Zarlie Carlino

For more than 20 years, Zarlie Carlino worked on the front lines of behavioral health, serving individuals impacted by serious mental illness, complex trauma, homelessness, human trafficking, gang violence, and systemic barriers to recovery. Throughout her career, she helped survivors navigate danger, build safety plans, recognize risk, and reclaim their lives.

What she never expected was that she would one day rely on many of those same lessons herself.
When domestic abuse and organized criminal victimization forced Zarlie to leave her established career and prioritize safety, she faced the overwhelming challenge of rebuilding her life while protecting herself and her children. Drawing upon years of experience supporting survivors of trafficking, violence, and exploitation, she recognized the importance of vigilance, strategic decision-making, risk assessment, and adaptability while navigating her own path to safety. 

As she was propelled into a fast-paced journey of fighting for survival that would take every ounce of grit she had, an unexpected opportunity emerged in one of the world’s fastest-growing industries: artificial intelligence.
Working as an AI technical writer and domain specialist on cutting-edge AI initiatives provided far more than income. The intellectually demanding work required continuous learning, critical thinking, and rapid problem-solving at a time when trauma could easily have consumed her focus and confidence. Instead of becoming defined by crisis, she found herself immersed in mastering new technologies, developing specialized expertise, and contributing to innovative projects shaping the future of AI.

The flexibility of remote AI work proved life changing. While remaining under the radar for nearly ten months and relocating to maintain safety, Zarlie was able to work from anywhere, generate income quickly, and continue providing for her children. In circumstances where financial stability was essential to maintaining freedom and creating options to navigate unforeseen challenges in real time, the accessibility and immediacy of AI work accelerated her ability to rebuild her life and regain independence.

As her technical expertise grew, so did her confidence. Each new skill mastered became evidence that her career had not been destroyed by trauma—it was evolving. The combination of behavioral health experience, survivor insight, and AI innovation ultimately inspired the development of her newest accredited continuing education workshop, Safe Keeping, which equips providers to identify, assess, and support survivors of domestic abuse, human trafficking, gang-related harm, and other complex victimization experiences.

In this inspiring keynote, Zarlie shares how emerging technology became an unexpected ally in trauma recovery, how lifelong skills can transfer into entirely new industries, and why innovation and resilience often grow from the same place: the determination to keep moving forward. Attendees will leave with a renewed understanding of adaptability, the human side of artificial intelligence, and the remarkable ways new opportunities can emerge from life’s most difficult chapters.

from life’s most difficult chapters.
This is a story of survival, reinvention, and hope—a reminder that even when trauma forces us to rewrite our plans, it does not have to define our future.