Our Story
Learning, strength, and (re)membering.
Welcome, we are so glad you are here.
The Former Youth in Care Community of Practice (FYiC CoP), operated by Karoso Consulting, is a collaborative platform dedicated to continuous learning, networking, and personal and professional development. We engage members and non-members to share knowledge, insights, and perspectives, promoting mutual learning and collective growth.
Through customized training, consultation, and collaborative projects, we serve as translators, connectors, and guides, transforming complex challenges into coordinated action. By integrating lived experience with professional expertise, we empower individuals and systems to collaborate more effectively, fostering meaningful change that benefits people today while laying the groundwork for stronger, more equitable outcomes for future generations.
Our Founding Story
The Former Youth in Care Community of Practice (FYiC CoP) emerged in early 2024 from Kaeli’s Master’s thesis, Cocreating Empowered Leadership Outcomes with Former Youth in Care in British Columbia.
What started as one-to-one and small-group discussions among former youth in care and committed allies revealed a profound gap between what systems intend and what people actually experience. These early dialogues highlighted the need to better understand the child welfare system as an interconnected whole, its relationships, perspectives, distinctions, and boundaries, while centering the wisdom of those who have known it from the inside.
Grounded in lived experience and strengthened by collaborative learning, the FYiC CoP was established on a core belief: we must challenge adversity by learning new ways, together. By creating a space for shared leadership and collective sensemaking, our organization is deepening understanding, strengthening relationships, and advancing solutions at all levels that reflect the complexity of the system and the voices of those navigating it.
Today, the FYiC CoP stands as a testament to what becomes possible when people come together with courage and clarity, untangling complexity, amplifying lived and professional expertise, and reimagining systems to the benefit of future generations.
“Hard on Systems, soft on people”
~ Elaine Alec, Cultivating Safe Spaces
Having personally experienced the challenges of growing up in the foster care system, we understand the depth of the wicked (complex) problems that former youth in care and leaders face, as well as the need for meaningful change driven by those who have lived through it.
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A wicked problem is a complex, evolving issue with no clear definition and no single, definitive solution. Because its causes are deeply interconnected and shaped by competing values and perspectives among interest holders, attempts to resolve one aspect can unintentionally worsen another. Untangling these problems require adaptive, collaborative, and iterative approaches rather than traditional linear fixes.
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Former youth in care face a constellation of complex, interrelated systemic barriers, often described as wicked problems, including intergenerational trauma, unstable housing, and inequitable access to education, employment, and mental health supports. Addressing these challenges demands collaborative, innovative, and sustained approaches to drive meaningful, lasting change.
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The name Former Youth in Care Community of Practice (FYiC CoP) reflects the shared identity and purpose of its members.
"Former Youth in Care" acknowledges the lived experience of navigating the foster care system and the resilience gained through it. "Community of Practice" emphasizes collaboration, knowledge-sharing, and collective action.
Together, the name highlights a group of individuals using their expertise to drive systemic change, build capacity, and transform narratives about the foster care system.
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A Community of Practice (CoP) is a group of people who come together to share knowledge, learn, and work toward a shared purpose. CoPs are built on collaboration and mutual support, where members exchange insights, develop skills, and collectively drive meaningful change.
For the FYiC CoP, this means leveraging lived experiences to transform policies, practices, and systems affecting those in and from care.
We draw on a variety of systems and leadership frameworks to guide our work, inform decision-making, and create meaningful change:
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Two-Eyed Seeing (Mi’kmaw Elders Albert and Maderna Marshall)
An approach that brings Indigenous ways of knowing and Western knowledge into relationship, without hierarchy or competition, to support more holistic and informed ways of understanding and responding.
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Power and Love (Adam Kahane)
Kahane explains that meaningful social change requires balancing power (the drive to achieve purpose) with love (the drive to connect and include).
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Cynefin (Snowden and Boone)
A sense-making model, to identify contexts (simple, complicated, complex, chaotic, or disordered) and respond to them in the most effective way.
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DSRP (Cabrera and Colosi)
We use DSRP (Disctinctions, Systems, Relationships, Perspectives) to untangle wicked problems, reveal leverage points, and co-create effective solutions.
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Panarchy Framework (Holling and Gunderson)
Systems evolve through repeating cycles of growth, collapse, renewal, and reorganization across interconnected scales; change in one level can trigger transformation in another.
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Participatory Action Research
A collaborative research approach where participants and researchers work together to identify issues, generate knowledge, take action and make change.
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Other Systems & Leadership Models
Including appreciative inquiry, systems mapping, feedback loops, points of leverage, phronesis, community-based methodologies, team development, and more, to inform strategy, learning, collaboration, and transformation.
Our Guiding Principles
Trauma-Informed.
Guided by an understanding of trauma and its impact, we create compassionate, empowering spaces rooted in dignity and respect. Our approach avoids re-traumatization and strengthens healing, trust, collaboration, and shared leadership.
Knowledge Equity.
We believe everyone should have fair and equal access to the information and resources they need to thrive, regardless of their background or life circumstances. We seek and create opportunities for growth, learning, and meaningful contributions to our collective well-being.
Love and Power.
Inspired by Adam Kahane's insights, we embrace love and power as powerful forces that, when balanced, foster collaboration, build trust, and inspire collective action to create a more equitable and compassionate world.
Systems Thinking.
Everything interconnects, intersects, and is part of reinforcing and balancing loops. By taking a holistic view of people and patterns, we understand points of leverage across systems and address complex challenges in ways that honor the relationships between individual and systemic factors, helping to build a future where everyone can thrive.
Empowerment.
We believe in equipping individuals with the tools, knowledge, and opportunities to lead with confidence. By fostering self-determination and resilience, we create an environment where individuals are empowered to take control of their own futures and drive meaningful change in their lives and communities.
Collaboration.
We value the power of working together, recognizing that meaningful solutions arise from the collective wisdom of diverse perspectives. By fostering strong relationships and a spirit of cooperation, we co-create positive change that reflects the needs and aspirations of all involved.
Accountability.
We hold ourselves and one another responsible for taking action, honoring commitments, and achieving positive, sustainable outcomes. Embracing the belief that leadership is a submission to responsibility (a phrase said by Len Pierre), we ensure that our actions align with our values and contribute to meaningful change.
Courage.
We approach challenges with strength, openness, and determination, advocating for change and taking meaningful action even in the face of uncertainty and adversity. By embodying courage, we inspire and encourage others to step forward, knowing that we can overcome challenges and create lasting impact together.
Leadership.
We believe in cultivating leadership at every level. Rooted in continuous learning, shared leadership, and trauma-informed practice, we empower people to support the health and well-being of people living on the margins and broader society. Our work fosters inclusive, collaborative, and compassionate leadership that drives meaningful and lasting change.
Our Priority Areas
Leadership.
Through leadership development, workshops, consulting, and training, we strengthen the capacity of individuals, teams, communities, and organizations across multiple systems. Our work equips professionals to better support the health and well-being of former youth in care, cultivating inclusive, trauma-informed, and accountable leadership practices that drive meaningful, sustainable change.
Mentorship.
Through peer mentorship, coaching, workshops, and volunteer opportunities, we support individuals with foster care experience and their allies in understanding their journeys and stepping confidently into leadership at all levels. Our mentorship model cultivates personal growth, strengthens community capacity, and empowers emerging and established leaders to drive meaningful change across systems.
Education.
We generate and share knowledge rooted in lived experience and community realities, advancing the well-being of all those connected to the foster care system. Our educational work empowers people in and from care and equips allies across sectors with insights that shape stronger policies, practices, and supports, ensuring individuals with foster care experience, at any age, can access what they need to thrive.
Equity.
We prioritize shaping equitable policies, programs, and leadership practices that support former youth in care at every stage of life. By advocating for the unique needs of those with lived foster care experience and collaborating with policymakers, community leaders, and advocates, we work to dismantle barriers, expand access to resources, and promote fairness, well-being, and long-term empowerment.