What Ambassadors Do:

Our Ambassadors are a network of community members building a trauma-awareness movement by applying the trauma lens to urgent social issues, connecting with each other, and spurring change. We are committed to addressing community and systemic traumas related to racism, poverty, oppression, and other areas. 

Ambassadors lead the trauma-informed movement in Missouri around these three pillars:

• Build: Deepen your knowledge on the science of trauma and toxic stress.

• Connect: Share information in your organization and/or community.

• Activate: Drive community change and respond to community crises/issues that hinder resilience.

Activities include:

• Collaborate and organize events with Ambassadors to build knowledge of community-level and systemic trauma.

• Share information and resources with Ambassadors that can advance resiliency, share resources, and build capacity for fostering trauma-informed institutions.

• Research and share best practices and testimonies of trauma-informed work with Ambassadors and Alive and Well staff.

• Disrupt conditions that perpetuate trauma and advocate for change in systems, institutions, and communities

• And much more!

Our Steering Committees, which are comprised of an elected group of Ambassadors, shape our organizational priorities, identify sources of funding and revenue, and ensure that our organization is upholding the core principles of trauma-informed care.

How To Join:

Fill Out Interest Form

Fill out the interest form and a representative from our community engagement team will contact you. We look forward to learning more about you and why you want to help us advance our mission to build trauma-informed communities!

Attend a Trauma-Awareness Training

Attend a two-hour free, virtual online training to understand the science of trauma and toxic stress. Our facilitators also apply a trauma lens to analyze and understand injustices, inequity, and historical oppression.

If you’ve attended one of our trainings through your institutions or community organization, that counts too!

NOTE: our Trauma Awareness trainings fill up quickly. We want to ensure spots for potential Ambassadors in Missouri, Kansas, and Illinois. If you find there are no more spots available and are still interested, please contact info@awcommunities.org.

Attend a Community Event

We regularly host online live streams and community events centered on trauma, systemic oppression, inequity, and other related topics. Some examples include:

• Community Coffee: A virtual gathering every 2nd Tuesday of the month at 8:30am in Kansas City.

• Ambassador Meetings: Regular meetings for Alive and Well Ambassadors to brainstorm, strategize, and plan events and activities that advance our mission of building trauma-informed communities.

• Live Streams: We regularly host virtual programming, delving into community trauma, coping strategies for stress, and systems change.

Our Ambassadors are instrumental in planning and designing our events. Please join us for one or watch a recording on our Facebook page!