Among the speakers at the Animals on the Mind conference is Temple Grandin, a well-known animal-behavior expert and professor at Colorado State University.
The study of the relationships between humans and animals is becoming increasingly popular. The University of Denver is paving the way in this growing field by offering an academic certificate for social work graduate students interested in focusing on the human-animal-environmental connection. This unique specialization, the Animal-Assisted Social Work Certificate (AASW), focuses on how students can integrate animals and nature into their graduate studies and internships and, ultimately, into their social work practice.
DU’s Institute for Human-Animal Connection (IHAC), housed in the Graduate School of Social Work, was one of the first institutes in the world to offer a certificate that explores the therapeutic inclusion of animals in many types of human services professions. On May 12, the institute will host the 2016 Animals on the Mind Conference, which will gather experts in the field to discuss social neurobiology of human-animal interactions and other nature-based interventions as they relate to clients with autism, mental health disorders, PTSD and other challenges.
“Let’s say you have a therapist working with a child client, for example,” says Erica Elvove, assistant director of IHAC. “It may be really difficult for the child to look the therapist in the eye and tell him or her the traumatic things that have happened to them. But with a therapist trained in animal-assisted social work and a certified therapy dog in the room, it becomes a lot easier for the child to tell the dog what happened and work through the therapy process. Oftentimes, opening up will naturally occur as a child interacts with the therapy animal.”
Among the speakers at the conference is Temple Grandin, a well-known animal-behavior expert and professor at Colorado State University. Grandin has autism, and she feels that her ability to understand animals is heightened because of it.
“Temple Grandin is an extraordinary person who has achieved remarkable outcomes both in animal welfare and for people on the autism spectrum,” Elvove says. “IHAC is very excited to host Dr. Grandin, because she brings a unique and relevant perspective on the scientific and social connections between humans and other animals.”
The audience at the conference will consist of DU students, staff, faculty and alumni, as well as practitioners who are interested in or have successfully integrated animals into their practice and general public from around the globe. The event also features poster sessions in which 60 graduate students in the AASW certificate program will present projects they have developed that integrate the human-animal-environmental connection.
The Animals on the Mind conference is a professional-development opportunity not only for graduate students in the certificate program, but also for professionals working in the field of human-animal interactions. Through the conference, IHAC aims to improve and expand the knowledge base of human-animal interactions so that professionals who wish to integrate animals into their practice can do so in the most effective and professional way possible.
“We like to call it a practitioners’ conference,” Elvove says. “Our goal is to present the best research and methods of practice in the field of human-animal interactions, specifically in regard to social neurobiology, so that we can determine the best way to utilize the science behind our affinity toward animals and nature. We are focusing on major areas, such as the impact of trauma or PTSD and autism, and how relationships with animals and exposure to nature can help people work through these conditions.”