Jo Dee Davis

Brainstormer, Change Agent, Connector, Consultant, Educator/Teacher, Explorer, Global soul, Idea generator, Life mentor, Parent, Student

Everything in my life led me to where I am now, directing Healing Broken Circles.... growing up in Chile, descendent of gold miners and gypsies, married to a mathematician, being alive and grown up in the 60s, out-of-sync teacher and educator, mom to 3 grown ups who still sneak out at night, adventurous grandma, and blessed with brilliant, brave, amazing friends who teach me patience, how to be a tough cookie, and the value of laughter and hand holding. I am the chief risk-taker for Healing Broken Circles, Inc. "providing space for healing and learning for those touched by the justice system." For the last 16 years, I have spent a lot of time in prison supervising the LifeLine Reentry Community Center at Marion Correctional Institution in Ohio and associated programs on the outside. Several years ago some of the men I work with urged me to apply for a license for a TEDx event and, yes, we held the first TEDx in a men's prison on September 16, 2012. Quite a journey since then with TEDxMarionCorrectional! I am heartened that, since Jordan Edelheit and I talked at the TEDx event at TED2013, when no one was thinking about incarceration except those who had heard Bryan Stevenson's TED talk, this is now a topic of conversation at dinner tables and political meetings. There is a lot to know and do, and I relish being right inside that conversation. I am currently focussed on the role that trauma plays in prisons as its consequences are just being revealed to me. The powerful place of "The ACEs" in my work and in the lives of all of us is now essential to my work. (Adverse childhood experiences)

the conversation about incarceration; believing that people can change; empowering folks to do their own work; my children, grandchildren and the new great-grandboy

We have a lot of work to do as we examine how we do incarceration and reentry so we don't make superficial, knee-jerk changes.

creating safe places, education, the real kind, facilitation and leadership, incarceration and reentry, prison experience, TEDx under difficult circumstances

Focus on imprisonment and reintegration to bring awareness and change. TEDxMarionCorrectional's first event “A Life Worth Living?” was 9/16/12, half inmates, half guests: talkers and audience. “Men in blue” started conversations; warden, director, ex-offender talked, people saw different faces, heard different voices, had new ideas about prison. Fifth event “The Gala of Impudent Concepts?” 10/11, powerful day of deep ideas. Our TEDxSalon on 3/14/15 “Art and Conviction” required an encore 2 weeks later! TED culture took hold inside Marion Correctional. There is a 24/7 TED tv internal channel that raises the “level of prison discourse." We've attended and supported 8 other TEDx's behind bars. I talked at TEDxColumbus Women, and have attended many TEDx events in our lively Central Ohio TEDx community. What a journey ... making the invisible .... visible...

cooking over a campfire