SEPTEMBER 17, 2026

Advancing Community-Based Practices and Trauma-Informed Care for Asian American and Asian Immigrant (AAAI) Youth and Families in Greater Los Angeles Area

Register Here

Date & Time: Thursday, September 17, 2026 9AM-5PM PT

Location: Sequoia Room, UCLA University Club (480 Charles E Young Dr E, Los Angeles, California 90095)

(Free) Registration open now!
*Please register only if you are confident you can attend in person, as space is limited and we want to ensure all available spots are used by those who are able to participate.

Brought to you by:

Continuing Education: RAMS is approved by the California Psychological Association (CPA) to provide continuing professional education for psychologists. For this workshop, RAMS is offering 6.5 hours of continuing education for psychologists, LMFTs, LCSWs, and LPCCs. RAMS maintains responsibility for this program and its contents.

About the Lotus Project

Funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the Lotus Project is a collaboration between the Public Health Institute (PHI) and Richmond Multi-Services (RAMS) that provides trainings and resources of trauma-informed care and prevention for service providers, teachers, and program administrators of all racial and ethnic backgrounds.

About the Workshop

Join us for a full-day, in-person workshop exploring trauma-informed and culturally responsive approaches to supporting AAAI children, youth, and families. Attendees will hear from youth/young adults with lived experiences, participate in experiential activities highlighting culturally responsive community-based healing practices, and explore how identity, media, and representation shape mental health and well-being of AAAI youth and communities. The workshop will offer practical strategies, and opportunities for connection and meaningful dialogue among researchers, mental health providers, community members, and media professionals, including digital creators, writers, journalists, and actors, who bring diverse perspectives on identity, storytelling, representation, and well-being.

Workshop Goals

  • To center the voices and lived experiences of diverse AAAI youth and young adults in exploring factors related to mental health (e.g., identity, belonging) and ways to support;

  • To deepen understanding of the mental health challenges experienced by youth and young adults in order to inform culturally responsive prevention and mental health intervention strategies

  • To learn about community-based mental health treatment programs and culturally responsive healing practices

  • To explore the role of media/social media representation, storytelling, and public narratives in affecting AAPI mental health issues

  • To enhance trust and collaboration within AAPI-serving organizations and community members through discussions on community-based mental health care approaches and stigma reduction strategies

  • To identify next steps and connect attendees to resources from SAMHSA’s National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN), Lotus Project, and collaborating service agencies and behavioral health departments

Featured Session Topics

  • Panel: Youth/Young Adult Lived Experiences

  • Experiential Healing Session: Culturally Responsive Community-based Programs and Supports for AAAI Children and Families

  • Panel: Media’s Impact on Identity and Mental Health

Collaborations

In collaboration with Dr. Dorothy Chin, UCLA Center for Culture, Trauma, and Mental Health Disparities at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior,  Little Tokyo Service Center, and Yellow Chair Collective, the Lotus Project aims to work closely with local mental health providers, researchers, and AAAI-serving organizations to implement this workshop.

Speakers

Alex Chester-Iwata
Founder of Mixed Asian Media

Alex Chester-Iwata is an award-winning performer, writer, and cultural advocate with over 35 years in the entertainment industry. A former child actor, Broadway performer, and member of P. Diddy’s girl group Dream, she is the founder of Mixed Asian Media, an award-winning platform amplifying mixed AAPINH voices, and the founder of Mixed Asian Day™. Her advocacy has earned recognition from Nielsen, Forbes, Gold House, and the National Association of Asian American Professionals, where she received the 2025 Inspire Award. Alex serves on several national nonprofit and arts boards and is a frequent speaker on representation, identity, and inclusive storytelling.

Asuka Garcia, LCSW
Psychotherapist, Yellow Chair Collective

Asuka Garcia, LCSW is a bilingual (English/Japanese) Licensed Clinical Social Worker, trauma therapist, and Taiko player based in San Diego, California. She is the founder of Asuka Garcia Therapy Service, where she integrates mindfulness, somatic approaches, and evidence-based trauma treatment to support healing. Combining her clinical expertise with her passion for Japanese Taiko drumming, Asuka created an experiential practice that fosters awareness, exploration, and connection through rhythm. She is passionate about making mindfulness engaging, accessible, and culturally meaningful for diverse communities.

Hoi In (Cruz) Chan, LMFT, RDT, PAT
Clinical Manager, Healing for Asians at Richmond Area Multi-Services, Inc. (RAMS), San Francisco

A Cantonese and Mandarin-speaking clinician, Cruz graduated from California Institute of Integral Studies (San Francisco), with a Masters of Arts in Counseling Psychology with a specialization in Drama Therapy.  In Cruz's role as Clinical Manager, Cruz develops the RAMS Healing for Asians program which provides trauma informed mental health services to limited English speaking Asian victims of crime. This RAMS program is part of San Francisco’s multi-system, initial answer and collaborative solution to the “Anti-Asian Hate”. Cruz is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist as well as a Registered Drama Therapist. Cruz's background also includes providing mental health services to children, youth, families and adults at RAMS outpatient and school-based programs. Prior to clinical work, Cruz has also participated in many drama performances and was a radio host and producer in Macau. Cruz is also a Practitioner Applicant for Trainer (PAT) under the guidelines of the American Board of Examiner of Psychodrama, Group Psychotherapy and Sociometry (ABE), and presented in the 2020 North American Drama Therapy Association Conference.

Crystal Widado
Student, Lived Experiences

Crystal Widado (they/them) is a community organizer and senior at Claremont McKenna College studying Asian American studies. Their interest in mental health justice for communities of color started in middle school where they ran numerous youth mental health organizations and saw the direct connection with their mental health challenges and being a young queer person of color. Since starting college, Crystal has invested their time in the field of ethnic studies with an interest in Asian American movement history, critical surveillance studies and community organizing. In their free time, they enjoy rock climbing, skate boarding and being a barista/bartending for mutual aid efforts within their community.

Jack Lam, LCSW
Licensed Clinical Social Worker & Social Media Coordinator, Yellow Chair Collective

Jack (they/them) is a non-binary Chinese Malaysian immigrant, and works as a therapist and social media coordinator at Yellow Chair Collective. Coming from a background of suicide prevention and crisis intervention, they specialize in depression, anxiety and trauma treatment. They also have a special focus on LGBTQ+ populations, particularly transgender and non-binary people of color. In their work, Jack offers a compassionate, anti-oppressive lens towards wellness and healing.

Jennifer Chen, MFA
Author and Journalist

Jennifer Chen is the author of three young adult novels, Artifacts of an Ex, Hangry Hearts, and Checking You Out. Jennifer is a proud mentor for WriteGirl, a creative writing organization and a loving foster kitten mom. She lives in Los Angeles with her TV writer husband, twins, two pugs, and two cats named Gremlin and Taro. Follow her on Threads and Instagram at @jchenwriter.

Lauren Dy, MSW
Special Projects and Strategic Engagement Manager, UCLA-Duke University National Center for Child Traumatic Stress

Lauren Dy, MSW, is the Special Projects and Strategic Engagement Manager at the UCLA-Duke University National Center for Child Traumatic Stress. Since 2015, she has dedicated her career to supporting children, families, and underserved communities. Her experience spans social work, special education, and nonprofit leadership, including co-founding Students 4 Students, the first U.S. nonprofit focused on supporting unhoused college students. Lauren is passionate about strengthening the child trauma workforce, advancing systems change, and serving unhoused populations. Outside of work, she enjoys gardening, baking, and caring for animals.

Leilani Wong
Student, Lived Experiences

Leilani Wong is an 18-year-old Chinese American high school senior and advocate for youth mental health, disability inclusion, and rare disease awareness. Drawing from her experiences navigating cultural identity and living with Osteogenesis Imperfecta, a rare genetic condition, she is passionate about helping young people feel seen, supported, and empowered. She has advocated for expanding youth mental health resources, supporting homeless youth, and advancing rare disease legislation in Sacramento and Washington, D.C. Leilani is also the author of two children’s books that promote disability inclusion and acceptance.

Lindsey Young
Student, Lived Experiences

Lindsey is a sophomore at UCLA studying psychobiology as she prepares for a career in psychiatry. Since high school, she has been passionate about mental health advocacy, especially challenging stigma. To strengthen her advocacy skills, Lindsey worked with Youth MOVE National to learn how to raise awareness for youth’s lived experiences. She also served on the AAP’s Center of Excellence Youth Panel, sharing how social media affects youth mental health. After advocating before representatives from Meta, TikTok, and Snapchat, Lindsey recognizes that every perspective must be heard to improve not just social media platforms, but healthcare systems, including mental health services.

Lisa Ordonez
Student, Lived Experiences, Bruin Mental Health Advisory Committee

Lisa Ordonez is a UCLA neuroscience student, researcher, and Filipino-American. As a research assistant at the UCLA Social and Affective Neuroscience Lab and Co-Chair of UCLA CAPS’s Bruin Mental Health Advisory Committee (BMHAC), she is passionate about the intersection of preventative health, mental resilience, and social connection. Through Search To Involve Filipino Americans (SIPA), she helped teach a BIPOC-focused mental health curriculum in Historic Filipinotown schools, creating safe spaces for conversations about mental health, stigma, and cultural identity. She also enjoys leading workshops that promote mental health literacy, suicide awareness, and culturally-informed education for BIPOC youth.

Peter Gee, MPP, RN
Co-Executive Director, Little Tokyo Service Center (LTSC)

Peter Gee, RN, is Co-Executive Director of Little Tokyo Service Center (LTSC) in Los Angeles, where he oversees social services, mental health, homeless services, and community programs serving communities across LA County. He brings over 15 years of leadership in nonprofit management, public service, and healthcare. Peter previously served in roles at Asian Americans for Equality, University Settlement, and The Door in New York City. He earned degrees from UC Berkeley, Harvard Kennedy School, and NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing. As a registered nurse, he is committed to advancing culturally responsive mental health care and strengthening community-based systems of support.

Ryan Alexander Holmes
Digital Creator, Actor, Bloom

Ryan Alexander Holmes is an actor, content creator, speaker and proud Afro-Asian American. Having garnered a sizable presence on social media by using his platform to embrace his mixed Chinese/African American background through comedic story telling and poignant writings about his family’s perseverance, Ryan’s goal is to encourage others who are of mixed ethnic/cultural backgrounds to fully embrace who they are and to show the world there is unimaginable strength in discovering harmony in multiculturalism. He founded his organization Bloom to spread this very message. He is a proud alumni of both UC Berkeley; where he achieved a Bachelor’s in Business, USC; where he achieved a Master’s in Dramatic Arts. His acting credits include For the People on ABC, Dear White People on Netflix, The Morning Show on AppleTV+ and Back on The Strip, where he stars alongside Wesley Snipes and Kevin Hart.