Yoga as embodied peacebuilding: Moving through personal, interpersonal and collective trauma(s) in post-conflict Colombia
Abstract
In this dissertation, I examine creative methods of peacebuilding that are both community-driven and embodied in their approach. I evaluate how these methods can simultaneously challenge the confines of conventional peacebuilding mechanisms in transitional and post-conflict contexts, while also offering a unique complement to existing programs and structures. I look at the multifaceted socio-cultural expressions of yoga globally, inquiring as to how this mind-body practice can offer opportunities in peacebuilding on both individual and collective levels.
My project is rooted in the principles of community-engaged research and feminist research ethics. More specifically, this dissertation closely engages with the work of the Colombian non-profit organization, Corporación Dunna. Dunna works to address deeply rooted cyclical and intergenerational violence embedded in Colombian society through building capacity for coexistence and trust within communities. As such, their programming focuses on individual mental wellbeing as well as on addressing the manifestations of trauma in families, communities, and whole nations.
The data collection process followed a snowball and community-driven approach to data collection. This process took place during a three-month research fellowship based in Bogotá and included 75 semi-structured brief and in-depth interviews, with 73 participants across Colombia. Interviewees included Dunna’s staff and program participants, citizens-at-large, and various members of the non-profit and peacebuilding sector in Colombia. The research period took place in the months following the signing of the 2016 peace accord between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC); my findings are situated within this context and fragment in history.
My analysis of these interviews is informed by postcolonial feminist theories, transrational peace philosophy, and the principles of elicitive peace work. My findings aim to expand on existing research within the field of peacebuilding and build the case for a deeper understanding of embodied approaches to peacebuilding in post-conflict and transitional contexts. Moreover, I argue for the need for a holistic approach to peace work that necessarily integrates the various layers of societal conflict including national, community, interpersonal, and individual aspects of human life.