In this unedited "How to talk policy and influence people" interview interview with Angi Yoder Maina, Executive Director of the Green String Network (GSN) in Kenya, we discuss peacebuilding and how trauma is often a root cause of inter and trans-generational violence. We talk about GSN's healing-centred approach to renegotiating collective and individual wounds through story-telling, art and peer support, where people are acknowledged as being the experts of their own lives and histories. We talk about culture and African traditions (such as drumming and dancing in groups) that are inherently regulating to the nervous system, and explore the legacy of colonialism, racism, warfare, genocide and bullying in the boarding school system. We consider how raising awareness about developmental trauma, Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and neurobiology helps to normalise (mal)adaptive coping strategies and behaviours. We discuss Covid19, the response by the Kenyan government to curtail the spread of the pandemic and the grave risks posed to vulnerable groups without adequate access to clean water or proper shelter. Regarding the approach taken by Western States to refugees and economic migrants from Africa and other countries, we discuss what lawyers and decision-makers in the asylum process need to know about trauma, memory and survival.
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