OUR APPROACH
Ecosystem of Care | Healing-Centered Leadership | Holistic Wellness
KLBRI’s methodology, philosophy, and approach centers a relational worldview that is grounded in traditional ancestral and cultural healing modalities and social justice. It calls for a paradigm shift from a dominant Western model of leadership development and training, individual healing, coping, and self-care to a culturally relevant framework that incorporates Eastern and Western traditions with Indigenous healing, intergenerational and collective healing, transformative leadership development, ecosystems of care, and social change.
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The mission of the institute is to uplift and sustain advocates and leaders through an
ecosystem of care, well-being, and healing.
OUR TEAM
Dr. Patricia
Ramirez
Founder/CEO
Arianna
Neuenkirk
MSW Student Consultant
Elizabeth
Palomares - Michael
MSW Student Consultant
Vanessa
Tricoche
MSW Student Consultant
Vanessa
Cecena
Team Consultant
The spirit of our organization is represented by "colibri" hummingbird medicine. In P'urepecha and Mexhika indigenous tradition, hummingbird medicine may signify the warriors who died and returned to this world as hummingbirds. Hummingbirds may also signify messages from our ancestors. Our work is guided by healing justice, a community informed framework that integrates social justice and healing, grounded in ancestral and cultural healing practices that has come before us. Our focus will continue to be on uplifting and sustaining social justice warriors and organizations who are experiencing burnout and movement fragmentation due to ethno and racial trauma.
The Hunab ku is a traditional Maya symbol that represents the space of complexity and integration. Here we see the sacred four directions in harmony. All are needed for the sustainability of our movements, both in the sense of our worldview and in our social justice practice. The hunab ku is represented in our hummingbird in the heart space to signify our commitment to integrating healing in every aspect of social justice and leadership development work. Leading with HEART will not just a commitment to our purpose, but it is also our inaugural methodology offering a paradigm shift for leading.
The KLBRI logo honors our founder, Dr. Patty, her lineage, a Xicana Indigena and Salvadoran walking in her Mexhika medicine path with guidance from her elders and kalpulli as well as her Maya lineage. We are proud to commemorate this representation of her medicine and vision for KLBRI in our logo.