TFG Events & Workshops

Crystallee Crain

Prevention at the Intersections, Founder & Principal

Crystallee Crain, Ph.D., is an interdisciplinary public health scholar and human rights activist. She specializes in exposing the layers of institutional inequality while supporting communities to shift ways of being and practice to improve life chances by bridging the worlds of academia, healing, and advocacy. Dr. Crain’s body of work represents a collective need to strengthen our responses to violence through transformative means, the need for liberatory practices, and a focus on healing as a revolutionary strategy for change. She holds an academic appointment with California State University – East Bay in the Department of Political Science and at Simmons University in the Masters of Public Health Program (Health Equity).

She’s also on the board of The Michigan Nonprofit Association and the Seeding Justice Foundation. She is the Founder & Principal Consultant of Prevention at the Intersections, which works to prevent violence and other forms of harm through community-based research and people-centered projects. Crystallee also works with Nonprofit Network facilitating Capacity building support for organizations and their leaders. Dr. Crain is the author of A People’s Primer: Dispatches on Politics & Social Change (2022), Community, People, & Place: California Public Policy (2023), and The Re-Imagination of Black Political Spaces (2023).

Dr. Crain earned a Doctorate of Philosophy in Transformative Studies at the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco, California. She holds a Master of Arts in Social Sciences (a concentration in Sociology from Eastern Michigan University), and a Bachelors of Science in Political Science from Northern Michigan University. In 2013 she received executive training in Health and Human Rights from the School of Public Health at Harvard University.

www.crystalleecrain.org

Presentation

Creative Expression and Innovation as Tools for Social Cohesion
In a rapidly evolving social landscape, fostering inclusive and innovative community engagement has never been more critical. This keynote session invites participants to embark on a journey that explores the intersection of creativity, innovation, and community. Dr. Crain will focus on how to re-imagine community engagement in creative spaces, specifically within the context of timber framing. Participants will examine the roots of innovation that drive our field, emphasizing the importance of social cohesion and collaboration in strengthening our timber frame community. Participants will delve into innovative strategies to re-imagine community engagement within creative spaces, understanding how these environments can serve as catalysts for connection and collaboration. We will examine the roots of innovation, highlighting the importance of social cohesion and the collective goals that bind us together. Through reflective and generative self-awareness exercises, attendees will engage with essential questions about diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and accessibility, fostering a deeper understanding of these vital concepts in relation to our industry. This interactive process will invite participants to contemplate their roles in creating an inclusive environment for all timber framing enthusiasts, from professionals to the general public. Dr Crain will guide and prepare us for a transformative journey to discover how we can strengthen connections, foster inclusivity, and promote the rich craft of timber framing for generations to come. Together, let's innovate and build a thriving community around our shared passion for this timeless craft.