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You are here: Home / Users / Amy Lister

Amy ListerSpiral Centre

Photo of Amy Lister

Amy Lister, with fellow Work That Reconnects (WTR) facilitator Simone Hanchet, co-founded Spiral Centre, an online learning institute dedicated to making the WTR practices accessible to people everywhere. Spiral Centre offers individual coaching and group facilitation so more people can experience their full agency, creative power, compassion, joy, courage, and active hope at this time of multiple complex social and ecological crises.

Spiral Centre works with leaders in the public, private, and not-for-profit sectors, as well as with activists, caregivers, educators, and young people. The diverse identities, contexts, circumstances and lived experiences embodied in Spiral Centre’s learning community offers unique beauty, wisdom and opportunities to unlearn harmful beliefs and patterns and co-create life-sustaining ways of working, living, and being together on Earth.

Since 2009, with their background in education and organization development, Amy has run a successful leadership coaching and facilitation business serving clients across the globe. As a coach, she supports people to explore and integrate pivotal transition experiences in life and work so they can courageously live in alignment with their values while expanding their capacity to care for self and for the planet.

Amy also recently studied art therapy at the Toronto Art Therapy Institute and now, in their private practice, offers online psychotherapy and art therapy services to caregivers, other individuals, children and families. Amy is filled with gratitude for the opportunity to connect and collaborate with amazing people bringing unique strengths together to collectively navigate and process the challenges that arise in today’s world in supported, constructive ways. She revels in the inspiration that Nature offers to nourish the soul and sustain the ceaseless creative process of sacred living.

When they are not working, Amy is singing, dancing, creating, engaging in community building, social outreach and ecologically-focused initiatives and spending time outdoors with their family.

Why I am called to facilitate the Work

I am called to do this work because it is at the intersection of what the world needs most right now and where my gifts lie making it the best form of service for my head, hands, heart and soul to engage in for the sake of the planet and all living beings – past, present and future.

How I see the Work serving the Great Turning

I see it serving people as a map and a toolkit with a set of practices, processes and pathways to assist in moving through the grief and pain in our world, tapping into new and ancient perspectives, to move forward with hope and action that supports us all as a planet people in greater harmony with the more-than-human-beings!

Audiences I work with

Professionally:
As a psychotherapist and art therapist, I work with individuals, caregivers & families navigating transitions across the lifespan offering psychotherapy and art therapy services.
As a leadership coach, I support individuals, leaders and teams to experience themselves, and each other, as being the best they can be for themselves, their families, their communities, and the planet.

Personally:
I am a parent of two school aged children, a caregiver to my parents with changing health conditions and needs, and I am a community builder and outreach volunteer. I volunteer on a committee that sponsors and supports the resettlement process of refugees and newcomers in Canada, I co-Captain a community food drive for people in need of food supports in Toronto, Canada and am actively involved in the activities of my school-aged children.

All photos shared here are credited to: Marina Dempster Photography

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Background & Training

Background & training in the Work That Reconnects

  • Spiral Journey Facilitator Development Program (2021, 120 days)
    Location: Online
    Facilitated by: Mutima Imani, Constance Washburn, and Molly Brown.
    7 months – monthly 3 hour online workshop, monthly study group meeting, weekly buddy meetings, monthly self-study homework and practices (videos, readings, and moodle posts etc), practicum design & delivery. From this program, I attended many other WTR offerings such as, De-escalating Harm in dominant white-bodied spaces and many others. I began offering WTR workshops and practice gatherings online with Simone Hanchet through our online learning centre based in Canada called Spiral Centre.
  • A Deeper Look at the Work That Reconnects (2019, 3 days)
    Location: Online
    Facilitated by: Joanna Macy & Lydia Violet Harutoonian
    Three 2 hour live sessions online, plus additional Q & A sessions, totalling 8 hours of live instruction, and approx. 20 hours of readings and recordings to review
  • In Her Words (2019, 6 days)
    Location: Online
    Facilitated by: Joanna Macy & Lydia Violet Harutoonian
    6 weeks (approx. 20+ hours in total); 2 hour sessions every two weeks plus 2-3 hours of reading/recording/reflection work in between
  • World as Lover, World as Self (2021, 1 days)
    Location: Online from Spirit Rock
    Facilitated by: Joanna Macy & Jennifer Berezan
    Full Day- singing, sharing, poetry, reading and exploring the World as Lover, World as Self

Other relevant training

  • Post graduate Diploma in Art Therapy (2022, 480 days)
    Location: Toronto Art Therapy Institute, Toronto, Canada
    Facilitated by: TATI Faculty
    Attended from 2019-2022 (on-going). Post graduate Diploma in Art Therapy (DTATI). I have completed over 800 hours in classes and over 600 hours of practicum hours with clients during the 16 month intensive program. I am currently completing my thesis in order to graduate
  • Post graduate certificate in Executive Coaching (2011, 365 days)
    Location: Royal Roads University, Victoria, BC, Canada
    Facilitated by: Faculty
    A year long program that involved a week long in person residency, a year long series of online classes and assignments, in-person practicum, group project and capstone exam. Been in private practice coaching and facilitating since 2009
  • M.A in Curriculum, Teaching & Learning, with a specialization in Holistic Education (2003, 1095 days)
    Location: University of Toronto, Ontario Studies in Education (OISE), Toronto, Canada
    Facilitated by: Faculty
    Attended from 2001-2003. My thesis looked at how creativity and expressive arts practices help with transforming suffering into meaning making experiences. It is titled: Dying to be Alive: A portrait of the intimacy between life and death
  • Bachelor of Education with a specialization in Outdoor & Experiential Education (2000, 365 days)
    Location: Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
    Facilitated by: Faculty
    Attended from 1999-2000. This degree is required to be a certified teacher with the Ontario College of Teachers (OCT). I lived and taught in outdoor ed centre, public school and hospital settings for many years.
  • Bachelor of Arts Honours Degree (B.A.H) in Relgious Studies with a focus on Health Studies (1999, 1460 days)
    Location: Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
    Facilitated by: Faculty
    Attended form 1995-1999. My thesis was titled: Prayer in Motion: Dance as Spiritual Practice

Other relevant skills & experiences

Languages: English is my mother tongue. I read and understand French with strong fluency and write and speak with average fluency. I can co-facilitate in French, however I would not ever lead anything solo in French.

Artistic Practices: Dancer, Singer, Poet ( I attended an arts highschool where I danced, sang and performed hours each day. Embodiment has always been central to my personal and professional practices since my adolescence. I went on to studied the 5Rhythms for 25+ years with Gabrielle Roth and faculty, as well as completed the Soul Motion leadership training with Vincent Martinez (formerly known as Vinn Marti) . I have since taken training as a multifaith chaplain and have worked companioning people at the bedside at the end of life on a voluntary basis.
Notable Life Experiences: I spent most of my childhood fighting for my life with a medical condition that had me in and out of hospital. I have anaphylactic food allergies and I have survived many severe reactions. When I was 11 years old I clinically died and experienced a ‘near death experience’ that blew me open spiritually. Since then, I have viscerally experienced the world and all living beings as connected and continue to re-learn how to navigate life in an individuated body with healthy personal, interpersonal, physical, emotional, and psychological boundaries.
I am living in a multigenerational home caregiving for my two school aged children and my two parents with varying and changing health conditions and needs.
Other Skills: I have years of curriculum development, strategic planning, change management, facilitation, teaching experience with adults, youth and children. The past 15 years have been focused mostly on adult education and leadership development with health care workers and frontline leaders.

Experience facilitating WTR events & workshops

Work That Reconnects workshops I have facilitated

  • An evening portion of Joanna Macy: Guidance for the Way Forward from Earth's Faith Traditions (2012, 1 days)
    Location: Silence in Guelph, Ontario, Canada
    Facilitated by: Joanna Macy, Gary Diggins, Amy Lister
    The evening offering was four hours long and involved some WTR practices and a facilitated immersive embodied therapeutic sonic experience with sounding, chanting, singing, and having instruments played around and over top of the body as a means to connect with the elements and the natural world.
  • Equinox of the Heart: Harnessing wisdom from a harsh season & letting light return (2022, 2 days)
    Location: Online
    Facilitated by: Simone Hanchet & Amy Lister
    4 hours (live) with suggested preparation and follow up practices and optional additional asynchronous participation in a private online group forum – Totalling 4-12 hours
  • Series: Drop-In Spiral Practice (Monthly) (2022, 6 days)
    Location: Online
    Facilitated by: Simone Hanchet & Amy Lister
    Began offering these in March 2022 so we have offered 6 so far. Fourth Sunday of every month of 2022 7 - 9 pm ET via Zoom Come as often as it serves you Pay what you wish each time Register by noon on our gathering day Limited Spots Available Modelled on the Spiral Journey of the Work That Reconnects, we will be exploring nature, reflection, meditation, artistic expression, writing, movement, small group exchanges, and coaching to help move through places of overwhelm into deeper inspired action
  • Solstice of the Soul: Slow down & shine brighter (2022, 1 days)
    Location: Online
    Facilitated by: Simone Hanchet & Amy Lister
    June 18 & 19, 2022 rescheduled for December 18/2022 1-4pmET. 3 hours (live) with suggested preparation and follow up practices, and optional additional asynchronous participation in a private online group forum – Totalling 3-10 hours. A workshop offered for people overwhelmed by the state and speed of the world.

Video of me facilitating

Experience facilitating other events & workshops

I actively integrate the WTR practices into my coaching and art therapy and psychotherapy practices especially when helping individuals or groups to acknowledge, feel, metabolize and integrate the big feelings that come along with big challenges and to find ways to keep connected with active hope while discovering ways to be with pain, tap into gratitude and possibility and find authentic ways to move forward in life and work.
I also actively integrate it on a daily basis in relationship with my life partner and in my parenting.

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User Info

WTR Facilitator since 2012
Languages served: English
Other languages: French
Location: Spiral Centre (Ontario), Presteign Ave, Toronto, Ontario M4B3B1, Canada
Age: 46
Contact info
  • Email: [email protected]
  • Social media: Spiral Centre Events Page, Spiral Centre Community Facebook Page, Amy Lister LinkedIn Profile, Amy Lister Psychotherapy Website

The Work That Reconnects Network is a fiscally sponsored project of Inquiring Systems Inc., a tax-exempt 501 (c) (3) nonprofit corporation. EIN 94-2524840. All donations are tax-deductible.

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