About Me

Mandi Pekan, She/They/Elle 

Mandi is a passionate and knowledgeable clinician whose work centers around an embodied social-justice framework. Her approach to healing is grounded in an understanding of the systemic, relational, cultural, and political effects of trauma. She holds an executive role and coordinates the mental health and advocacy services at CRSD. In this capacity, she is responsible for overseeing a team of mental health professionals and advocates, and ensuring that services were delivered in a trauma-informed, culturally-responsive, and socially-just manner.

Mandi’s work is deeply rooted in systems-thinking and social justice advocacy, particularly around issues of structural inequities and the impact of trauma on individuals and communities. As trauma-trainer and educator, Mandi has helped to cultivate a new generation of trauma-informed practitioners, advocates, and leaders. 

She is committed to advocating for systemic change through promoting community safety, and addressing the root causes of violence. She is also dedicated to dismantling harmful and stigmatizing narratives around youth “gangs” and promoting community-based alternatives to criminalization and incarceration. In addition to her expertise in trauma-informed practices and community-based advocacy, Mandi is most recognized for her work in supporting victims and survivors of police violence. She recognizes the importance of centering the needs and experiences of young people in these efforts and working collaboratively with them to create meaningful change in their communities.

Her approach to this work emphasizes the importance of community empowerment, transformative justice, and healing-centered practices. Mandi’s systems-focused approach to social justice advocacy is grounded in an understanding of the interconnectedness of social issues and their impact on individuals and communities. She is committed to creating collaborative and inclusive spaces for individuals and communities impacted by systemic inequities to share their experiences, build power, and work towards collective liberation. Her work is a testament to her unwavering commitment to social justice and her ability to create positive change at both the individual and systemic level. 

“The world is not a problem to be solved; it is a living being to which we belong. The world is part of our own self and we are a part of its suffering wholeness. Until we go to the root of our image of separateness, there can be no healing. And the deepest part of our separateness from creation lies in our forgetfulness of its sacred nature, which is also our own sacred nature”— Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee