Shadows into Light: A Generation of Former Child Soldiers Comes of Age
The Kiphart Center for Global Health and Social Development invites you to a critical and thought-provoking conversation between Theresa S. Betancourt, PhD, and Mary Bunn, PhD, LCSW, centered around Betancourt’s groundbreaking new book, Shadows into Light: A Generation of Former Child Soldiers Comes of Age (January 2025). This event explores one of the longest-running studies of war-affected youth in history—a 23-year longitudinal project tracing the lives of over 500 former child soldiers in Sierra Leone from the end of the country’s brutal civil conflict in 2002 to today.
Professor Betancourt, a global leader in child mental health and development, will discuss the long-term findings of this research and the complex journey of healing, resilience, and reintegration for children forced into unimaginable violence. Joining her in conversation is Professor Mary Bunn, a licensed clinical social worker and expert in global mental health, who brings clinical and academic insight into the challenges of trauma recovery in post-conflict settings.
This timely discussion will offer powerful reflections on community healing, social reintegration, and the enduring strength of those once cast as “unredeemable.” Whether you work in mental health, international development, or are simply interested in the intersection of trauma and recovery, this event promises critical insight into the long arc of post-conflict transformation.
Salem Professor in Global Practice
Director, Research Program on Children and Adversity (RPCA)
Boston College School of Social Work
Theresa S. Betancourt, PhD, is the inaugural Salem Professor in Global Practice at the Boston College School of Social Work and Director of the Research Program on Children and Adversity (RPCA). Betancourt's work focuses on the psychosocial impact of adversity on children and families, resilience, and mental health services research. Betancourt is the Principal Investigator of an intergenerational study of war-affected youth in Sierra Leone and leads implementation science research in Rwanda to examine strategies for scaling and sustaining quality in an evidence-based home visiting intervention to promote early childhood development and prevent violence (Sugira Muryango).
Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry
University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC)
Core Faculty and Director. Global Mental Health Research and Training Program
UIC Center for Global Health
Mary Bunn, PhD, LCSW is a licensed clinical social worker and Assistant Professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), Department of Psychiatry. She is also Core Faculty and Director of the Global Mental Health Research and Training Program in the UIC Center for Global Health and runs a therapy clinic for refugees and asylum seekers at the UI Health.
Informed by more than twenty year of licensed clinical practice experience delivering therapy services and developing mental health programs domestically and globally, Bunn's research focuses on the development and testing of community-based mental health prevention and care interventions for survivors of war and political violence across the migration continuum.
Betancourt's book will be available for purchase at the event. The book discussion ends at 7 p.m., directly followed by a light reception and book signing.
Filled with vivid personal stories, Shadows into Light describes heartbreak and despair but also remarkable triumphs made possible by layers of social support and encouragement.
Betancourt’s book provides unparalleled insight into the long-term psychological and developmental effects of family separation, war, and exposure to violence. The lessons go far beyond Sierra Leone’s tragedy, suggesting that we should, in general, think of children’s risk and resilience more as products of the post-trauma environment than as individual traits.
If you have any questions about access or to request a reasonable accommodation that will facilitate your full participation in this event such as ASL interpreting, captioned videos, Braille or electronic text, food options for individuals with dietary restrictions, etc. please contact the event organizer.