“Listening to Marlee’s story was such a cathartic experience for me. As a SA survivor, I have never felt so seen in my life”

As an award-winning speaker, I’m honoured to share my voice and story internationally. Topics include:

Re-Imagining Justice for Sexual Harm, Leading with Empathy, Courageous Authenticity, Somatic Healing, Consent Education, Reclaiming Pleasure & More. Scroll down to see all programs.

Let's Create an Impact Together!

About Marlee:

A documentary directed by Kelsey Darragh which tells Marlee’s story of justice & advocacy after trauma. Premiering: moment.co/forgiveness

Marlee Liss (she/her) is a somatic educator, author, and sparkle-loving lesbian. She made history in the justice system when her sexual assault case became one of the 1st in North America to conclude with restorative justice through the courts. Since then, she has supported thousands in learning trauma-informed justice, empathy and violence prevention. Marlee's work has been featured in Forbes, Huff Post, Buzzfeed, the Mel Robbins Show and published in the International Journal of Restorative Justice.

As an award-winning speaker, she's delivered talks for over 100,000 individuals - see past speaking engagements below. Marlee is the founder of Survivors 4 Justice Reform, a global coalition of survivors advocating for restorative justice. Represented by Cooke McDermid Literary Agency, Marlee’s memoir, “If I Had Known Then” will be released in February 2027 with Penguin Random House. Follow @marleeliss on social media for more.

See Programming for General Audiences Below. Click For Programming Specific to Higher Ed or the Helping Professions/Service Providers.

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Past Speaking Engagements:

National Sexual Assault Conference, Collective Trauma Summit, National Organization for Victim Advocacy (NOVA) 50th Annual Conference, Hill Air Force Base SAPR, Trauma & Recovery Conference, Internal Family Systems Conference, Fordham School of Law, Vanderbilt University, National Restorative Justice Symposium, Georgetown University, University of Oregon, University of Toronto, Seneca College, Department of Justice, US Military SAPRO, PEI Human Rights Commission, Justice Options for Women PEI, Women’s Mental Health Conference at Yale, Canadian Centre for Gender & Sexuality Diversity, Consent Conference, Supporting Survivors Conference - Ellis-Gluckstein Lawyers, Journey Project Newfoundland, Safe Passage & Catawba Nation, University of Waterloo, Justice as Trauma Conference, Western University, Barnard College, University of San Fransisco, Niagara College, Humber College, Université de Montreal and more. See all press & past speaking engagements here..

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What People are Saying.

  • "Students shared that Marlee was ‘the best presenter they’ve seen in four years at Vanderbilt’ and that her talk ‘changed their lives’. Her language is beautiful and trauma-informed. "

    -Cara Tuttle, Vanderbilt U

  • “Listening to Marlee’s story was such a cathartic experience for me. As a survivor, I have never felt so seen in my life. I’ve been feeling really defeated, Marlee helped me reconnect with hope”

    -Student, Georgetown U

  • “Marlee really showed how truly empathizing with others is a strength, not a weakness. Thank you for teaching that it’s possible to find closure, get past the hard things in life and start to heal"

    -Student, Fordham U

  • “Marlee was able to take a serious, hard topic and make it easy to talk about. I have heard many trauma survivors stories, but I haven't heard anything like this, Truly eye opening and heart warming."

    -Student, U of Toronto

  • “Marlee’s session was deeply inspiring. It was incredible to hear a process where a survivor could move away from being further traumatized and actually be able to move towards healing”

    -National SA Conference

  • “Marlee is an inspiration. She created a safe space for vulnerability and deep learning. I left her Consent Education workshop with not only valuable information but also with hope in my heart.

    -Student, Niagara College

  • “I was incredibly moved by Marlee’s keynote. After listening, I feel empowered to become an advocate for healing justice and to practice restorative principles in my work and everyday life”

    -Support Survivors Con

  • "As a Queer survivor of SA, I felt alone in my experience of reclaiming pleasure. But Marlee provided an empowering roadmap to communicate my needs. I felt seen and heard in her workshop.

    -Student, U of Toronto

  • “Marlee is one of the best speakers I’ve heard, the way she told her story was so powerful. I am an SA survivor and even though it sounds cheesy, I feel changed after this talk. Thank you”

    -Student, Vanderbilt U

  • "I work in the DA’s office & hope to become a S.xual Assault prosecutor one day. This really opened my mind on how restorative justice could be used to support survivors and give them more of a voice"

    -Trauma & Recovery Con

  • Marlee's courageous willingness to share her story is incredible. If I wasn't already convinced about the advantages of restorative justice, her story definitely would inspire my support and research on the topic

    -Andrea, U Waterloo

Available and Most Frequently Booked For:

Conferences (Self-Development, Feminism, Mental Health, Trauma Healing, Victim Rights, LGBTQIA+, Justice, Gender-Based Violence, Criminal Law), Student orientation & Red Zone programming, Sexual Assault Awareness Month, 16 Days of Activism, Restorative Justice Week, Mental Health Awareness Week, International Women’s Day, Pride Month, Victim & Survivors of Crime Week, Campus-Wide Events, Department Keynotes (Criminology, Law, Gender Studies, Public Health, Sociology, Psychology, Social Work, Nursing, Peace & Conflict Studies, Public Safety), Judicial Events, Military SAPR, Crown Attorney & DA Conferences, Victim Advocate Events, Police & Law Events, Faculty & Professional Development Trainings

 
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