This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx

How can we stop bullying in the world? Over 60% of kids say they've been bullied at school, and for every one "successful" suicide, there's over 100 attempted suicides. A survivor of bullying, Valerie Mason-John uses her expertise as a bully doctor and personal experience to suggest that bullying does not have to be part of every day life. In this gritty, moving, and powerful talk, Mason-John gives a clear message, that our "stinking thinking" can be the cause of bullying. And when we bully ourselves, we will bully everyone around us. She outlines a course of action we can take to work with this global epidemic.

Award-winning author, Dr Valerie Mason-John works as a Bully Doctor for several School Boards in Canada. Her books include "Detox Your Heart," working with anger, fear, and hatred. Valerie co-edited the first national anthology of African Canadian Poetry, The Great Black North, published in 2013. Demeter Press has published her most recent novel, the North American edition of her award winning novel Borrowed Body, 2013. In January 2014, she will launch her new book "Eight Step Recovery -- Using the Buddha's Teachings to Overcome Addiction." She lives in British Columbia.