and how those same practices continue to guide others today.
 
You will walk away with a more personal understanding of how culture can support your everyday life.

We’re back for a new season of Culture is Healing—and we’re starting it off with a powerful conversation with Malina Dawn.In this episode, George and Malina explore what it looks like to live your healing, not just talk about it. Drawing on teachings from the Medicine Wheel and Malina’s relationship to yoga and movement, they reflect on how culture can guide us through different seasons of life—and how practices like ceremony, breath, and connection to land can support emotional balance in a real, everyday way.This conversation is a reminder that healing isn’t something separate from our lives—it’s something we return to, again and again, through the ways we choose to move, connect, and show up.

For our final episode of Season 4 George sits down with Tanille Johnston. Tanille is the first Indigenous person to ever have their name represented on a federal political party's leadership ballot in Canadian history. 
This episode explores the role of ceremony, the teachings of elders, and the responsibility of embracing our individual gifts—not just for personal growth, but for the wellbeing of the community and future generations. 
Tanille also shares her journey into political leadership, reminding us that representation, advocacy, and cultural pride are powerful acts of healing in action.

George sits down with Mateo Kostering — proud member of the Musgamagw Dzawada’enuxw Nation and the ’Namgis Nation — founder of the Indigenous Athletics Academy, and lifelong athlete whose journey from community tournaments to semi-pro coaching has been guided by discipline, culture, and service. 
Mateo shares why resilience must be practiced daily, why winning isn’t the only measure of success, and how sport can reconnect young people to identity, belonging, and purpose. 
This conversation is a grounded reminder that when you show up as yourself, remain consistent and build strong communities around youth, you’re not just developing athletes — you’re shaping confident leaders for the next generation.