2011-no-4Dear reader,

Welcome to the final journal issue for 2011. Looking back over this year, we realise we have published papers from Mexico, Canada, Australia, USA, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Norway, Israel, Greece and Pakistan. And happily, a significant proportion of these have been from new authors. The creativity and diversity of narrative practitioners continues to make the task of editing this journal an enjoyable one!

In this issue, we bring to you a keynote address that was given earlier this year at the 10th International Narrative Therapy and Community Work Conference in Salvador, Brazil. This keynote address by Jill Freedman, responded to the question ‘What are your favourite narrative therapy questions?’

The second section of this issue focuses on visual means to therapeutic ends. Lesley Grant and Rowena Usher describe how they are using the whiteboard as a co-therapist, and Milan Colic proposes extending outsider-witness practices through the use of words and pictures.

The first paper in part three, ‘Resisting burnout with justice-doing’, by Vikki Reynolds, critiques the individualism and neutrality of burnout and offers an approach for resisting burnout with collective sustainability and ‘justice-doing’.

Yuk King Lau then describes her work with a narrative oriented multiple-family group with students who refuse to attend school and their parents. This paper also describes the ways in which narrative practices have been adapted to enable resonance within a Chinese context.

The final section of this journal provides a keynote address recently offered at the International Spring Festival of Narrative Practice here in Adelaide. Within it, Mary Heath offers a range of ideas for enabling conversations about sex and sexuality. Barbara Baumgartner, a Canadian narrative practitioner, has provided a reflection on this paper and a series of questions to practitioners to consider, write about, and discuss with a friend, partner, or in a supervision group.

One of the aims of this journal is to spark the imagination of practitioners and to provide papers that stretch the field of narrative practice. We also hope to be continually providing a forum in which firsttime authors can write about and share their work, alongside the writings of experienced and well-known practitioners. If you are interested in writing about your use of narrative practices, please do not hesitate to contact us.

And, as always, we will welcome your feedback!

Thank you for your interest in narrative ideas and your support of the International Journal of Narrative Therapy and Community Work. We appreciate it.

Warm regards,

Cheryl White