Hosted by Matthew Green. Produced by J'aime Rothbard.

Despite building a highly successful career as tech start-up entrepreneur, Claude Terosier could sense that something in her life wasn't working.

In this episode, Claude describes how new pathways began to open up when she began to reckon with the previously unacknowledged complexities of her mixed race identity as the daughter of a white French mother and Black father from the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe.

Through years of training with Thomas Hübl and his team, Claude worked steadily to integrate the ancestral trauma suffered by her enslaved ancestors, the perpetration committed by forebears who had owned slaves, and the collective harms caused by centuries of French colonialism.

Deeply painful at times, as well as profound, this still-unfolding process has inspired Claude to pursue a new professional path. She now offers collective healing spaces for people of mixed race, and works with the collective trauma of colonialism, racism and slavery, running groups in France, Guadeloupe and internationally. This deeply intimate and inspiring episode will be of value to anybody who wants to gain a deeper understanding of the principles of healing individual, ancestral and collective trauma – and how this work can take our lives in entirely unexpected directions as we seek to put what we have learned into service for the whole.

About Claude Terosier

Born and raised in Guadeloupe, Claude started out in IT consulting and telecoms leadership before founding an EdTech startup in France that empowered young people by teaching them to code. Passionate about collective intelligence and healing, she has since forged a new career as a coach, facilitator, and writer exploring mixed-race identity, colonial trauma, and how to unlock individual, organisational and collective potential.

Further Resources:

Claude's LinkedIn

Claude's Exploration (Substack in English)

Les Explorations de Claude (Substack in French)

To Be Black and to Succeed – Part 1

To Be Black and to Succeed – Part 2

To Be Black and to Succeed – Part 3

00:00 Introduction to Collective Healing 01:29 Personal Journey and Background 03:09 Defining Collective Healing 05:32 Exploring Ancestral and Collective Trauma 09:26 Professional Life and Realizations 12:51 Confronting Internal and External Barriers 15:16 Stepping into Collective Healing 20:23 Understanding Roots of Stress and Trauma 25:37 Struggles with Parental Connection 26:25 Legacy of Slavery and Family Bonds 28:54 Personal Identity Crisis 29:34 Embracing Mixed Heritage 30:47 Victim and Perpetrator Dynamics 34:56 Collective Healing and Group Support 38:53 Writing and Sharing Personal Stories 46:45 Future Aspirations and Collective Spaces 52:18 Final Reflections and Gratitude