back to winter 2026 newsletter
"Come lead us into the wonder of your culture."
1) What is the Cultural Field Guides program?
The Cultural Field Guides program is an innovative program developed by SCV-CAMFT, designed to reimagine how mental health professionals develop cultural competency. As mental health professionals, we are used to learning about cultures through textbooks, workshops, lectures and films. This program is aiming to provide opportunities for therapists to experience cultural traditions and customs firsthand, through immersive encounters led by members of those communities.
As therapists serving the Bay Area, which is one of the most culturally diverse regions in the world, our clients come from hundreds of different cultural backgrounds, speaking dozens of languages, practicing myriad faiths and traditions, holding vastly different worldviews about family, identity, mental health, and healing. Yet our profession has historically been rooted in Western, individualistic frameworks that may not resonate with—or adequately serve—clients from collectivist cultures, faith-based communities, or immigrant populations. The gap between textbook cultural competency and genuine cultural understanding can mean the difference between therapeutic connection and therapeutic rupture.
2) How did this program come to be?
The Cultural Field Guides program actually came to be, quite organically. SCV-CAMFT member Sabreen Azhar, a Muslim therapist and LMFT at Khalil Center, approached Marte Matthews (then-Director of Programs) with the idea of inviting fellow therapists to break her Ramadan fast together—to share that sacred communal moment rather than just teach about it. Marte immediately recognized something powerful in the idea - what if therapists from different backgrounds could offer similar immersive experiences? She brought the concept to me, since I serve as Director at Large for DEI Support, and I loved the idea and saw an opportunity to expand it further. Why limit “culture” to ethnicity or religion? What about nature-based practices, Pride celebrations, health-related communities, or any meaningful intersection of identity? The vision became broader: whatever represents a meaningful cross-section of someone’s intersectionality could become an immersive experience—training for therapists through genuine presence in these spaces. From there, I slowly built the program structure and developed the proposal process, and conversations with Deniss Pleiner and numerous talks with Saskia Lucas helped move things forward. To date, the program has already been receiving proposals from members interested in leading their own cultural experiences!
3) What is the mission and vision of the Cultural Field Guides?
The program operates on a simple but powerful premise: therapists who serve diverse communities will provide better care when they have genuinely experienced—not just studied—the cultural contexts of their clients’ lives. Cultural Field Guides creates pathways for therapists to break bread together during Ramadan, celebrate Diwali’s Festival of Lights, participate in Pride celebrations, honor the winter solstice, experience Día de los Muertos traditions, and explore countless other cultural experiences that shape the lives of the Bay Area’s diverse population.
4) How does the program work?
The program invites SCV-CAMFT members to become “Cultural Field Guides,” basically to lead their colleagues into cultural experiences that are personally meaningful to them. A Muslim therapist might invite colleagues to break a Ramadan fast. A Mexican-American therapist might guide colleagues through Día de los Muertos observances. A therapist with Celtic heritage might share Burns Night traditions. A queer therapist might lead colleagues through Pride celebrations.
5) When does the program start?
It’s fitting that the first Cultural Field Guides offering returns to where the idea began - Sabreen’s invitation to break fast together during Ramadan. “From Sunset to Insight” takes place Sunday, March 1, 2026, from 3:30-7:30 PM at the Muslim Community Association (MCA) in Santa Clara—one of the Bay Area’s largest and most vibrant Islamic centers. This event represents something unprecedented: the Muslim community opening their mosque doors during one of Islam’s most sacred times, welcoming mental health professionals to experience—not just learn about—Ramadan traditions. The trust extended by the community is profound and speaks to the genuine bridge-building potential of this program.
The Evening Journey:
3:30 PM — Arrival & Sacred Spaces: Participants are welcomed with traditional hospitality at MCA’s campus. Facilitators from Khalil Center guide an introduction to the sacred space.
4:30 PM — Wisdom Circle: Islamic Psychology & Ramadan in the Therapy Room: Facilitators Heba El-Haddad, PsyD Candidate, and Sabreen Azhar, LMFT, lead a workshop on therapeutic approaches rooted in Islamic tradition, exploring how Ramadan shapes family dynamics, resilience practices, and spiritual wellness.
6:00 PM — Sunset: Breaking the Fast & Evening Prayer: Participants experience the profound moment when the day’s fast ends, sharing dates and water in the traditional way. Those who wish may observe the Maghrib prayer in MCA’s main prayer hall.
6:30 PM — Feast & Fellowship: Participants gather around tables with Arabic Mediterranean cuisine for intimate Q&A about integrating cultural sensitivity into therapeutic practice.
The event is open to therapists of all faiths and none. Families are warmly welcomed. The gathering emphasizes that “All are welcome here—whatever you believe in or not, you are welcome. This gathering is about human connection, cultural understanding, and professional growth.”
The Facilitators
Heba El-Haddad, PsyD Candidate, is a Clinical Psychology Doctoral Candidate who brings deep expertise in culturally-responsive mental health care. As a clinician at Khalil Center, she specializes in integrating Islamic principles with evidence-based therapeutic approaches, helping Muslim clients navigate mental health challenges while honoring their faith traditions. Her work focuses on addressing the unique psychological needs of Muslim communities, including the intersection of spirituality, cultural identity, and mental wellness.
Sabreen Azhar, LMFT, is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with extensive experience in providing culturally-informed therapy to diverse Muslim populations. At Khalil Center, she has developed innovative approaches to couples and family therapy that honor Islamic values while addressing contemporary relationship challenges. Sabreen specializes in working with intergenerational trauma, acculturation stress, and faith-based healing practices. It was Sabreen’s original invitation—the idea of sharing her Ramadan fast-breaking with fellow therapists—that planted the seed for what became Cultural Field Guides.
Khalil Center is a pioneering organization in culturally-responsive mental health services for Muslims, bringing deep expertise in bridging Islamic tradition with contemporary therapeutic practice.
About Kusum Punjabi
Kusum Punjabi, AMFT (#122205), is an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist working toward full licensure in Spring 2026. She practices at Bay Area Gestalt Institute and The Couples Center, specializing in multicultural couples therapy. Kusum immigrated from India approximately a decade ago, bringing with her a decade of experience in India’s film industry as an assistant and associate director—a background that informs her other SCV-CAMFT initiative, Cinema Therapy Club, which uses film as a therapeutic medium. She holds a Master’s in Integral Counseling Psychotherapy from California Institute of Integral Studies (2020) and has trained with Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés in Cross-Cultural Archetypal Psychology. She is bilingual in English and Hindi.
About Saskia Lucas
Saskia Lucas, LMFT (License #121816), is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist based in the South Bay Area. Inspired by her own transformative healing journey, she became a therapist at mid-life, earning a Master’s degree in Holistic Counseling Psychology from John F. Kennedy University. Her approach goes beyond talk therapy, incorporating experiential, somatic, and mindfulness-based methods to help clients find deeper healing.
Saskia was born in Belgium and immigrated to the United States as a young child, giving her an early appreciation for different ways of life and alternative perspectives. Before becoming a therapist, she developed programs promoting bicycling and healthy communities—work that continues today. She works with teens and adults addressing anxiety, depression, relationship issues, and life transitions. Her style is genuine, collaborative, empathetic, and practical.
Saskia has partnered with Cultural Field Guides to help develop and move the program forward.
