12.4 Trust Yourself and Listen to the People Around You with Iona Rudisill

Iona R. Rudisill is a licensed social worker with more than 27 years of experience combatting varying forms of child sexual abuse. She is clinically trained and brings more than 16 years of expertise in forensic interviewing, including the development of a nationally recognized forensic interviewing guideline specifically for child trafficking. Iona is also an expert in advocating for and providing services to youth and caregivers who have experienced forms of exploitation (e.g. child trafficking, Internet crimes against children). She has established programs and consulted with both statewide and nationally accredited Children’s Advocacy Centers. Her experiences have positioned her to be appointed and elected on state boards and organizational boards. She currently has a nationally and internationally recognized podcast, “Iona Speaks about Defending Self-Justice” on diverse media platforms. She has presented at several local, national, and international conferences. As a woman of faith, she brings understanding about intersectionality as it relates to exploitation through the empowerment of individuals in communities and families for the dismantling of enslavement and bondage with a renewed mindset.