Organizing Peace: A Journey From Activism to Mediation. Member Spotlight: Anne Healy
Anne Healy sits at the intersection of labour, community, and peacebuilding, carrying with her decades of experience shaped by justice, activism, and a deeply rooted belief in people’s capacity to heal and work together. Now based in Toronto, Ontario, however Anne’s story begins much earlier and much farther away.
Originally from Ireland, Anne immigrated to Canada as a child and grew up in rural Ontario. Those early experiences of migration and adaptation stayed with her, shaping how she understands belonging, difference, and resilience. As a young adult, she spent time in France working with L’Arche International, an experience that deeply influenced her path. Living in an intentional community offered firsthand insight into shared responsibility, care, and consensus-building. “That’s where I got the roots of community work,” she says. “Living in community changes how you see conflict. You cannot walk away from each other. You have to figure things out.”
Anne went on to study social work and completed a placement at the Toronto Labour Council, an experience that would define the direction of her career. She has been involved in the labour movement since 1989, drawn to its ability to create meaningful, large-scale structural change. “Through the labour movement, we could make so many profound changes,” she explains. For Anne, the labour movement represented empowerment, fairness, and creating space for people to have a voice.
Over time, however, she began to notice gaps within the movement itself. “I saw in the labour movement that we were good at pointing out problems and highlighting what was wrong, but we were not always good at finding remedies or solutions for internal issues,” she reflects. Union locals sometimes struggled with internal conflict, leadership tensions, and unresolved harm. At the time, there were few tools available to help people navigate those challenges constructively. Wanting to respond to that need, Anne began to explore mediation and conflict resolution.
Her commitment to learning took her back to Ireland, where she trained in conflict studies at the University of Derry’s International Conflict Research Institute, with additional learning grounded in Northern Ireland’s history of deep, prolonged conflict. There, she gained a deeper understanding of conflict as something that exists on a spectrum. Some situations arise from misunderstandings, while others are rooted in trauma, power imbalances, and long-standing harm. “What worked for some things was not practical for others,” she explains. The work required flexibility, patience, and a recognition that no single approach fits every situation.
One of the most formative aspects of Anne’s work came through facilitating dialogue within divided union locals and community groups. She learned that mediation begins long before people ever sit at the same table. “Real preparation for bringing people together is essential,” she says. This includes being explicit about the purpose, expectations, and potential outcomes of a process. Trauma-informed approaches and a deep understanding of people’s work lives became central to her practice. Knowing what people carry into a room, including their histories, identities, and lived experiences, matters as much as what is said once they arrive.
Anne’s work has also focused heavily on cross-cultural communication. She emphasizes that local context, individual culture, history, and politics all shape how conflict shows up and how it can be addressed. Her work brought her to Tunesia where she trained union leaders on building autonomous and activist-based organizations. In Canada, workplace dynamics often reflect broader patterns of immigration, job stratification, race, gender, and power. These realities also appear within unions and organizations. “There are structural differences,” she says, and effective mediation requires identifying what is creating logjams in working relationships. Whether rooted in power dynamics, racial difference, generational divides, or exclusion, those barriers must be named before unity is possible.
Today, Anne’s work is increasingly collaborative. She sometimes co-facilitates with mediators from different backgrounds and values the learning that comes from working alongside others. She is especially interested in early intervention and in reimagining organizational complaint processes. “We are figuring out how complaint processes integrate mediation and early intervention,” she explains. Her work investigating and assessing Ombuds Programs in large organizations in both Canada and the US, further informs her approach. This includes addressing issues such as bullying, harassment, and workplace harm in ways that prevent further damage while still ensuring accountability. “Working towards how we can develop solid alternatives that are based on accountability,” she says. “How can we make restorative approaches that actually work alongside the formal complaints processes?”
For Anne, peace is not simply the absence of conflict. “As Gandhi taught, peace is more than the absence of conflict,” she says. “To me, peace is fairness, equality, having a voice, predictability, and knowing you will be heard and cared for.” She deeply believes in the importance of staying present with people during difficult moments. “If we can sit with people in that dark and painful place, it gives them energy to walk toward the light.”
Her work in social housing and community settings has reinforced this belief. She has seen how unresolved hurt between groups erodes trust and cohesion. “The more hurt there is between different groups, the less likelihood there is for a cohesive community,” she explains. Unity, for Anne, is not optional. It is essential for healthy organizations and communities.
Anne sees a strong connection between her role as a union activist and her work as a mediator. “As a union activist, my role was to empower people and help them have a voice,” she says. “In mediation, it is a similar approach, helping people find their voice and use it.” She describes this process as deeply empowering and transformative, not only for individuals but for entire groups.
Success in mediation, Anne believes, is not about eliminating conflict altogether. It is about naming problems honestly, speaking truthfully, and developing practical solutions that work for those involved. Outcomes may not meet every need, but they can still be meaningful. “ We get what we need in certain ways, maybe not in all ways,” she explains. She values the self-regulation process that mediation encourages. “A lot more is happening than we realize,” she says. “We are creating new pathways. It takes time.”
Some of Anne’s most meaningful work today is mentoring young mediators through job shadowing and guidance. She considers this among the most impactful parts of her work and credits her own development to mentors who once supported her growth. She is especially encouraged by younger generations and their openness to restorative approaches, accountability, and collective care.
Anne recognizes that real change happens when communities repair rifts and move beyond entrenched conflict. “If a group can heal some of the rift, they are far more productive,” she says. “The power of people working together is enormous.” Her work increasingly centers youth, women, 2SLGBTQIA+ people, and racialized communities, as well as addressing sexual harassment and gender based violence. These issues, she notes, are now more widely recognized as collective concerns that affect everyone.
Reflecting on her journey, Anne acknowledges how her perspective has evolved. “When I first started, I thought all the energy needed to be focused on the external,” she says. “Now I realize we need to focus much more on the internal if we hope to build the world we want.” For Anne, peacebuilding is also a personal practice of growth and reflection.
What gives her hope is simple and powerful. “When people express themselves and ask for help. It takes so much courage,” she says. She remains inspired by the next generation of mediators, activists, and community builders. “They are going to take us to the next level.”
Looking ahead, Anne remains committed to working in the labour movement and the non-profit sector. She hopes to continue supporting younger mediators by passing on skills, experience, and hard-earned lessons. Her vision remains clear. “My goal is simply to empower people.”
To learn more about Anne Healy and her incredible work, feel free to visit her website annehealy.ca.
Article by Shamailah Islam, MBBI Writer