Perpetrators of human trafficking maintain their networks and avoid detection by establishing highly organized and structured criminal enterprises. Thus, in order to successfully fight trafficking systems, communities and professionals need to be equally well-coordinated. Combatting human trafficking requires a well-organized, integrated effort amongst multiple disciplines including, but not limited to child protective services, law enforcement, district attorneys, and medical and mental health professionals. The Denver Anti-Trafficking Alliance (DATA) is one such interdisciplinary group that has formed to address the ever-growing problem of labor and sex-trafficking in Colorado. In this presentation, the presenters will share the mission and strategic goals of Denver’s alliance, specifically focusing on the mental health subcommittee, of which the presenters serve as co-chairs. They will discuss the specific efforts of the mental health sub-committee and how these lend to the greater efforts of the full city-wide alliance. Finally, the presenters will outline the challenges that come with coordinating such an effort and the strategies they have implemented to overcome them.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Explore the importance of establishing community-based interdisciplinary groups to combat human trafficking

·  Provide a model for a community-based interdisciplinary group for addressing prevention, prosecution, and treatment efforts related to human trafficking

·  Identify the challenges inherent to a community-based interdisciplinary group and offer recommendations for mitigating these

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This session presents a community-based participatory research (CBPR) project in consultation with the New Zealand Prostitutes Collective. Legislation directly impacts and harms people’s experience as a result of participating in particular behaviors and activities. Having decriminalized prostitution in 2003 as a result of the Prostitution Reform Act (PRA), New Zealand is an ideal location to explore how legislation impacts violence and trafficking in the sex industry. The presentation begins with overview of the different models used to legislate prostitution around the world and explains the differences between sex work and trafficking. The data shared from this CBPR project is based on three months of field work in New Zealand and interviews with 33 sex workers and 34 individuals who work closely with sex workers (including brothel operators, clients, social service agents, health professionals, and others, many of whom were also sex workers or had been sex workers in the past). Specifically, this presentation provides information from sex workers and individuals who work with sex workers and victims of exploitation to explain: 1) How harms are reduced and/or perpetuated in an environment where prostitution is decriminalized; 2) Examples of how sex workers are able to recognize, prevent, resist, and recover from violence, and the strategies they use to reduce violence and trafficking; 3) How sex workers control their work to greater and lesser degrees; 4) Legislative policy recommendations based on the perspectives of those most directly impacted by these legislative models; and 5) Limitations of the research, as well as areas where additional research is needed.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Explain the differences between sex work and trafficking/exploitation in the sex industry

·  Provide a clear understanding of the different legislative models related to sex work: criminalization, partial criminalization, legalization, and decriminalization and their impact on violence and trafficking in the sex industry

·  Discuss what decriminalization looks like in New Zealand (the only country in the world that has decriminalized prostitution) based on the perspectives of those most directly impacted by these legislative models and how it impacts violence and trafficking in the sex industry

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While all stakeholders usually receive a basic training in the TVPA, few are familiar with or ever receive a similar training in applicable labor laws. Through a combination of presentation and case studies, this session will provide an overview of key elements and remedies of the Fair Labor Standards Act, Migrant and Seasonal Worker Protection Act (MSPA), and the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) in labor trafficking cases.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Explain the main points of the 3 designated statutes

·  Connect the role of the 3 statutes to labor trafficking example cases

·  Show how to spot abnormal and exploitative labor conditions

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According to the Global Report on Trafficking in Persons 2018 (Kangaspunta et al., 2018), trafficking of domestic victims worldwide has nearly doubled since 2010 (p. 43). Moreover, the U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (2018) affirms that understanding the local context of human trafficking is critical for an appropriate response. Therefore, to advance the information collection of a local context of trafficking, this presentation of a pilot study conducted from April to July of 2019 in the Southern Brazilian state of Paraná, will present an outline of the findings. Through a descriptive phenomenological method using ethnographic tools, the research objective is to explore the lived experiences of survivors of domestic human trafficking in Paraná. The specific aims of the pilot study are: 1) to describe the lived experiences of domestically trafficked men, women and children in Brazil; 2) to identify factors that influence the trafficking, survivorship, and health and wellbeing of trafficking survivors; 3) to discover the meaning of wellbeing, doing well, and/or doing better than expected for survivors; 4) to assess measurement tools, logistics, and cultural and language tools; and 5) to gain access to participants through networking, collaborations and cooperation with professionals in the field. Participants will be provided with an introduction to the state, a slide presentation of the collected data, a preview of possible directions for further research development and a discussion period. Some other expected topics to be discussed will be challenges, obstacles, decision making, and positive experiences.This work is also attributed to the contributions of Rochelle Dalla, PhD and Paul Springer, PhD.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Discuss findings of pilot study

·  Provide an introduction to the state of Parana in Brazil

·  Present a slide show of data collected

·  Discuss challenges, obstacles, decision making, and positive experiences

·  Discuss possible methods for continued research of domestic human trafficking in Brazil

·  Answer questions about the study

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The goal of this presentation is to educate attendees how hidden incest, sexual abuse, and rape trafficking go hand in hand. The presenter will identify grooming, incest and how both affected her life, tore apart relationships, and how she was able to overcome the past through education.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Describe how this happens easier in a rural community

·  Explain the signs of what it looks like when a child is enduring this kind of abuse

·  Discuss how teachers, nurses, and doctors can do things differently to help the child

·  Discuss how secret societies and hidden communities must have ways to be held accountable

·  Discuss the health issues to the audience with question and answer time

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This session is intended for participants to discuss arts-based human sex trafficking awareness resources for classroom teachers that are appropriate for different grade levels. Resources include, among others, materials, guest speakers, and methods. Using the arts to explore issues of social justice is central to this session. Between 2012 and present, groups of teens from Bowling Green High School have engaged in the process of writing and performing a theatrical production, Lily’s Wings, for young audiences that draws attention to the dangers of sex trafficking of minors. This process is serving two purposes. First, crafting, performing, and joining audience talk-backs develops awareness and empowers the students and teachers involved. Second, viewing the performance empowers audiences. These audiences may be comprised not only of students, but parents and educators as well. Besides teaching students about the issue of human sex trafficking, presenting Lily’s Wings in the school setting is a provocative way to engage teachers with the curriculum. This discussion-oriented session will revolve around questions aimed at identifying and evaluating ways to build arts-based instructional methods that benefit educators, students, and by extension, parents.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Discuss which is more impactful to students, a live performance or a filmed version of a play, intended to draw awareness of the dangers of human sex trafficking of minors

·  Explore the potential value and degree of need for either type of presentation to be followed by a talk-back by experts

·  Explain which U.S. states mandate teachers to learn about human sex trafficking and in what ways

·  Describe challenges educators might face showing a filmed version of the play without the presence of an expert and ways to combat those challenges

·  Discuss what a package of the filmed version of the play might contain to assist teachers introducing the topic to students

·  Explain how such a package can be marketed to educators

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This session will draw on the presenter’s experience of working as a first responder alongside other service providers. It examines the concept of “survivor leader” and the empowerment model. The grassroots social justice movement organizing theory is examined to show how resource mobilization has influenced these ideas and some new resulting terminology. The presentation will touch on deconstruction/reconstruction in postmodern philosophy, third wave feminism, and the evolution of fourth wave that have influenced social justice movements. The session is heavily focused on linguistics. The importance of identification and narrative within communities impacted by trafficking will be explored and this concept as an empowerment model. The presentation will conclude with personal techniques involving active listening and mindfulness to handle combative patients without force and stresses the importance of such in pursuit of healing rather than subjecting patients/clients and ourselves to another added trauma.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Describe new terminology and parallels within Social Justice Movements

·  Show how various agencies and organizations at a task force level work together to combat human trafficking

·  Discuss new techniques to deescalate charged situations without force by using “active listening”

·  Explain how to listen to one’s body and intuition to reinforce safety

·  Provide a rare glimpse into the world of a survivor who has come “out” but also functions as a first responder & task force co-chair

·  Discuss stigma and bias that result in barriers to project completion and healing relationships

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Anti-trafficking advocates routinely petition elected officials to pass and/or amend laws to limit or eliminate various forms of human trafficking. These efforts have had impact within the human rights movement and have gained increasing traction amongst the general population. One segment of human rights abuses prevails however; state sanctioned slavery within the prison system. Many advocates are unaware that the federal constitution and most state constitutions allow for slavery as punishment for a crime. This session uses a mixed methods approach to examine our founding documents and how they allow and encourage state sanctioned slavery. Case studies regarding prisoners used as forced labor will also be presented.  The goal of this presentation is to add information to the human rights movement and to gain momentum to amend state constitutions so as to remove the “except” clause and other oppressive language.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Identify how founding documents allow for state sanctioned slavery

·  Explain how state constitutions can be amended to remove oppressive language

·  Discuss how prisoners cannot "opt out" of forced labor situations

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Awareness of human trafficking in illicit massage businesses (IMBs) is on the rise. The National Human Trafficking Hotline reports IMBs were the number one venue for cases involving sex trafficking in 2018. In 2017, the Polaris Project estimated there were 9,000 IMBs in the United States accounting for an estimated $2.5 billion in annual revenue. This seminar will address how to identify IMBs, the intersection of labor and sex trafficking in IMBs and how routine inspections of IMBs, IMB regulation, and collaboration can help combat human trafficking in IMBs.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Discuss human trafficking in illicit massage businesses

·  Describe how to identify illicit massage businesses

·  Explain the intersection of sex and labor trafficking in illicit massage businesses

·  Discuss the necessity of collaboration for effective disruption of human trafficking in illicit massage businesses

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Whereas stakeholder involvement in policy implementation and service provisions to victims of human trafficking is substantially documented in the literature, there is almost no study on stakeholder input in the process of research on this global problem. Yet, input from stakeholders is critical for most studies about human trafficking. Stakeholders are individuals, organizations, or communities that have some interest or concern in the process and outcomes of a project, program, study, or policy (Brugha & Varvasovszky, 2000). Based on an international research study on child sex trafficking conducted in three countries in the West African region, the presentation examines the key ways stakeholders were successfully engaged in the research process from the preparatory stage to the translational stage, as well as their involvement as respondents in the study. A total of 133 stakeholders from 120 organizations in 13 major categories (international, governmental, non-governmental, community, policymakers, service providers, criminal justice, educators, etc.) were involved in the research process; 64 of these stakeholders were also research participants. The presentation shows how engaging various stakeholders in the key phases of the research helped improve its outcomes, and most important, helped increase the likelihood of acceptance and dissemination of the findings. The presentation discusses cases of programs that have been developed based on the recommendations of the study findings. Recommendations for collaborative initiatives and participatory research are discussed.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Describe successful strategies to engage stakeholders (international, governmental, non-governmental, community, policymakers, service providers, educators, etc.) in the process of research on human trafficking and as research participants

·  Describe roles stakeholders can play in the key phases of a study on human trafficking, including problem formulation, research design, data collection, and dissemination of study findings, and implementation of study recommendations

·  Discuss key lessons for engaging community partners in program and policy development, and in research about hard-to-reach populations

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The City of Phoenix, Arizona Starfish Place is a first-of-its-kind HUD funded permanent supportive housing program designed for victims of sex trafficking and their families. This presentation will present a step by step process of how to develop this type of housing program. The presenters will also discuss the lessons learned from implementing a new program. Narratives from focus groups on development and evaluation of the 12 residents will be presented. Challenges and implications will be described, and key take away ideas will be provided.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Explain the step-by-step process of how to develop this type of housing program

·  Describe the lessons learned from implementing this housing program

·  Present the narratives from focus groups on development and evaluation of the 12 residents

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Against persistent efforts, Sex Trafficking (ST) perseveres (United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime Report, 2018). In India, it’s challenging to understand the dynamics of ST because the country varies in culture, language and religious beliefs based on geographical location. Conventionally, young girls from villages are trafficked to cities in the pretext of employment, education and love (Meshelemiah & Sarkar, 2015), and their family members (parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, grandparents, intimate partners, in-laws) partake in the process (Black, 2007). Upon entry, it is likely that children are born to these adolescent girls as a result of unprotected practices, lack of awareness and desperation to earn. Family processes among ST families are rarely studied and there is limited to no research on how Survivors of ST (SST)/single mothers raise their children. Children born in such circumstances face a heightened risk of ST as they a likely to experience physical abuse, homelessness, unstable home environment and substance abuse (Choi, 2015). Filling this research gap will inform prevention of inter-generational trafficking. Therefore, this study aims to first, identify parenting values among SST; second, examine SST communication patterns in parenting their children; and third, compare inter-generational child rearing practices among SST families. The primary investigator conducted in-person audio recorded interviews with 40 SST across 4 cities in India. Social workers from non-governmental organizations (NGO) acted as gatekeepers to gain access to participants and as translators during the interviews. Results will be discussed and implications for practice, policy and future research will be included. Dr. Rochelle Dalla, Professor at University of Lincoln Nebraska-Lincoln, and Dr. Cody Hollist, Associate Professor in the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, are contributing authors of this presentation.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Identify parenting values among Indian SST

·  Examine SST communication patterns in parenting their children

·  Compare intergenerational child rearing practices among SST

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Therapeutic alliance, rapport, boundaries…terms we have all heard, but how do we create them? How do we foster relationships that have a positive and lasting impact on the treatment experience? Together, we will take a closer look at the importance of the relationship between treatment providers and clients. All of our encounters matter, so the presenter will discuss how to set the stage for helpful connections from the first encounter we have with clients throughout their time in treatment, even in the face of setbacks. The presenter will cover how to build and often re-build therapeutic relationships that are challenged by disappointment, trauma, and shame. Together, we will review the importance of modeling healthy relationships, agency wide, and even between interagency partnerships and how these connections impact on client experience. She will look at practical ways to build rapport while maintaining boundaries, and ways to build a better understanding of how trauma informs building a therapeutic alliance, using kindness, trust, and even humor to bridge the gaps. There will be an opportunity to explore how to best handle disagreements and misunderstandings within the therapeutic relationship. Finally, the presenter will discuss how to terminate a relationship successfully.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Develop understanding of positive relationships as Trauma Informed Care

·  Identify ways to build and model healthy relationships

·  Describe the importance of the therapeutic relationship

·  List ways to develop a positive therapeutic relationship

·  Identify ways to recover from therapeutic relationship challenges

·  Describe personal boundaries and self-care in the therapeutic relationship

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In 2010, Laboratory to Combat Human Trafficking (LCHT), began a Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) process to comprehensively end human trafficking in the state of Colorado. In 2018, LCHT replicated the original methodology by conducting a longitudinal follow-up of the first iteration of The Colorado Project. The research described here is intended to determine ways to measure a social movement’s effort to effect positive social change seeking to end human exploitation. CBPR allows space for locally-lead and informed research endeavors--what the community needs as opposed to academics who may not understand community interests and strengths. This presentation explores how a nonprofit organization deeply embedded in the anti-human trafficking movement can produce original research. Team members employed both purposive and convenience sampling strategies to identify as many agencies and organizations across Colorado involved in anti-human trafficking efforts as possible. They then conducted 29 focus groups, 69 interviews, and received 183 completed surveys to inform the work. The findings identified seven emerging promising practices: 1) Supporting the movement in developing evaluation; 2) Acknowledging root causes; 3) Providing trauma-informed behavioral health resources; 4) Recognizing health professionals as crucial players in protection; 5) Having survivors inform the community response; 6) Problem-solving courts; and 7) Increased intentional and equitable inclusion in partnerships. This presentation will discuss the resulting Action Plan, developed by a diverse group of survivors, practitioners, law enforcement, and advocates as well as key takeaways on how Colorado has moved the needle on anti-trafficking efforts. LCHT plans to replicate this model in other states.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Explain how CBPR can be used to measure social change

·  Discuss the importance of a community-based and survivor-informed response

·  Provide key takeaways on how Colorado has moved the needle in its anti-trafficking movement

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What are common experiences of LGBTQ+ minor victims of trafficking? What are the service needs shared among this population? To what extent can youth-serving professionals better support LGBTQ+ victims? The presenter will address these questions with findings by a new, 2019 research project by the Center for Children & Youth Justice in collaboration with the University of Washington Evans School of Public Policy. In an effort to bridge the gap that currently exists in our knowledge of intersection of trafficking and LGBTQ+ youth, the presenter will cover the Center’s national literature review, original data collection and analysis in Washington State, and recommendations in a practical way. Attendees will then engage with each other to strategize on how they can improve policies and practices to better support LGBTQ+ victims. Professionals who have questions, concerns, or are apprehensive about this topic are encouraged to attend; this is a safe space to dialogue with your peers.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Employ creative strategies to highlight research findings that demonstrate how trafficking may look different for LGBTQ+ youth victims

·  Employ creative strategies to highlight some of the unique service needs of LGBTQ+ youth victims

·  Facilitate small group activities to assist participants in unpacking how these findings impact participants' respective policies and practices

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Given the significant rise of human trafficking in the last decade, in all 50 states (UNODC, 2018), there is a high likelihood that counselors will come into contact with trafficked persons. Mental Health Counselors are involved in all aspects of prevention, development, wellness, and advocacy across all social services, including child welfare, hospitals, youth and domestic violence shelters, and the criminal justice system. Thus, they are in an ideal position to identify trafficked persons and assist in establishing safety, which will significantly contribute to anti-trafficking efforts (Cree, 2008). Trafficked persons typically do not identify themselves as such, this is mainly due to the psychological coercion from their traffickers and the shame that surrounds their experiences (Brown, 2008). Thus, it is essential that counselors can recognize this type of exploitation so that they can assist in providing appropriate resources. However, there is little awareness of trafficking in the U.S. within the counseling field (Thompson & Haley, 2018). This presentation will discuss on-going research that is investigating the impact of an educational intervention on a counselors’ knowledge, awareness, attitudes, empathy, and efficacy of sex trafficking. It will also facilitate an open discussion on the ways in which the counseling field can better collaborate with anti-trafficking organizations.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Describe ways that counselors can assist in anti-trafficking efforts

·  Describe on-going research that is investigating the impact of an educational intervention on a counselors’ knowledge, awareness, attitudes, empathy, and efficacy of sex trafficking

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There is evidence that suggests child sexual exploitation material (CSEM) may not be perceived as a serious crime amongst some members of the public (Warner, 2010). Importantly, sentencing remarks can disseminate formal messages about the harmfulness of a crime. The presenters conducted an exploratory content analysis on the sentencing remarks of 29 offenders convicted of CSEM offenses across a ten-year period in one jurisdiction of Australia, heard by 12 Judges. Most demographics of offenders were similar to the current research. All offenders were male and 41 years-old (on average) at time of sentencing, with heterogeneity in employment (from law enforcement and the legal field, right through to hospitality and retail). Further, most offenders pleaded guilty, were typically sentenced for several CSEM offences, did not have previous CSEM convictions or other convictions, and received a custodial sentence for the current offenses. Alarmingly however, almost all offenders possessed and/or accessed: CSEM with pre-pubescent children, with most cases involving children under the age of three; and CSEM involving the most severe category (bestiality, sadism, or torture of a child). Offender characteristics and Judges’ censure were captured across three themes: (1) offender’s motivations and attempted explanations for offending (specifically: downplay or denial; poor mental health and substance abuse; and addiction), (2) CSEM offenses are not victimless crimes, and (3) disparities in the offender’s public versus private life. The presenters’ findings should be a valuable resource for mental health practitioners, law enforcement, legal professionals, and social workers both within Australia and across the globe.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Explore the censure sentencing Judges impart to child sexual exploitation material offenders and the wider audience

·  Describe the characteristics of individuals convicted of child sexual exploitation material offenses

·  Explore how the messages imparted in the sentencing remarks can be used to inform prevention of child sexual exploitation material offenses

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Too often “trauma informed” is part of the industry lexicon with no understanding of what that means in action, especially within complex organizations (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2014). Hear from an advocate with lived experience and the Minnesota Department of Health on what it means to act trauma informed when engaging with survivors in order to build real collaborations and partnerships. We will discuss how different factors such environment, subject matter, time constraints, and purpose impact the engagement process. Creating a safer and more equitable process for partnering with survivors is an important step toward going beyond the foundational “survivors should be compensated” message (Administration for Children and Families Office on Trafficking in Persons & National Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance Center, 2018).

Presentation Objectives:

·  Recognize common pitfalls within complex systems

·  Describe practical ways to mitigate the negative impacts of the system

·  Bring “trauma informed” out of language and into practice

·  Discuss 4 steps to build underlying values and action plans

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In this presentation, participants will better understand three experiences which are often conflated – trading sex, sexual violence, and trafficking into the sex trade. This workshop seeks to break down these three distinct experiences and discuss the places where they may occur in tandem in order to better understand the nuances of each. The foundation will begin with what we mean when we talk about the sex trade, offering a neutral foundation which spans the constellation of choice, circumstance and coercion. Building on this understanding, the presenters will look at sexual violence that may be uniquely experienced by people who trade sex at the hands of a range of actors and experiences of exploitation and trafficking. The workshop will be both conceptual, as well as draw on community experience and knowledge, and incorporate tangible examples for how this comes up in community spaces, as well as service provision. This workshop will be presented by two experts in the field with experience in community organizing, service provision and advocacy for people who trade sex, including victims of trafficking, victims of violence, and victims of the criminal legal system.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Discuss the unique ways that people who trade sex encounter sexual violence, and how it can be distinct from the experience of trading sex or of trafficking

·  Articulate the difference between sexual violence experienced by sex workers and trafficking into the sex trade, both conceptually and as a lived experience

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Minnesota has been steadily improving its response to human trafficking at the state level through increased criminal penalties for traffickers, a safe harbor law for minor victims of sex trafficking, funded services for trafficking victims, and protocol guidelines for responding to both sex and labor trafficking. Though counties and municipalities have improved their responses to human trafficking, the changes have been uneven. Minneapolis has begun investing in a comprehensive response to human trafficking across all city departments, an effort that coincides with new and proposed city ordinances on minimum wage, sick and safe leave, and wage theft. This focus on workplace justice provides an opening to incorporate best practices in addressing sex and labor trafficking throughout the city government. The process is two-fold. First, those departments already engaged in the statewide response to sex trafficking, such as the Minneapolis Police Department, will be encouraged to incorporate labor trafficking into their work. Second, those departments that do not yet have policies in place to address human trafficking will be trained on how to adopt new internal procedures to prevent and respond to both sex and labor trafficking. Worker-led organizations, trade unions, and survivor advisors will play a key role in the development and implementation of the response. This presentation will detail the history, process, and challenges and successes of Minneapolis’ implementation of anti-human trafficking policies. Minneapolis’ efforts can serve as a model for how other municipalities can expand anti-trafficking efforts beyond the traditional focus on sex trafficking and law enforcement agencies.

Presentation Objectives:

·  Describe the history and progress of Minnesota's response to human trafficking

·  Explore the best practices for municipal governments responding to human trafficking

·  Analyze the challenges and successes of implementation in Minneapolis

·  Apply lessons learned from Minneapolis to participants' own experiences and communities

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