Building Resilience and Hope in the Somali Diaspora
This project will address collective trauma and despair in the Somali Diaspora by building leadership grounded in healing and resilience.





What problem does the idea help to solve and how does your solution work? (2,000 characters maximum)


Geography of focus (500 characters)
The Garissa District of Northeastern Kenya and Minneapolis, Minnesota. Many Somali people living in Minnesota came from the Garissa District, and family connections often encourage additional migration patterns. The focus was identified by existing relationships and voices of community engagement and community readiness in both locations. We will build a continuum of community leaders who are empowered to address basic wellbeing and promote hope and dignity in crafting sustainable solutions.Building Bridges: What bridge does your idea build between people on the move and neighbors towards a shared future of stability and promise? (500 characters)
It will enhance understanding and relationships between the Diaspora and host communities in both sites, bridge generational divides in families, and between Somali Kenyans and residents of the refugee camps. It will position community leaders to have a stronger voice in policy while equipping those preparing to relocate with adaptive skills. This approach addresses a need to focus on the capacity of the family and community to become self-sufficient and maximize their civic contributions.What human need is your idea solving for? (1,000 characters)
The wounds of collective trauma are widely shared in a traumatized society, and can be linked to lower economic, societal and political progress. More severe and long-lasting traumatic events, as in regions where chronic conflict is present, make conflict resolution more elusive. The damage to cultural reparative institutions and generational transmission of hopelessness can only be reversed through a dual, simultaneous approach to individual and collective healing. The human biological stress response system can too often normalize combative interactions and lead to poor health outcomes. Community leadership can shift social norms from traumatic reaction to compassionate resolutions. When trauma healing skills are taught by recognized community leaders in faith-based context, receptivity and utilization is high, resulting in a healthier population that feels less stressed and abler to take on tough challenges with thoughtful problem solving.What will be different within the community of focus as a result of implementing your idea? (1,000 characters)
Teaching healing practices will generate compassion, which will inform how internal and external relationships are fostered. Compassion is transformational in nurturing forgiveness and empathy, promoting dignity, conflict resolution and cross-cultural understanding. Leadership can normalize a culture of healing as the foundation of reclaiming values. Locally, families are using Islamic Mind Body Medicine tools to renew relationships and manage anxiety and social isolation. It will alter beliefs and stigma about the impact of trauma and increase capacity of first responders and liaison personnel to work in a more trauma-responsive way. The availability of local people with skills and resources to transmit to community members will lead to a healthier population. Published evidence shows that in the Gaza, participants using these practices reduced their PTSD by more than 85% and reported significantly decreased levels of anger and enhanced feelings of hopefulness and optimism.What is the inspiration behind your idea? (1,000 characters)
In 2015 Catalyst began working with local partners in an innovative effort to support families and build resilience. Open Path Resources completed a study in 2011 to identify community priorities to raise healthy families. Imam Sharif Mohamed became a certified trainer with the Center for Mind Body Medicine, modified the training to ensure fidelity to Islamic principles, creating the Islamic Mind Body Medicine Toolkit. He and Abdi Ali, who is on track to complete CMBM certification, began teaching mind body skills in community to address collective trauma and promote leadership. The response has been overwhelming with participants reporting a desire for more training and for access to the skills for family members. We have been inspired by the tireless work of the Honorable Sophia Abdi Noor, founder of Womankind Kenya in Garissa and now a member of the Kenyan Parliament, and her ability to reflect the needs of the community to address the local impact of collective trauma.Describe the dynamics of the community in which the idea is to be implemented. (1,000 characters)



How does your idea leverage and empower community strengths and assets to help create an environment for success? (1,000 characters)



What other partners or stakeholders will work alongside you in implementing the idea, if any? (1,000 characters)
OPR, ICSA and Abdi Ali are leading with partnership from the Catalyst Initiative. Five local mosques wish to partner. Hennepin County seeks deeper engagement for Somali youth in the juvenile justice system, a project that Mr. Ali has been leading. The Muslim Chaplaincy Program is building relationships with medical and correctional systems. OPR/ICSA is in relationship with faith leaders to foster interfaith understanding. Catalyst’s network includes dozens of non-profits building social norms of healing trauma. Center for Mind Body Medicine provide training. They will host several trainings in Minnesota in 2020, providing a cost-effective pathway to scale access. In Garissa, Sophia Abdi Noor, nine local women’s leadership groups, Womenkind Kenya, Supreme Council of Kenyan Muslims and Council of Imams, Garissa County Health Department and other institutions have expressed interest. Sophia’s role in government will also open doors to begin to inform how military training is conducted.What part of the displacement journey is your solution addressing
- Leaving a community of origin
Tell us how you'd describe the type of innovation you are proposing
- Service: A new or enhanced service that creates value for end beneficiaries
Idea Proposal Stage
- Pilot: We have started to implement the idea as a whole with a first set of real users. The feasibility of an innovation is tested in a small-scale and real world application (i.e. 3-15% of the target population)
Group or Organization Name
Catalyst Initiative at the Minneapolis Foundation as applicant. Open Path Resources (OPR), Islamic Civic Society of America (ICSA) as lead partner organizations.Tell us more about your group or organization [or lived experience as a displaced person?] (1000 characters)
Catalyst is a trusted partner co-creating community generated solutions to toxic stress and trauma. Based at a community foundation, Catalyst is well positioned to act as fiscal sponsor and coordinator for the idea and has the capacity to bridge the continents and partnerships. ICSA is dedicated to governing for the common good while addressing the specific needs of the Muslim community. It is the institutional member of Renewing the Public Congregation. OPR, co-led by Imam Sharif Mohamed (Imam at Dar al-Hijrah Mosque) and Michael Van Keulen, organizes the civic capacity and civic infrastructure between the Somali community and larger social systems to address public issues. Abdi Ali, LGSW, M.A. is a former high school teacher and principal from Kenya with expertise in conflict resolution and restorative justice. He is a long-time associate of Sophia Abdi Noor, resident of Garissa and member of Parliament. We have all been working together on various projects for many years.Website URL:
Catalyst Initiative at the Minneapolis Foundation: http://www.minneapolisfoundation.org/grants/catalyst-initiative/ Open Path Resources: www.oprmn.org/ Islamic Civic Society of America https://activecitizen.org/icsa/Type of submitter
- We are a registered Non-Profit Organization
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