Our Story
When we breathe, move, and hold space together,
our collective resilience emerges . . .
Trauma is a shared human experience—as is our innate resilience. However the ability to navigate and recover is influenced by our community and access to safe spaces. Too often those most in need of mental health support have the least access. This is our purpose at HaRT: to support women and girls who have survived violence to experience healing in community.
We began in Kampala, Uganda in 2016 with the intention of creating an accessible program grounded in the latest neuroscience on mind-body interventions for trauma recovery. Starting with one group of 10 women, we practiced, listened and learned. Each new group brought new experiences. A decade later we have integrated countless rounds of feedback to hone our curriculum. Over 750 survivors and activists in Uganda, the Philippines and the U.S. have joined Move with HaRT, and their stories demonstrate the meaningful ways this work can change lives.
Our Values
We are intentional about our values and aspire to bring each one to life in our approach to programming, RESEARCH, partnerships, and day-to-day culture.
EMBODIED WISDOM
Honor lived experience—in our bodies, emotions and stories—as a source of insight. Listen deeply and allow this knowledge to anchor and guide our work.
Radical Acceptance
Embrace the belief that we are all whole and complete, exactly as we are. No one is ever ‘broken,’ and we all deserve to feel safe throughout life’s inevitable ups and downs.
Authentic Expression
Cultivate safe and non-judgmental spaces that welcome honest communication, where we can show up as our full selves and all emotions are valid.
Compassionate Relationships
Practice supportive and caring interactions, because women and girls flourish when we experience mutual understanding and connection.
Collective POWER
Nurture and expand power, recognizing every act of solidarity and courage along the healing journey. Make power and privilege visible, so imbalances can be addressed.
Our Team
Agnes Grace Nabachwa
Agnes works to support women and children’s rights and to prevent violence. In her role as the Senior Learning Officer at HaRT, she facilitates a vibrant exchange between the program and research teams. Agnes also leads our suicide risk prevention training and follow-up support.
Catherine Carlson
Cady is an activist, social worker, and researcher whose work focuses on the intersections of violence and mental health, with a particular emphasis on improving access to evidence-based care. She is part of our leadership team, and leads HaRT’s research partnerships. Cady is also an associate professor at the University of Georgia.
Hanifah Nakito
Hanifah is a social worker and a mental health counselor, passionate about working with youth. She is a trauma-informed Facilitator at HaRT and also leads mental health programming with Kakuza’s ‘Do it Yourself’ club members attending second schools in Uganda.
Jasmine Alban
Jasmine is a feminist researcher and practitioner working within the intersections of gender-based violence, health and trauma healing. As a qualitative researcher with HaRT, Jasmine supported the evaluation of HaRT Cebu (an adapted version of Move with HaRT for the Philippines) and coordinated the qualitative analysis for SHiNE.
Joyce Christine Nakiwala
Joyce is a Ugandan dance artist, entrepreneur, and yoga teacher. She recently completed her 500 level yoga and meditation certification and has been recognized as an emerging changemaker by the Mind & Life Institute. Joyce has been leading Move with HaRT sessions since 2020 and is our Senior Program Manager.
Meagan Copeland
Meagan is a feminist researcher and anthropologist focused on the role of healing-centered approaches and somatic practices in supporting the wellbeing of survivors of gender-based violence. As a researcher with HaRT, she supported the monitoring of SHiNE in Uganda and is currently involved in the adaptation and evaluation of Move with HaRT in the U.S.
Prisca Atite
Atite is yoga instructor, dance artist, jeweler, soul speaker and podcaster. She is passionate about holistic healing, career wellness and trauma informed facilitation. In addition to her role as a HaRT Facilitator, Atitie is a Rotary Club member and vice chair of their mental health group.
Sophie Namy
Sophie has been working to prevent violence against women and girls for nearly two decades. She leads HaRT’s programming and is part of our leadership team. Sophie is also a technical advisor with Raising Voices and supports other organizations to deepen their feminist approaches to violence prevention and trauma healing.
Stephanie Topazi
Stephanie is a social work clinician whose work centers feminist, relational, and body-based approaches. She is a core part of the HaRT U.S. team and facilitated the very first cohort at Mosaic Georgia. Stephanie brings experience in counseling, yoga, expressive practices, and group facilitation, with a commitment to creating spaces that are accessible, supportive, and deeply human.
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Sylvia Namakula
Sylvia has been facilitating in-depth conversations with women and girls about violence and other sensitive issues for nearly two decades. As part of HaRT’s leadership team, she leads our programming and team support in Uganda. She also coordinates the Survivor Advisory Group and helps shape HaRT’s research initiatives.
Board of Directors
Jean Kemitare
Jean is a feminist activist and brilliant strategist with 18 years’ experience. Her areas of expertise include gender based violence, healing justice, movement building, women’s rights, and feminist funding. She helped create the GBV Prevention Network and has authored a range of violence prevention methodologies. Jean is currently the Programmes Director at Urgent Action Fund, Africa which coordinates the Feminist Republik to deepen cultures of collective care in movement building efforts.
Maureen Kitiibwa Muwonge
Maureen is a passionate child protection and humanitarian specialist with 22 years experience. She is experienced in creating innovative systems that increase organisational efficiency through identification of opportunities and taking full advantage of best practice. She is currently the Country Director at Dwelling Places where she applies her expertise in preventing and responding to violence against children to serve vulnerable communities in Uganda.
Tina musuya
Tina has spent nearly 20 years working to prevent violence against women and girls in sub-Saharan Africa and is a leading activist in the region. She served as the Executive Director at CEDOVIP for over 10 years and is currently the Co-Lead for Learning Partnerships for the global What Works To Prevent Violence program. Tina is highly regarded for her abilities to forge strong relationships and deepen reflections, conversation and action for violence prevention.