We can’t quite believe it ourselves. We are only a couple of weeks away from our 11th annual Self-Reg Summer Symposium (SRSS), located in the beautiful town of Peterborough in Ontario, Canada!
For those who don’t know, SRSS is our most highly anticipated event of the year. Whether you are new to Self-Reg or back for your 11th consecutive event, one thing can be guaranteed… you will be connecting with like minded (and hearted) others who want to be the best human they can be for the children, teens and adults in their care.
At SRSS we chat over morning coffee, we attend luminary sessions by Drs. Stuart Shanker & Susan Hopkins, we learn from Self-Reg Program Alumni, we wander the banks of the Otonabee River and perhaps strike the occasional yoga pose.
We have celebrated some incredible milestones at SRSS over the last 10 years, always pivoting and approaching head first the issues we find ourself facing in the world each year. So in preparation for this year’s 11th annual SRSS (starting July 7-10, 2025), we wanted to share some of those milestones, memories and causes for celebration. And hopefully we will see you on the banks of the Otonabee River in the not too distant future.
Our First Symposium (2015)
Did you know that we began referring to our symposium as “annual” from it’s very first year? Back in 2015 our Executive Director Susan Hopkins humorously referred to SRSS as an annual event. All these years on, we know that this was true.
Our very first year saw the blossoming of a community still going strong today, taking online relationships to in person friendships. We also may have seen some chickens, if you know, you know!
Expect the Unexpected (2020)
In Self-Reg we have often talked about “Expecting the Unexpected“, we didn’t expect this. Throwing all of our planning out of the window, SRSS went online, and wasn’t it exactly what our community needed in this moment. A space to work together through the dramatic shifts in our stressors with the pandemic. With a focus on Self-Reg, Equity & Well-Being we had 20/20 Vision: Values, Inclusion, Self-Reg, Interdependent, Organic, Necessary.
We Are the Strategy (2023)
Back in-person and better than ever! 2023 had us gathering once again at Trent University, and this time to look at the topic that was on everyone’s mind after the rough years prior: how do we co-regulate the dysregulated children in our lives? And maybe even the adults too?
That’s where 2023’s theme came in. We Are the Strategy was a reminder that we have all the tools in our toolkit if we lead with a Self-Reg lens of Reframing behaviour, Recognizing stressors, Reducing Stressors, Reflecting & Responding.
Looking to the Horizon: Reignite, Restore and Rise This Year at SRSS 2025
Now here comes SRSS 2025! Our theme, Reignite, Restore, Rise, is built for this moment in time. It is a call to action in a world marked by chronic stress, exhaustion, and deepening division. We are gathering the global Self-Reg community to reconnect with purpose, practice restoration, and rise together. This year’s symposium, more than ever, has been designed as both a deeply personal experience and a professional energizer—where you will learn, connect, and co-regulate with like-hearted peers from around the world.
Now only a couple of weeks away, we would love to see you there, engaged with like minded & hearted others, and ready to take on the challenges facing our families, communities and the world at large.
