statement of diversity

Callisto Counselling is committed to providing inclusive and culturally sensitive counselling. All identities and intersections are respected, celebrated, and affirmed for their individuality, uniqueness, and traditions. Regardless of ethnicity, race, sexual orientation, gender expression, neurodivergence, size, age, spirituality, ability, cognitive capacities, and socioeconomic status, you will be treated with dignity and respect.

It is Tia Prince’s goal in her work as a therapist to provide you with a safe place to be validated in your experience, free from judgment or overarching agendas. Tia adheres to a “not knowing” stance when it comes to developing a therapeutic relationship with her clients. She is an expert in her own personal intersections and cultural identity, and you are an expert in yours. While Tia takes responsibility for her own personal learning to continually increase her knowledge and awareness of cultures within our community, she will never place assumptions on you because you are the person who understands your cultural identity best.

Tia understands that the society we live in was built on, and continues to perpetuate, the oppression of Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC). Intergenerational trauma is very present within our community, and the systemic racism, sexism, homophobia, exploitation, and discrimination of marginalized individuals and groups continues to harm thousands of people daily. She is also highly aware of her own privilege being a white, middle-class, Canadian citizen and the implicit power imbalance and bias this can bring into the therapy setting. Knowing this, Tia adopts an ally identity and takes reasonable individual action where she can in order to help better the lives of her clients and community.

It is one thing to have a statement of diversity on a website, and it is another to have concrete action in place. Below is a running summary of individual actions taken by Tia Prince of Callisto Counselling to become a more inclusive and culturally sensitive counsellor.

• Educating herself through reading, podcasts, discussions, and other literature on the lives and experiences of BIPOC and 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals

• Intentionally seeking out BIPOC and 2SLGBTQIA+ voices across social media to maintain a diverse source of personal content to learn through

• Completion of the Indigenous Canada certificate through the University of Alberta

• Household financial contributions to Black Lives Matter

• Offering a sliding scale for counselling sessions, primarily reserved for BIPOC and 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals who are facing financial adversity

• Seeking out and attending training to improve working understanding of support for BIPOC and 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals through the act of therapy

• Participation and promotion in protests and counter-protests that protect the rights, identities, and safety of BIPOC and 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals

• Participation and promotion of queer-inclusive community events that celebrate the art of drag