Coming Home to Self with Caren Wakoli

Coming Home to Self with Caren Wakoli

On courage, healing and owning your story. With Caren Wakoli, hosted by Amel Murphy. What does it actually take to come home to yourself — and what have you been running from in the meantime? Caren Wakoli is a storyteller, poet and founder of Emerging Leaders Foundation in Kenya. In this conversation, she speaks from a place of hard-won aliveness: a life shaped by poverty, loss, the courage to build something without funding, and the slower work of learning to own all of it. This is a conversation about living with intentionality rather than motion; about the difference between surviving and inhabiting your life. Caren reflects on five years without a single donor, the letter she wrote to God when she hit the wall, and what healing looks like when you stop treating it as optional. "If we don't do the work to heal ourselves, we end up bleeding on people who never cut us in the first place." EPISODE GUIDE On courage Not bravery as performance, but the daily practice of facing what you would rather avoid. What the inner work birthed The fellowship that cracked her open; the little girl she found inside; how authenticity arrived not as a gift but a choice. The dream The vision of dignity behind Emerging Leaders Foundation, and Caren's personal mantra: live fully, love unreservedly, serve selflessly. Five years without funding, fifty proposals. Responses demanding bribes and sex. How Caren said no, and what kept her standing. Storytelling as seed On shame, poverty and the moment Caren realised her story was not something to hide but something to tell. ABOUT CAREN WAKOLI Caren Wakoli is a Kenyan leadership practitioner and founder of Emerging Leaders Foundation, nurturing values-driven young leaders across Africa since 2012. She works at the intersection of dignity, healing and human development, drawing on her own journey from poverty to purpose. She is currently writing a book about storytelling, healing and building institutions on values. LinkedIn: https://ke.linkedin.com/in/carenwakoli [https://ke.linkedin.com/in/carenwakoli] | Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/caren.wakoli.96/ [https://www.facebook.com/caren.wakoli.96/] | www.elfafrica.org [http://www.elfafrica.org] | https://ke.linkedin.com/company/emerging-leaders-foundation [https://ke.linkedin.com/company/emerging-leaders-foundation] ABOUT AMEL MURPHY Amel is the founder of Embodied Beings. She grew up between cultures, and it was the body, not the book, that first taught her what belonging feels like. For over twenty years, she has worked at the intersection of personal healing and collective change, supporting leaders, communities, and changemakers to come into right relationship with themselves, each other, and the world around them. This podcast was born from that inquiry, and from the belief that stories, told honestly, are medicine. www.embodied-beings.com [http://www.embodied-beings.com] https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy] STAY CONNECTED Share this with someone who needs it. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen. Know someone whose story belongs here? Tell us — we read every message. Music by HappinessInMusic from Pixabay.

The Light You’re Looking For Is Already Here with Sander Tideman

On light as practice, being beyond doing, and the hidden world beneath the visible. With Sander Tideman, hosted by Amel Murphy What if the light you are searching for is not something to find, but something you are? Sander Tideman is a leadership practitioner, scholar, and author of Triple Value Leadership, working at the intersection of inner development and real-world systems. This conversation matters because it challenges the assumption that change comes from effort, rather than perspective. He and Amel speak about light not as metaphor, but as lived practice; what it means to lose it, return to it, and carry it in turbulent times. They explore the tension between doing and being, why the “core” is not a destination, and how leadership may be less about control and more about illuminating what is already present. The conversation moves between neuroscience, meditation, and lived experience. At one point, Sander suggests that even a few minutes with a tree, a sky, or a passing cloud can reveal a hidden reality most of us overlook. "Once you see that possibility, immediately there is more energy." — Sander Tideman EPISODE GUIDE Opening: Sander on storm, place, and being a seeker in the world Spiritual longing and practical life: law, business, and leadership The dream of reducing suffering; choosing the side of the light Light and shadow: meditation, awareness, and naming the elephant Childhood, nature, and early experiences of light The turbulence of mind: waves versus the ocean The core is not a destination: shifting perspective rather than effort Being versus doing: stepping out of the cultural narrative Leadership as light-bearing: beyond hierarchy and control The hidden world: attention, awareness, and what reveals itself Sander’s closing seed: sit with nature; even a moment changes perception Sander Tideman is a leadership practitioner, scholar, and author with decades of experience working across business, academia, and inner development. His work bridges spirituality and leadership through his framework of Triple Value Leadership, supporting individuals and organisations to integrate purpose, performance, and inner awareness. He has worked internationally across sectors including finance, consulting, and education. Sander lives between Utrecht and Amsterdam, often working from his houseboat and spending time in nature. https://sandertideman.com [https://sandertideman.com] ABOUT AMEL MURPHY Amel is the founder of Embodied Beings. She grew up between cultures, and it was the body, not the book, that first taught her what belonging feels like. For over twenty years, she has worked at the intersection of personal healing and collective change, supporting leaders, communities, and changemakers to come into right relationship with themselves, each other, and the world around them. This podcast was born from that inquiry, and from the belief that stories, told honestly, are medicine. www.embodied-beings.com [http://www.embodied-beings.com] https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy] STAY CONNECTED Share this episode with someone who needs it. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen. Know someone whose story belongs in this podcast? Tell us; we read every message. Music by HappinessInMusic from Pixabay.

Schools Are Built for Adults, Not Children with Kavita Anand

On the school that wraps itself around the child, why governance is an act of love, and the question every school must ask itself every day. What it means for every child to flourish? With Kavita Anand, hosted by Amel Murphy Kavita Anand is an educator, systems leader, and social entrepreneur with over 40 years of experience working across schools, governments, and learning systems. This conversation matters because it questions one of the most accepted structures in society; schooling itself. She and Amel examine how education systems prioritise control, standardisation, and adult convenience over curiosity, meaning, and individuality. Kavita reframes behaviour not as a problem in the child, but as a signal of the system around them. They discuss what it would take to build schools that adapt to children, rather than children adapting to schools. A simple image grounds the conversation; a garden where trees give fruit freely, raising the question of why human systems struggle to do the same. "If you are only consuming it, I don’t see you learning anything. If you learn to create it, then you are learning something." — Kavita Anand EPISODE GUIDE Opening: Kavita as a lifelong learner; the question that drives her work The urgency of now: how do we live together and allow every child to flourish School as a global rite of passage: one system for many different children Classrooms as conformity: rows, standardisation, and the loss of individuality What a good school looks like: meaning, curiosity, and being seen Systems thinking in practice: behaviour as a response, not a problem From hierarchy to collaboration: students, teachers, and leaders learning together Scaling change: from individual schools to government systems Technology and learning: consumption versus creation Kavita’s closing seed: governance as an act of nurturing ABOUT KAVITA ANAND Kavita Anand is an educator, researcher, and systems leader with over 40 years of experience working across education in India and internationally. She is the founder of Adhyayan Quality Education Services and the Adhyayan Quality Education Foundation, focusing on whole-system school improvement and self-review frameworks. Her work spans partnerships with governments, large school networks, and global education initiatives. Kavita lives in India and continues to work closely with educators and systems leaders to reimagine what a good school can be. https://adhyayanfoundation.org/ [https://adhyayanfoundation.org/] ABOUT AMEL MURPHY Amel is the founder of Embodied Beings. She grew up between cultures, and it was the body, not the book, that first taught her what belonging feels like. For over twenty years, she has worked at the intersection of personal healing and collective change, supporting leaders, communities, and changemakers to come into right relationship with themselves, each other, and the world around them. This podcast was born from that inquiry, and from the belief that stories, told honestly, are medicine. www.embodied-beings.com [http://www.embodied-beings.com] https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy] STAY CONNECTED Share this episode with someone who needs it. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen. Know someone whose story belongs in this podcast? Tell us; we read every message. Music by HappinessInMusic from Pixabay.

The Body Knows What Freedom Requires with Staci Haines

On anger as liberation, the difference between survival and freedom, and why personal transformation and social change are the two beats of the same heart. With Staci Haines, hosted by Amel Murphy. What if healing alone will never be enough? And what if the anger you were told to manage is actually one of the most life-giving forces you carry? Staci Haines has spent over three decades working at the intersection of trauma healing and social transformation. This conversation brings those threads into direct contact. She and Amel speak about why we remain vulnerable to domination, how survival patterns shape our politics, and what it takes to build real agency. Staci draws a clear distinction between healing and liberation, and why one without the other is not enough. They return again and again to the body; to anger as a life-giving force, and to the deeper longing for connection, dignity, and collective freedom that lives underneath it. “Anger is a natural fuel with which to redignify ourselves.” — Staci Haines EPISODE GUIDE Opening and Staci’s guiding questions: systems, bodies, and power Why we are vulnerable to domination: safety, belonging, and survival Healing versus liberation: the difference and why both matter Early conditioning: how systems shape what we practise without knowing Embodiment as a path; returning to the body as a site of liberation The “I” and the “we”; personal healing and collective responsibility What we inherit and what we must transform Anger as life force; boundaries, dignity, and saying no Working with anger in practice: moving energy through the body Closing seed; following the longing for wholeness and liberation ABOUT STACI HAINES Staci Haines is a somatics practitioner, organiser, and educator with over 30 years of experience working at the intersection of trauma healing, embodied leadership, and transformative justice. She is the founder of generative somatics and co-leads the Outer Work Project, supporting people to connect personal transformation with organised social change. Her work focuses on building individual and collective capacity for liberation. Staci is based in the United States. https://generativesomatics.org/ [https://generativesomatics.org/] https://www.outerworkproject.org/ [https://www.outerworkproject.org/] https://www.stacihaines.com/ [https://www.stacihaines.com/] https://generationfive.org/ [https://generationfive.org/] ABOUT AMEL MURPHY Amel is the founder of Embodied Beings. She grew up between cultures, and it was the body, not the book, that first taught her what belonging feels like. For over twenty years, she has worked at the intersection of personal healing and collective change, supporting leaders, communities, and changemakers to come into right relationship with themselves, each other, and the world around them. This podcast was born from that inquiry, and from the belief that stories, told honestly, are medicine. www.embodied-beings.com [http://www.embodied-beings.com] https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy] STAY CONNECTED Share this episode with someone who needs it. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen. Know someone whose story belongs in this podcast? Tell us; we read every message. Music by HappinessInMusic from

Life Wants Life in You with Gaye Donaldson

On reverence, the story big enough to make a difference, and why those who struggle to belong may be the ones the world needs. With Gaye Donaldson, hosted by Amel Murphy. What does it mean to belong to life itself — not just to a person, a place, or a community? Gaye Donaldson is a systemic constellation practitioner and teacher whose work has been shaped by a lifelong inquiry into belonging. Adopted as a baby, she has spent over thirty years following that question through whole system agriculture, health, and human systems. She and Amel speak about belonging not as a concept but as something lived; through family systems, ancestry, and the wider field of life itself. They trace a shift from competitive individualism towards interdependence, and what it asks of us now; including the capacity to stand at the edge, between belonging and not belonging. At the centre of the conversation is a return to reverence; right place, right size, right relationship with the earth, and the quiet trust that life itself is generative. "Systemic constellation work, in essence, is about finding the story that's big enough to make a difference." — Gaye Donaldson EPISODE GUIDE Introduction; belonging, systems, and reverence for life Gaye’s path; agriculture, homeopathy, and systemic constellation Adoption as origin; the question of belonging across a lifetime Holding the unanswered question; depth, cost, and meaning Interconnected systems; from soil to human relationships The collective shift; the end of competitive individualism Edge dwellers; those who can bear not quite belonging A return to reverence; right place, right relationship with the earth What is missing; the unseen and the space around things Life wanting life; transgenerational resilience and continuity Capacity and the horses; belonging beyond the human Closing seed; you can be small and still held ABOUT GAYE DONALDSON Gaye Donaldson is a systemic constellation practitioner, teacher, and co-founder of the Centre for Systemic Constellations. Her work spans over thirty years across whole system agriculture, homeopathy, and systemic constellation, exploring how human lives are shaped by interconnected systems and ancestral patterns. Her practice is grounded in the question of belonging; its absence, its cost, and its eventual return. Gaye lives in the UK, where she spends time each day with her herd of Icelandic horses. https://www.thecsc.net/ [https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.thecsc.net_&d=DwMFaQ&c=euGZstcaTDllvimEN8b7jXrwqOf-v5A_CdpgnVfiiMM&r=E09zlk1Dv_VGQ8OVsORCKLbzzU3DwQqHMmBDq97BFSQ&m=cA572UF1UE7WnGrScBlv99bO4HWcO3k15uLbZ5esFGmgIhkSAeilqrW8IlHd_2l9&s=T0ExDixpVETi5x9mlX5K6EU-VDOpHpl4sSg3XaTbVk4&e=] ABOUT AMEL MURPHY Amel is the founder of Embodied Beings. She grew up between cultures, and it was the body, not the book, that first taught her what belonging feels like. For over twenty years, she has worked at the intersection of personal healing and collective change, supporting leaders, communities, and changemakers to come into right relationship with themselves, each other, and the world around them. This podcast was born from that inquiry, and from the belief that stories, told honestly, are medicine. . www.embodied-beings.com [http://www.embodied-beings.com] https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy] STAY CONNECTED Share this episode with someone who needs it. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen. Know someone whose story belongs in this podcast? Tell us; we read every message. Music by HappinessInMusic from Pixabay.