Adoption Evolution 501(c)(3) · EIN: 33-3122373
Building What Has Never Fully Existed
A connected global Adoption Diaspora — creating spaces for validation, memorialization, education, and community for all those touched by adoption and foster care.
Founded by Dr. Maria Cronyn, NMD, DABHM — naturopathic physician, adoptee, and military veteran.
Advocate · Educate · Validate
Validation Is Essential
The Loss Is Real. The Grief Is Real. The Healing Must Be Too.
"Adoptees and individuals impacted by early separation have too often been told to be grateful, to move on, or to reinterpret their experience in ways that erase their grief. That must change."
Dr. Maria Cronyn, NMD — Founder, Adoption EvolutionValidation means acknowledging that early separation is a real loss. It means recognizing that the effects of that loss — complex trauma and complex PTSD from early separation, identity disruption, attachment challenges, and grief — are real and deserve to be understood, not minimized. Adoption and foster care are social determinants of health. They shape physical wellbeing, mental health, and life outcomes across the lifespan.
One of the simplest and most powerful forms of validation is also the rarest. Part of this work is changing that — so that clinicians, families, and communities can recognize early separation for what it is and respond with clarity, compassion, and respect rather than minimization or silence.
"I am so sorry for your loss." — Not as a formality. As a genuine acknowledgment of something real. This is not commonly said. And its absence has mattered.
The Adoption Diaspora
A Connected Global Community — Building What's Never Been
Adoption Evolution is building a diaspora — a connected global community of adoptees, foster alumni, biological families, and all who love and support them. The Adoption Diaspora framework recognizes that adoption and foster care are social determinants of health: experiences that shape wellbeing at biological, psychological, and social levels, across generations and across borders.
Being part of this diaspora means recognizing that early separation is not an isolated experience. It is a shared human experience that connects millions of people across time, geography, and identity — with documented health implications that the broader medical and mental health communities are only beginning to name.
This community creates space to come together — to gather, to witness, to remember, and to support one another in ways that have historically been missing. The goal is not healing in isolation, but healing in community.
This includes community events, shared spaces, and future opportunities for collective memorialization, education, and connection — at both local and national levels.
This work is building what has never fully existed: a connected global Adoption Diaspora — creating spaces for validation, memorialization, education, and community at both local and national levels.
Every gift moves this work forward. There is no donation too small to matter.
Make a DonationAdoption Evolution 501(c)(3) · EIN: 33-3122373 · Tax-deductible
Founding Sponsorship Opportunity
Become a Founding Sponsor of a First-of-Its-Kind Initiative
Early sponsors have the opportunity to support and shape a first-of-its-kind public health initiative addressing adoption and foster care as social determinants of health — at a systems level, and for the long term.
Your sponsorship directly funds the development of the Adoption Diaspora: community gatherings, educational programming, clinician training, and public events that bring visibility, validation, and support to adoptees and families who have historically been underserved by both healthcare systems and mental health care.
Sponsorship Tiers
- Premier recognition across all programs and publications
- Named sponsorship of flagship community events
- Advisory invitation to shape program development
- Featured in national outreach and media
- Annual impact report and direct access to Dr. Cronyn
- Named sponsorship of educational programming
- Recognition at all public events and workshops
- Inclusion in clinician training materials
- Featured in community communications
- Annual impact reporting
- Recognition at public events and Sunday Salons
- Inclusion in program materials and website
- Invitation to Founding Sponsor gatherings
- Quarterly program updates
- Recognition in program materials
- Listed on Adoption Evolution website
- Invitation to sponsor preview events
- Bi-annual program updates
All sponsorships are tax-deductible contributions to Adoption Evolution 501(c)(3) · EIN: 33-3122373
What Your Sponsorship Makes Possible
Real Programs. Real Community. Real Change.
Monthly community events, including the Adoptee Sunday Salon — a monthly gathering for adult adoptees and foster alumni to connect, process, and be understood.
Public education programming, workshops, panels, and events that bring adoption literacy into communities, schools, and healthcare settings — addressing adoption as a social determinant of health.
Guest speakers and expert-led discussions — clinical experts, adoptee voices, and lived-experience leaders who deepen the conversation and expand what's known about complex trauma from early separation.
Development of adoption-literate training for professionals — frameworks grounded in the Adoption Diaspora so that more clinicians can provide genuinely adoption-competent, trauma-informed care.
Expansion of a national and global adoption-informed community — scaling the Adoption Diaspora so adoptees and families worldwide can find one another, be seen, and access the care they deserve.
To become a sponsor or inquire about custom arrangements, contact Adoption Evolution directly:
Community Membership
Join the Community That's Building Something New
Adoption Evolution is building a membership-based community to support ongoing connection, education, and access to programs. Founding members help shape the future of this work — and the future of how adoption and foster care are understood as public health issues.
Founding Community Member
Available Now
- Access to all Sunday Salon sessions — in-person or virtual
- Priority access to workshops, groups, and community events
- Invitations to guest speaker sessions and Adoption Diaspora programming
- Recognition as an early supporter of a growing public health initiative
- Direct voice in shaping how this community grows
General Membership
Launching Soon- Tiered access to programs and educational content
- Member pricing for all events and workshops
- Ongoing access to community resources and recordings
- Connection to a national network of adoptees, foster alumni, and allies
Membership offerings will expand as programs grow. Founding members help shape the future of this work.
Adoptee Sunday Salon
A Space Built for You — Without Explanation Required
In-Person + Virtual · Scottsdale, AZ
Adoptee Sunday Salon
A dedicated space for adult adoptees and individuals with foster care experience to connect, process, and be understood — without explanation, pressure, or performance. This is a community-centered, adoption-literate environment grounded in shared experience and thoughtful conversation, facilitated by Dr. Maria Cronyn.
Virtual attendance is available for those outside the Phoenix area. Select sessions will also include guest speakers who bring additional clinical, lived-experience, and community perspectives on the Adoption Diaspora.
Reserve Your SpotVirtual & Phoenix
area welcome
Make a Donation
Adoption and Foster Care Are Social Determinants of Health
Adoption and foster care shape physical health, mental health, and life outcomes across the lifespan — and they require coordinated, systems-level change to address. That is the work Adoption Evolution is doing. Every gift, at every level, moves that work forward. There is no donation too small to matter here.
This work treats adoption and foster care as what they are: social determinants of health requiring coordinated, systems-level change. Your donation is part of that. It is not a small thing — it is the foundation of everything that comes next.
Dr. Maria Cronyn, NMD — FounderSuggested Giving Levels
Supports Adoption Diaspora infrastructure, advocacy, and systems-level change
Give $1,000+Adoption Evolution 501(c)(3) · EIN: 33-3122373 · All gifts tax-deductible
Books & Educational Materials by Dr. Maria Cronyn
The Intellectual Foundation of This Work
Dr. Maria Cronyn, NMD, DABHM is the author of foundational works advancing adoption-literate mental health and integrative trauma care — written from lived experience as an adoptee and clinical authority as a naturopathic physician. These works form the intellectual and clinical foundation of Adoption Evolution, integrated into its educational programming, public speaking, and advocacy.
Book 1 — Dr. Maria Cronyn
Adoption Evolution: A Call to Action
A systems-level examination of adoption and foster care as social determinants of health — and a roadmap for how clinicians, families, and communities can respond with evidence, compassion, and clarity. Required reading for anyone working with the adoption diaspora.
Purchase the Book →Book 2 — Dr. Maria Cronyn
Shapeshifter: Because I'm Adopted
A deeply personal and clinically grounded exploration of identity, grief, and transformation through the adoptee lens — written from the inside out, by someone who has lived it and dedicated her life to understanding it. Rooted in complex trauma, complex PTSD from early separation, and the ongoing work of healing.
Purchase the Book →Bulk orders for clinicians, training programs, and institutional use: info@adoptionevolution.org | (928) 390-5655
Blog & Writing
From Dr. Maria Cronyn — Writing That Moves the Conversation Forward
Dr. Cronyn writes on adoption, foster care, complex trauma, the Adoption Diaspora, and integrative medicine — grounded in both lived experience and clinical practice. All writing lives here, within this site, as part of one integrated platform.
Adoption Diaspora
What It Means to Build a Diaspora from Scratch
There is no roadmap for this. The adoption diaspora is not a metaphor — it is a real, global, underserved community that has never had a shared gathering place. Here's why we're building one.
Read More →Complex Trauma & Health
Adoption as a Social Determinant of Health: What the Research Shows
Complex PTSD from early separation is not a clinical footnote. It is a public health reality with measurable biological and psychological consequences. This piece reviews what we know — and what needs to change.
Read More →Clinician Education
Why Most Mental Health Providers Are Not Adoption-Competent — and What to Do About It
The gap between what adoptees need and what most providers can offer is not a minor oversight. It is systemic. Here is how we begin to close it.
Read More →Contact Adoption Evolution
4343 Scottsdale Rd, Suite 150Scottsdale, AZ 85251
(928) 390-5655
info@adoptionevolution.org
About Dr. Maria Cronyn
Dr. Maria Cronyn, NMD, DABHM is a naturopathic physician, board-certified homeopath, adoptee, and military veteran. She is the founder of Adoption Evolution and a leading clinical voice in adoption-literate integrative healthcare.
View Full Bio & Credentials →
Sponsorship Inquiries
To discuss founding sponsorship, custom arrangements, or institutional partnerships, contact us directly.
info@adoptionevolution.org
(928) 390-5655