30/10/2025
The second cohort of the Collective Healing Circles (CHC)- Kenya, which took place on the 16th–18th September 2025 at the University of Nairobi. The CHC was locally hosted by Bridges of Peace Initiatives, Initiatives of Change- Kenya, Creators of Peace International, the National Youth Guidance and Counselling Association (NYGCA) and The University of Nairobi (UoN)-main Campus.
Over three days, the Circle gathered 23 participants from diverse backgrounds - students, scholars, religious and political leaders, and civil society members. On the third day, the group expanded to 35 participants for a stakeholder meeting. Together, they journeyed through intergenerational dialogue, truth-telling, and healing from the inherited legacies of colonialism, slavery, and systemic trauma that continue to affect our societies today.
In her opening remarks, Dr. Karen Odhiambo, Chairperson of the Department of Psychology at UoN shared that generation trauma brings to mind the aspect of enslavement of a people. “Colonialism is not a historical event, it is still here with us shaping the life of those who came after. It lives in our lives, our language, and our culture” she shared. And according to her, we just didn’t inherit trauma, we also inherited the spirit of defiance from our ancestors. And as such, we must come up with frameworks to understand not only the wounds we carry but also the spirit of defiance. “It is not just about remembering but also about re-building and hence we must refuse to be silent.” She continued. She echoed that present signs of the social trauma are mental health challenges affecting many people. She emphasized on the need to create safe spaces for healing starting from the house hold.
Mr. Zacharia Muturi, who is the secretary of the Board of Directors of Initiatives of Change – Kenya (IofC Kenya) reminded the participants that the end of colonial rule evolved into systemic and generational trauma and divides; part of which we see today in unstable political systems. Further, the breakdown of traditional communal bonds has led to decline in social cohesion. Therefore, the path to healing must involve building trust among individuals and communities. “The future of our country depends on the foundation we build today.” He urged.
Meanwhile, Prof. Charles Kimamo, former Chairperson of the UoN Department of Psychology, offered a striking reminder: today’s British people are not the colonizers who inflicted harm. They, like us, are descendants of history. Healing, he said, requires creating space to face this shared past without blame, transforming pain into understanding. He also challenged faith institutions to be centers of healing rather than breeding grounds of hatred and bitterness.
Participants agreed that the consequences of colonialism and slavery is much more alive than we care to imagine. Hence, there is a need to bring the unconscious to the conscious so that we can be brave to face the damages and begin the process of collective healing. Nevertheless, the participants also acknowledged that there are still some positive outcomes that came from colonial contact- but that doesn’t reduce the magnitude of the damage that was done and how it continues to shape our lives.
There was an acknowledgement that we have inherited a lot of unconscious trauma and we must work hard to create an awareness about it so that we are able to overcome some of the challenges we face related to those generational traumas.
One participant was moved to question their own family history, realizing that even African collaborators of colonial systems carried the burden of being both oppressed and oppressors. It was a moment of sobering self-awareness that captured the spirit of the Collective Healing Circle.
There is no question that many Africans inherited fear, lack of confidence and a sense of not being good enough. But with the awareness, the participants shared moments of affirming themselves and their inherent dignity. “Africans belong to this world and it is their space. We don’t have to prove that!” shared one of the participants.
While discussing the need for affirming our inherent dignity and restoring our sense of human wholeness, the participants discussed how as part of collective healing, we must end slavery in our homes and offices. Many of the domestic workers and subordinates in homes and offices are treated exactly how our ancestors were treated by the colonizers, as slaves. They are dehumanized and stripped of their dignity, respect and humanity.
One of the young CHC participant shared “I have realized that I have a colonized mind. I have lost touch with my community and my culture. I have been against people speaking their mother tongue because I thought that amounted to tribalism. I have learnt that it is okay to love our language and culture.”
One participant summed it up powerfully: “We must heal so that we don’t keep on breaking others. We must create space for Ubuntu! We are all interconnected.”
It was a beautiful moment as the participants reaffirmed pride in our African identity: our languages, food, clothes, music, and names. Citing Ngugi wa Thiong’o, participants reflected: “If you can speak all the languages of the world and not your mother tongue, that is slavery. But if you can speak your mother tongue and all the languages of the world, that is empowerment.”
The participants agreed that it was imperative that as Africans, we must strengthen our relationships as well as deepen our interconnectedness, something that seems to rapidly slip away from many African communities. We must create spaces to connect with each other as well as connect with nature. Many also expressed the need to reclaim our social consciousness because each one of us owes to the community and we have a responsibility towards the world around us.
For us to cultivate our interconnectedness, many shared the need to; decolonize the mind and reclaim our identity as black people; question some of the things we have accepted as normal “truth”; create intergenerational healing centers in our communities; and stop demonizing our cultures and where we come from amongst others.
Participants noted that the world we live in is unjust and the existing socio-political institutions fail to adequately address the current injustices. Envisioning structural justice involves creating systems that are fair to all members of society, often requiring a shift from focusing on individual blame to collective action and responsibility. The discussions helped the participants to understand how structural justice looks beyond individual actions to address the unjust outcomes produced by larger systems, like economics, law, justice systems and social institutions.
They identified practical ways forward: Participate in social transformation at community levels; Leverage professional spaces to influence equitable policies; Stand in solidarity with the marginalized; Promote public actions rooted in justice and dignity.
As the CHC came to an end, many of the participants expressed their appreciation for the process and the potential it has to heal our county and continent.
“This workshop should be in every African country” Expressed Sister Bupe, a Catholic Nun from Zambia.
"CHC should be happening every two weeks not once in a year. It should be taken to every community in Kenya." said Dr. Muthusi - a lecturer at the University of Nairobi.
BPI is grateful to Creators of Peace International, UNESCO, The Global Humanity for Peace Institute and the Guerrand-Hermès Foundation for the support and partnership.
Appreciation to Mwangi and Njeri Ndiangui for being the great facilitators for the Collective Healing Circles Cohort 2!
