COVID-19 & Informal Settlements: What’s happening on the ground in Brazil and Kenya? (Panel 2/3)
FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC; REGISTRATION REQUIRED; NO CE HOURS AVAILABLE; ONLINE ONLY, VIA ZOOM
The second of a three-part panel series co-organized by Assistant Professor Samantha Winter and Columbia Global Centers | Nairobi & Rio de Janeiro
Moderated by
YAMILE MARTÍ HAIDAR (bio), Lecturer, Columbia School of Social Work
A panel of experts on, and residents of, informal settlements in Rio and Nairobi, will discuss COVID-19 and its impact on the mental health on settlement residents: how bad is it and what can be done?
- JULIA KAGUNDA (Kenya), Founder and Director of Elim Trust, Nairobi
- MILKAH GAKURU (Kenya), Community Mobilizer and Human Rights Activist
- VANESSA DE SOUZA (Brazil), Psychologist at Clínica da Família Maria do Socorro Silva e Souza, Rio de Janeiro
- FLAVIA PINELLU (Brazil), Psychologist at Terapia PRA TDS, Rio de Janeiro
About the Panel
Over half of Nairobi’s 4.3 million residents live in informal settlements and close to a quarter of Rio de Janeiro’s 6.3 million residents live in informal settlements known, locally, as favelas. Prior to the pandemic, rates of depression, anxiety, psychological distress, substance abuse, and suicidality were already higher in informal settlements than in other communities—conditions that are likely being exacerbated by the challenges of responding to COVID-19. In this panel, mental health experts living and working on the ground will discuss the kinds of mental health challenges residents of these communities are currently facing. They will also provide recommendations for managing and mitigating these challenges.
About the Panel Series
This is the second in a three-part panel series hosted by the Columbia Global Centers | Nairobi and Columbia Global Centers | Rio de Janeiro. The purpose of this series is to hear from experts and residents of informal settlements in these two populous cities about the most pressing issues they are facing in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Questions?
Please contact Dr. Samantha Winter at scw2154@columbia.edu.
