Association of Alberta Sexual Assault Services

08/20/2026

Understanding workplace sexual harassment matters. So does knowing what to do.

Engagement Strategies Toward Ending Workplace Sexual Harassment is a three-hour, interactive online training that goes beyond definitions and policies to help participants understand workplace sexual harassment, its impacts, and practical ways to respond and help prevent it.

And the training makes a difference: 81% of (independently evaluated) participants rated their confidence responding to workplace sexual harassment as high after training, compared with just 13% before. Participants also reported significant increases in their knowledge of how to help stop workplace sexual harassment.

Know more. Know what to do.

📅 September 3 | Online
⏰ Registration closes August 31

Learn more about this innovative training and the broader campaign (and register!) at aasas.ca/training

08/19/2026

**Save This Infographic: Alberta's Sexual Violence Services Continuum**

Do you work in the sexual violence services sector? Are you a funder, community partner, volunteer, or other stakeholder with interest in Alberta's sexual violence services sector? Do you just want to know what specialized sexual violence services are available in Alberta?

Whatever your relationship to the issue, this handy carousel outlines the core services available through the AASAS network of specialized sexual violence services across the province, and how each plays an important role in responding to and preventing sexual violence.

1. Crisis Intervention
Provides immediate emotional support, safety, information & options, helping people stabilize, understand their choices, & connect with services if and when they are ready.

2. Systems Navigation
Reduces barriers by helping people connect with services, resources, and systems that support their basic needs, healing, and overall wellbeing (and advocating/supporting as they move through those systems).

3. Therapeutic Counselling
Supports healing and recovery through specialized, trauma-specific therapeutic care, with impacts on a person’s sense of safety, wellbeing, relationships, identity, and connection to others.

4. Police & Court Support
Helps people understand their options and, for those who choose to engage with the justice system, provides information, police/court accompaniment, advocacy, and support throughout the process.

5. Training & Capacity Building
Education & prevention programs build understanding, help prevent sexual violence through awareness, knowledge, & skill development, and strengthen community capacity to support survivors.

6. Community Outreach Engagement
Increases access and reduces barriers to specialized services for people and communities by listening, understanding needs & barriers, building trust, adapting delivery, and clearing/ creating pathways to specialized support.

7. Service Coordination & Partnerships
Community leadership, collaboration, and coordination strengthen community responses and help create safer, more connected systems for people impacted by sexual violence.

8. Volunteer Engagement
Recruitment, training, supervision, and support for community volunteers providing specialized sexual violence services, expanding community capacity and strengthening Alberta’s response to sexual violence.

Alberta's specialized sexual violence services provide a continuum of support for survivors, families, support people, professionals, and communities. We invite you to:
📂 Save this post as a reference and guide for when you're communicating about them
🔗 Find out more about the services in your area at aasas.ca/about-us/our-members/

08/13/2026

our Co-CEOs having fun at Calgary Stampede and the Equal Voice Calgary Stampede Reception 2026

Access Description:
1- Haley and Corinne stand together smiling at the Equal Voice Calgary Stampede Reception
2- Haley and Corinne with Elena Esina from Shift: The Project to End Domestic Violence
3- All in Stampede wear, Corinne and Haley are shown standing with Tanya Fir, Minister of Arts, Culture and Status of Women

08/12/2026

An important investment in Alberta's specialized sexual violence services.

AASAS welcomes today's announcement of a $3.3 million funding enhancement for sexual assault services.

We are grateful to Minister Searle Turton and YourAlberta (Government of Alberta) Children and Family Services for this investment and for recognizing the importance of stable funding for specialized sexual violence services across the province.

For Alberta's sexual assault services, this investment will make a meaningful difference. It will help organizations respond to growing demand, retain a highly skilled and specialized workforce, strengthen service capacity, and plan responsibly for the future.

Across Alberta, sexual assault services provide a comprehensive continuum of specialized supports, including crisis intervention, systems navigation, specialized police and court support, counselling therapy, outreach, public education and prevention. Stable funding helps ensure these essential services remain accessible to Albertans when and where they need them.

AASAS and our member sexual violence services have consistently advocated for sustainable, multi-year investment. We are pleased to see this important investment in the capacity and stability of services across Alberta.

We look forward to continuing to work with government and our partners across the gender-based violence sector toward our shared commitment to ensuring Albertans impacted by violence can access the specialized services and supports they need.

If you or someone you know needs support, help is available.
Reach out to Alberta’s ONE LiNE for Sexual Violence by call/text 1-866-403-8000 or chat https://aasas.ca/.

Sexual Assault Centres and Child Advocacy Centres provide critical supports for survivors across Alberta at every stage of their healing journey.

We are investing nearly $21 million to strengthen the work of these organizations to provide specialized supports for individuals, children, youth and families impacted by sexual violence and abuse.

Through this investment, we are expanding access to timely, responsive care for vulnerable Albertans.

Learn more:
https://www.alberta.ca/release.cfm?xID=97614A2255DFF-DC22-035B-7B31E805E2650098

08/05/2026

Many people who could benefit from Alberta's ONE LiNE for Sexual Violence never reach out because they aren't sure what will happen if they do.

Here's what you can expect:
We believe you.
We'll listen without judgement.
You'll receive compassionate, trauma-informed emotional support.
You'll get specialized information to support informed decision-making.
We respect your choices, your autonomy, and your pace.

Some answers to common questions about calling the ONE LiNE:

Will I have to tell my whole story?
No. You’re in control of the conversation. You decide what you'd like to share, and you never have to tell your whole story.

Will I be expected to report to police?
No. Reporting is your choice. If you'd like information about reporting options, we're here to answer your questions and help you explore what feels right for you—without pressure or expectations.

What if I'm not ready?
That's okay. There is no "right" time to reach out. Whether something happened recently or years ago, Alberta's ONE LiNE is here whenever you're ready.

What if I'm not sure what happened?
That’s okay, too. Many people contact Alberta's ONE LiNE while they're still trying to understand their experience or wondering if it was sexual violence. You don't need to have everything figured out before reaching out.

What if I don't know what I need?
You don't have to know exactly what you need. You can ask questions, receive information, or simply talk with someone who understands. Together, we can explore what support might be helpful.

Where do I start?
You don't have to know where to begin. That's why we're here.

**********
Every conversation is different because every person's experience is different.

Learn more: https://aasas.ca/get-support

08/03/2026

Save this: upcoming trainings for August-September.

Looking to strengthen your support skills or trauma-informed practice?
Want to feel prepared to be that safe haven should someone in your life see you as a trusted person they can tell?
Want to better understand the issue and be a part of building a consent culture?

Our range of training offerings can help you feel more confident in how to respond to and support sexual violence survivors, with evidence-informed approaches and scenarios practice.

*****

August 24-25, 2026 - Online - First Responder to Sexual Assault and Abuse Training

September 3, 2026 (1:00 pm - 4:00 pm MT) - Live Online - Engagement Strategies Toward Ending Workplace Sexual Harassment

September 24 – December 10, 2026 (Thursdays from 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm MT) - Live Online Sessions - Counselling Adult Survivors of Sexual Violence
*****
Build confidence. Strengthen your practice. Support survivors.

Visit aasas.ca/training for more information and to register.

07/30/2026

Connecting with Minister of Mental Health and Addictions at the Calgary Stampede

It was a pleasure to connect with Minister Rick Wilson at the Calgary Stampede, and to thank him for the continued support from the Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions for specialized sexual violence counselling therapy.
We are grateful for the Government of Alberta's continued investment in enhancing access to specialized sexual violence counselling across Alberta. These investments strengthen access to evidence-informed, trauma-specific clinical services delivered by counsellors with specialized expertise in sexual violence impacts.

Through individualized assessment, psychoeducation, trauma-focused interventions, emotional regulation, coping skill development, and coordinated support, survivors can access care that is responsive to their unique experiences, needs, and goals.

Continued investment in specialized sexual violence services helps strengthen Alberta's capacity to ensure survivors can access the right support, when and where they need it.

We value our ongoing partnership with Alberta's Ministry of Mental Health and Addiction and our shared commitment to improving access to specialized care for Albertans impacted by sexual violence.

07/28/2026

Just 3 more days to nominate someone you know for a Dr. Deb Tomlinson Award for Excellence in Collaboration!

Do you know someone working in the anti-sexual violence sector who brings people together and inspires collaboration? Who unites diverse perspectives and is strengths-oriented, collaborative, and relationships-centered in their approach?

Whether their impact is within one organization; across multiple organizations; across the AASAS Network; provincial; national; policy/systems change; survivor support; or public awareness-- let us know about their work and why you think they deserve an Excellence in Collaboration award!

Nominations close July 31, 2026 @ 12pm. Learn more & download the nomination form at https://aasas.ca/about-us/news/.

07/27/2026

We wanted to share a little update on our ongoing work as a member of the Ending Sexual Violence Association of Canada (ESVA Canada).

AASAS is proud to contribute to national leadership on ESVA's Board of Directors and through its working groups and advisory committees. Earlier this year we participated in ESVA Canada's Labour Force Strategy Launch and Discussion Forum. A strong gender-based violence workforce is essential to ensuring survivors can access the specialized support they need, when and where they need it, so we are pleased to share about these new releases available to the public:

#1- Stronger Workers, Stronger Survivors: A Strategy to Strengthen the Gender-Based Violence Workforce in Canada. This strategy provides a review of the gender-based violence workforce, its specific and systemic challenges, and offers its findings as well as eight strategic areas for action.

#2- The Stronger Workers, Stronger Survivors Advocacy Toolkit provides organizations with practical resources to raise awareness, engage decision-makers, and advocate for a stronger, more sustainable workforce.

Together, we can strengthen the people and organizations whose expertise is critical to preventing and responding to gender-based violence. You can find the strategy and advocacy toolkit through the ESVA Canada Stronger Resources, Stronger Survivors Resources page at https://endingviolencecanada.org/stronger-workers-stronger-survivors/

07/24/2026

"You're a Community Builder"

Do you know someone working within the issue of sexual violence who brings people together, builds trust, and inspires collaboration? Help them feel seen by nominating them for the Dr. Deb Tomlinson Award for Excellence in Collaboration.

This annual AASAS award recognizes individuals whose collaborative leadership strengthens Alberta's response to sexual violence and advances our shared purpose of safe communities free from sexual violence.

One week left to get your nominations in!

🗓 Nominations close July 31 at 12:00 p.m.

🔗 https://aasas.ca/about-us/news/