SchertoGill collective healing, intergenerational dialogue

2025 UN ECOSOC Youth Forum Side Event

Despite global commitments to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), persistent barriers have continued to hinder meaningful progress. Amongst these barriers, are transgenerational trauma, gender-based inequality, limited opportunities for youth engagement, and fragmented community responses. The UNESCO Collective Healing Initiative, through its pioneering Intergenerational Dialogue and Inquiry (IDI) approach, uniquely tackles these barriers by harnessing cultural wisdom, fostering communal resilience, and strengthening youth leadership.

To discern the impact of the IDI approach, the Guerrand-Hermès Foundation and Global Humanity for Peace (GHfP) Institute at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David have undertaken a three-year research study in 9 countries, investigating the processes and outcomes of intergenerational approaches in achieving the SDGs. This study engaged youth and elders, who are participants in the UNESCO Collective Healing programmes. In addition, the Institute also sought the perspectives of global youth on their needs for leadership development and changemaking. 

Emergent insights from both studies were presented in New York during the 2025 UN ECOSOC Youth Forum as a Side Event. The questions explored include:

  • What concrete evidence demonstrates that intergenerational approaches significantly contribute to SDGs?
  • How can international, national, and community-level policymakers effectively integrate intergenerational approaches in sustainable development strategies? 
  • What specific policy commitments can stakeholders (governments, NGOs, researchers, politicians, youth leaders) make today to ensure that intergenerational approaches become integral to achieving the 2030 Agenda?

Led by Prof Scherto Gill and our young co-researcher, Casey Overton, this interactive event brought together voices from UNESCO, academia, policy, and youth to examine evidence from the research projects, and highlighted opportunities for policy integration, such as scalable intergenerational strategies to bolster community resilience and social inclusion towards well-being futures.

Amongst the findings presented are that today’s youth navigate a world shaped by global disturbance, climate crises, and rapid technological change, often experiencing fragmentation and alienation. Intergenerational processes and approaches can enable elders to better understand youth perspectives while supporting youth to reconnect with traditional wisdom, cultural resources, and collective resilience — key to overcoming obstacles to sustainable development.

These studies underscore the transformative potential of intergenerational strategies in fostering long-term positive change, bridge historical divisions, and promote youth-led collective action for the SDGs. It is precisely such insights that can inform policy development, by stressing the critical need for practical implementation of IDI and for ensuring intergenerational accountability.

Casey further reflected on the potential and limitation of intergenerational approach. In particular, she pointed out that whilst dialogue can serve as connective tissue, aimed at building bridges, enabling understanding and collaboration, power disparity can inhibit dialogue. For instance, IDI in some contexts doesn’t always take place amongst equals. Therefore it requires institutional structures and processes to systematically integrate intergenerational approach to social transformation.

The session received enthusiastic responses from the participants who both recognised the significance of these research studies and echoed the importance of IDI in their own national and local contexts, in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas.

SchertoGill diversity, flourishing, healing, intergenerational dialogue, psychosocial-healing, wellbeing

Collective Healing Handbook for Facilitators

This Handbook is a part of UNESCO’s Collective Healing Initiative. It was supported by grants from the Guerrand-Hermès Foundation for Peace, the Fetzer Institute, and the Pureland Foundation.

The Handbook is intended to support the efforts of facilitators and other professionals who are interested in hosting Collective Healing Circles (CHCs) in their local community. The intellectual insights underpinning the CHC Programme proposed in this Handbook are drawn from contemporary research on historical atrocities, such as the transatlantic trade of enslaved Africans, colonialisation, and mass killing and violent displacement of Indigenous peoples, as well as the legacies of dehumanisation, such as racism and structural injustice.

The practical ideas for implementing the CHC Programme featured throughout the Handbook are inspired by existing proven approaches of similar programmes, and those which have emerged from a one-year pilot of the Programme in five countries (Kenya, Nigeria, the UK, the USA and Colombia) on four continents.

Collective-Healing-Circle-Programme_Towards-Just-Society-and-Communal-Well-BeingDownload

The Handbook was presented by Mrs Gabriela Ramos, UNESCO Assistant Director General, during the 30th Anniversary of UNESCO Routes of Enslaved Peoples Programme on 10th October 2024.

The presentation was followed by reports from community partners and participants of the UNESCO Collective Healing Initiative on the process and impact of our CHC activities on four continents.

Amongst those in the audience at UNESCO HQ were global leaders, national delegations, and civil society representatives.

SchertoGill dialogue, flourishing, healing, intergenerational dialogue, psychosocial-healing, wellbeing

Jan 2024 UNESCO-GHFP Symposium, Virginia Union University

Understanding & Healing Relational & Spiritual Harm of Dehumanisation

Collective Healing, Social Justice and Global Well-Being is a UNESCO initiative aimed at addressing the legacies of dehumanisation, including the harms of transoceanic enslavement of Africans, colonialism, continued racism, and other forms of structural discrimination. An important aspect of this initiative is to investigate the plethora of harms from multiple dimensions. Partners supporting this initiative include Guerrand-Hermès Foundation, Global Humanity for Peace (GHfP) Institute at University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UWTSD), Fetzer Institute, AfroSpectives, and Virginia Union University (VUU).

Through the UNESCO Routes of Enslaved Peoples Project’s (REP) 30 years’ endeavours, there have been research, documentation, recognising the destruction of afore-mentioned legacies, especially in terms of physical, cultural, and economic harms. To these efforts, during the 2nd session of the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent 2023, delegates of African and indigenous descent added a call for more research and better understanding of the relational and spiritual dimensions of these harms, which can serve as the basis for more concerted action towards healing and systemic transformation.

VUU President welcoming participants

Indeed, without acknowledging relational and spiritual harms, collective efforts to confront the legacies of transoceanic enslavement and continued injustices against people of African and indigenous descent may fall short. Mere materialistic repairs, such as reducing economic disparity, leveling public services, and providing equal access to health, education, housing, finance, and employment, are not enough. While economic and social justice is important, the Afro and indigenous communities directly impacted by the dehumanising legacies insist that addressing the relational and spiritual dimensions of the harms and the connected trauma are equally, if not even more, critical. The characterisation of relational and spiritual harm should help bring to light the complex layers of harm, offering a more holistic conception of dehumanising harm. This will enable us to better recognise how both those who were violently enslaved and their descendants, and those who performed inhumane acts upon the enslaved, and their descendants, suffer from a same harm that can be described as relational and spiritual.

To this end, the partners supporting the collective healing initiative, have jointly launched two processes: the first was a conceptual exploration aimed at understanding what constitutes relational and spiritual harm; and the second was a pilot programme that engaged global communities in intergenerational dialogue and inquiries (IDI) to reflect on people’s lived experiences of the dehumanising legacies and connected relational and spiritual harm. The IDIs also enabled community stakeholders to identify relational and spiritual practices and resources key to resilience and healing of collective trauma.

To further deepen our understanding of what constitutes relational and spiritual harm from an interdisciplinary perspective, and to explore what relational and spiritual approaches to healing and community regeneration are necessary in the context of global structural dehumanisation, the partners hosted a second UNESCO Symposium in Jan 2024 at Virginia Union University, in Richmond, VA., USA.

FOCUS & DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

We invite thinkers, scholars, researcher and practitioners to come together and focus our dialogue on the nature of relational and spiritual harm, and the necessary relational-centred and spiritually-inspired approaches to collective healing. Here, ‘spiritual harm’ is not solely about the wounding perpetuated or condoned by faith-based teaching, spiritual leaders and religious institutions. 

We propose the following questions for dialogue and discussion:

  1. What is the nature of dehumanising harm in the contexts of transoceanic slavery?
  2. How might the terms ‘relational’ and ‘spiritual’ shift our understanding of such harm and the connected trauma and continuing injustices? What are the processes, modalities and manifestations of these harms?
  3. How does the relational and spiritual harm differ for the enslaved and their descendants, and the enslavers and their descendants? What are the micro and macro consequences of those harms today?
  4. What forms of healing are necessary to overcome these harms? How do the healing processes differ for those who are at the receiving end of dehumanisation and those who are perpetuating or participating in the perpetuation of dehumanisation?
  5. What should be the future directions of healing work in the light of our understandings of relational and spiritual harm? How could we best integrate the relational and spiritual dimension in global transformation towards just system and well-being of all?
  6. What approaches/practices could we draw upon and learn from global communities? How might research contribute to a new political culture of respect, love and caring?
SchertoGill dialogue, flourishing, healing, intergenerational dialogue, wellbeing

Dec 2023 UNESCO-GHFP Symposium

Understanding & Healing Relational & Spiritual Harm of Dehumanisation

Collective Healing, Social Justice and Global Well-Being is a UNESCO initiative aimed at addressing the legacies of dehumanisation, including the harms of transoceanic enslavement of Africans, colonialism, continued racism, and other forms of structural discrimination. An important aspect of this initiative is to investigate the plethora of harms from multiple dimensions. Partners supporting this initiative include Guerrand-Hermès Foundation, Global Humanity for Peace (GHfP) Institute at University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UWTSD), Fetzer Institute, and AfroSpectives.

Through the UNESCO Routes of Enslaved Peoples Project’s (REP) 30 years’ endeavours, there have been research, documentation, recognising the destruction of afore-mentioned legacies, especially in terms of physical, cultural, and economic harms. To these efforts, during the 2nd session of the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent 2023, delegates of African and indigenous descent added a call for more research and better understanding of the relational and spiritual dimensions of these harms, which can serve as the basis for more concerted action towards healing and systemic transformation.

Indeed, without acknowledging relational and spiritual harms, collective efforts to confront the legacies of transoceanic enslavements and continued injustices against people of African and indigenous descent may fall short. Mere materialistic repairs, such as reducing economic disparity, levelling public services, and providing equal access to health, education, housing, finance, and employment, are not enough. While economic and social justice is important, the Afro and indigenous communities directly impacted by the dehumanising legacies insist that addressing the relational and spiritual dimensions of the harms and the connected trauma are equally, if not even more, critical. The characterisation of relational and spiritual harm should help bring to light the complex layers of harm, offering a more holistic conception of dehumanising harm. This will enable us to better recognise how both those who were violently enslaved and their descendants, and those who performed inhumane acts upon the enslaved, and their descendants, suffer from a same harm that can be described as relational and spiritual.

To this end, the partners supporting the collective healing initiative, have jointly launched two processes: the first was a conceptual exploration aimed at understanding what constitutes relational and spiritual harm; and the second was a pilot programme that engaged global communities in intergenerational dialogue and inquiries (IDI) to reflect on people’s lived experiences of the dehumanising legacies and connected relational and spiritual harm. The IDIs also enabled community stakeholders to identify relational and spiritual practices and resources key to resilience and healing of collective trauma.

To further deepen our understanding of what constitutes relational and spiritual harm from an interdisciplinary perspective, and to explore what relational and spiritual approaches to healing and community regeneration are necessary in the context of global structural dehumanisation, the partners hosted a UNESCO Symposium in Dec 2023 in Oxford.

FOCUS & DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

We invite thinkers, scholars, researcher and practitioners to come together and focus our dialogue on the nature of relational and spiritual harm, and the necessary relational-centred and spiritually-inspired approaches to collective healing. Here, ‘spiritual harm’ is not solely about the wounding perpetuated or condoned by faith-based teaching, spiritual leaders and religious institutions. 

We propose the following questions for dialogue and discussion:

  1. What is the nature of dehumanising harm in the contexts of transoceanic slavery?
  2. How might the terms ‘relational’ and ‘spiritual’ shift our understanding of such harm and the connected trauma and continuing injustices? What are the processes, modalities and manifestations of these harms?
  3. How does the relational and spiritual harm differ for the enslaved and their descendants, and the enslavers and their descendants? What are the micro and macro consequences of those harms today?
  4. What forms of healing are necessary to overcome these harms? How do the healing processes differ for those who are at the receiving end of dehumanisation and those who are perpetuating or participating in the perpetuation of dehumanisation?
  5. What should be the future directions of healing work in the light of our understandings of relational and spiritual harm? How could we best integrate the relational and spiritual dimension in global transformation towards just system and well-being of all?
  6. What approaches/practices could we draw upon and learn from global communities? How might research contribute to a new political culture of respect, love and caring?
GHFP diversity, intergenerational dialogue, love, peace, wellbeing

Human Force 2022

The Human Force camp impacted me in all aspects of my life (Spiritually, physically, mentally) to care for all the little things that are around me and also to love myself more every day. It just made me grow and appreciate everything, and increased my inner peace! — a 19-year old participant from Europe

Human Force is an international programme for young volunteers. It bridges the gap between grassroots initiatives and everyday people who want to make a difference to the welfare of our planet and its people. With over a decade of experience, Human Force offers short-term Learning Service Programmes at Susila Dharma International Association (SDIA) projects worldwide, in the areas of health, education and sustainable livelihoods. Learning Service is a progressive approach to the traditional role of international volunteering. Human Force combines volunteering with learning objectives in global development education in order to provide a pragmatic and culturally sensitive experience whilst still meeting project needs. 

In 2022, in partnership with the GHFP, Human Force’s international volunteers supported the community in Amanecer, la Tebaida, Colombia. The programme involved six kinds of activity:

  1. Contributing to Phase 1 Environmental Plan and involving the construction of a walkway for a group of endangered nocturnal monkeys, planting of over 100 native trees to create a biological corridor and photographic mapping of the area to use for future phases of the project, in conjunction with the University of Quindio
  2. English teaching classes over two days in conjunction with El Pedacito Del Cielo in the local town La Tebaida
  3. Mural painting and gardening around the kiosko with Fundacion Amanecer, which was built prior to the camp commencement for the local children to have a safe place to play and develop
  4. Installation of several signs for Amanecer International Centre and gardening work to further assist food security for the Centre
  5. Global Awareness Program involving several talks and workshops about the social, economic and environmental issues pertinent to the region
  6. Cultural and reflective activities to enrich the contextualisation of the project and bolster the human learning experience

This programme also featured region specific development learning related to ecology and the environment, guided personal reflection activities on talent and exploration of the unique landscape and culture of Colombia!

Sharing with good people, carrying out the different tasks together and despite the limitations in the language, everything has turned out in the best possible way. I’m so happy! — a 18-year old participant from Asia

SchertoGill healing, intergenerational dialogue, wellbeing

Intergenerational Dialogue for Healing and Well-Being: Partners Meeting on 20-22 Nov 2022

The UNESCO Collective Healing Initiative aims to empower youth, especially young women, to initiate intergenerational dialogue and inquiry in communities impacted by historical mass brutality, and continued structural dehumanisation.

As illustrated by the African metaphor ‘Sankofa’, remembering the past can help recover and restore knowledge of previous generations, which not only benefits the present struggles and efforts, but can also guide our collective journeys into the future. Youth-initiated intergenerational dialogue and inquiry can enable stakeholders to reconnect with place-based indigenous wisdom, cultural resources and spiritual practices of resistance, resilience, restoration, healing, caring and well-being. Thus, intergenerational inquiry is a key to humanity’s endeavours to end cycles of destruction and patterns of violence.

By facilitating encounter and practising the arts of listening, attending, inquiring and dialogue, the intergenerational processes can help:

  1. Understand people’s memories of histories and how they perceive their present lived realities in connection to marginalisation, colonialism and transatlantic slavery
  2. Recover cultural wisdom and indigenous practices of resiliency, resistance, restoration, and regeneration
  3. Identify the starting points for collective healing, social justice, and well-being through place-based ‘treasures’, e.g. stories of compassion, confidence and trust in the community’s strengths, the richness of inner life, and so on
  4. Construct visions for a more humane and caring world
  5. Proposing institutional conditions for systemic transformation

Intergenerational dialogue invites communities to adapt the inquiring methodologies to their own contexts. With the support of local organisations and the international partners, and guided by scholars and researchers in applying the ethics of inclusion and the arts of listening and dialogue, young adults and community elders will capture and document community-based narratives, and present stories of resilience, healing and regeneration to worldwide audience for mutual learning.

On 20-22 November 2022, partners from six countries in four continents gathered in London for an intensive workshops in preparation for the launch of the pilots for Intergenerational Dialogue & Inquiry.

Colleagues from UNESCO, including Anna Maria Majlof, Chief of Rights, Dialogue and Inclusion, Yvette Kaboza and Lucie Seck, Coordinators of Routes of Enslaved people, and Michael Frazier, UNESCO Donors Relations, as well as representatives from the programme’s funding partners, including Dr Mohammed Mohammed, Senior Programme Office of the Fetzer Institute, Professor Garrett Thomson, CEO of the Guerrand-Hermes Foundation for Peace, and Jeremy Smith, Dean of Education and Humanities, at the University of Wales TSD, all expressed their commitment to this global partnership.