Bio

Richard (Dick) Katz has dedicated over 40 years to the respectful exchange of knowledge between Indigenous and Western approaches to healing, community development, and spiritual growth.  He received his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Harvard, and taught there nearly 20 years.  Dick has worked with Indigenous healers and elders in different parts of the world, including the hunting-gathering Ju/’hoansi of the Kalahari Desert, the Fijians of the South Pacific, and the Cree and Saulteaux First Nations of Saskatchewan.  His efforts to develop therapeutic services sensitive to the needs of Aboriginal people helps generate models of best practice for Western clinicians. Dick is the author of six books on culture and healing, including the classic Harvard Press book, Boiling Energy: Community Healing
Among the Kalahari Kung, and Nobody’s Child, Marie Balter’s story of hope in recovering from mental illness.  His just released new book, Synergy, Healing and Empowerment: Insights from Cultural Diversity, describes how synergy can make previously scarce education and healing resources renewable, expanding and widely available, thereby promoting social justice. Dick is presently Professor Emeritus, First Nations University of Canada, and Adjunct Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Saskatchewan.

Selected Publications

Katz, Richard and Murphy-Shigematsu, Stephen (expected publication: late 2012) Synergy, Healing and Empowerment: Insights from Cultural Diversity. Brush Education (Calgary, Alberta, Canada). PDF