Status of Women committee  One thing I would say is that, yes, there are absolutely limits in self-report data. I think it's important that we combine self-report data with information from communities, qualitative information and police report information in all cases. There are some pretty clear trends and findings.

Status of Women committee  I can start, if that's okay.

Status of Women committee  One of the reasons is that there's a surveillance effect of having neighbours, friends and family, and workplace and colleagues. In rural areas, there are fewer people around to watch. There are also more barriers to getting help. There are more barriers around everybody knowing everyone.

Status of Women committee  Oh, yes.

Status of Women committee  Let me take those in reverse order. Absolutely, adversity in childhood, including all forms of violence, losing a parent, or having a parent who has a major mental health problem or a substance use problem or who's incarcerated, is associated with later victimization for women and perpetration for men.

Status of Women committee  The best response might be an example. One of the really positive things that happened over the pandemic is that Nova Scotia managed to put in place, with some collaborative agreements, something called the Men's Helpline. It was a broad, general line aimed at men. The messaging was around “Life can be tough; you can get help.”

Status of Women committee  I just want to draw a connection with the kind of model that Lana and I have both talked about, which brings people together to do some reparative work, and I would point out that we need to do that right before. We need to do that so that when men call, we can start to respond in that way.

Status of Women committee  I think we can do this. I think we can create a system and we can create responses that are flexible, that meet people's needs and that create a web of accountability for people who have caused harm, but that keep people in view while we work and we centre the needs and the safety of survivors.

Status of Women committee  I would love to if I could, because one thing that I think is really important is creating services within—adding to what Lana said—culturally specific and culturally led organizations that can work in an integrated way with and alongside other services. There have been some really well-developed services in that way that address and recognize migration and premigration, traumas and experiences and, as Lana said, the ongoing impacts of racism and discrimination.

Status of Women committee  Caring Dads is one of those programs about what other needs we have. Can we do something other than just one program? Caring Dads is a program we developed to meet the needs of fathers who have perpetrated violence and abuse in their families either towards their children or towards their children's mother.

Status of Women committee  I'm sorry that I can't answer your question in French. I agree. When we think about restorative justice, we often think about some sort of intake through a justice process. What I want to do is think much more broadly about opening as many doors and as many pathways as possible.

Status of Women committee  Survivors of intimate partner and domestic violence turn first to friends and family, primarily, and then they turn to and can access supports through shelters and through women's advocates. One of the things that are so important about the work that shelters and women's advocates in sexual assault centres do is that they centre the identity, the strengths and the needs of the survivors.

Status of Women committee  Yes.

Status of Women committee  Yes, absolutely. I think those voices are important. The work we did to develop the workforce capacity framework involved survivors of intimate partner violence as core partners. We didn't make as core partners for this work those who have engaged in abusive behaviours. However, many of the conversations were vetted by men who had many years of experience working with men and for whom that kind of feedback is part of a continual improvement of the program.

Status of Women committee  Thank you.