HEAL and HOPE: A Ceremony for the Wounded Backbone of Our Workforce

Post-Event Reflection – International Injured Workers’ Day

June 1 marked a powerful moment of pause and presence.What was originally planned as a live event quickly evolved into something more intimate and perhaps even more enduring, an online gathering hosted on Substack to mark International Injured Workers’ Day.

We made this pivot not out of convenience, but necessity. The proposed reforms to psychological injury claims in the NSW Workers’ Compensation Scheme, still before Parliament, created an environment of urgency. These reforms have the potential to set care even further back. So, we adapted. We took it online. And we anchored our message in something the system so often fails to offer: care, dignity, and time to heal.

From the very beginning, HEAL and HOPE was never just an event. It was a declaration. A line in the sand. A refusal to allow the invisible suffering of injured workers to be swept aside again.

On June 1, we didn’t just hold space for grief, we made room for recovery.

A Day of Courageous Conversation

Throughout the day, we shared stories from across the nation, workers, advocates, families, return to work professionals, and those who’ve walked through the fire of injury and emerged changed. Some speakers spoke plainly. Others brought poetry, law, legacy, and raw truth. Each voice added to a collective reckoning of what it means to be injured not just in body, but in spirit.

And while the online format brought a few glitches (hello, algorithm gods), it also gave us something unexpected, intimacy. Speakers felt closer. The words landed deeper. And the comments, messages, and quiet moments of reflection reminded us that none of us are alone.

A Ceremony to Close, and a Path to Begin Again

To end the day, we offered something sacred:A Healing Ceremony for Injured Workers, a ritual you can now access any time, from wherever you are.

This wasn’t about moving on. It was about moving through. Honouring what was lost.Acknowledging what was harmed.And slowly, gently, opening to what may yet be possible.

→ You can read and experience the full healing ceremony here on our Substack:HEAL and HOPE: A Healing Ceremony

We encourage you to light a candle, sit quietly, and walk through the ceremony in your own time. It was designed for you, especially if you’ve ever felt like your injury erased your place in the world.

Because Healing is Leadership

At GIDII, we believe healing is a form of leadership. It’s not a retreat from power, it’s how we reclaim it. That’s why this ceremony is also part of our Moral Injury Leadership Training, a B2B program helping workplaces understand the cost of psychological harm, and how to lead with moral courage.

Want to bring this work into your organisation? Let’s talk: countmein@gidii.com

Thank You for Bearing Witness

To our speakers: thank you for your strength.To our readers and listeners: thank you for your presence.To every injured worker who tuned in, stayed silent, or quietly wept—we saw you. We honour you.

This was not just a commemoration. It was a step toward justice, healing, and system change.

And it’s only the beginning.

– The GIDII Advocacy TeamHealing. Truth. Transformation.