Mindful Mondays with Shudu

In this episode of Mindful Mondays with Shudu, Shudu sits down with Dr Joy Buolamwini — computer scientist, poet of code and founder of the Algorithmic Justice League — whose work asks us to consider what it really means to protect what is human in a world increasingly shaped by machines.

The conversation begins with a moment that changed the course of Joy’s work: a facial detection system at MIT struggled to detect her dark-skinned face, yet recognised a white mask almost immediately.

From there, Joy and Shudu explore the coded gaze, the power to label, algorithmic trauma, invisible labour, second-hand surveillance and what happens when technologies designed to classify human beings begin influencing who is seen, believed, included and given opportunity.

They also explore a question bigger than representation: who has the power to build these systems, determine their purpose and shape the future they create?

And beneath the research is another story — of a woman who found space for both scientist and artist, brought poetry into rooms dominated by data, and chose curiosity rather than retreat when the field she loved did not always love her back.

This is not a conversation about fearing technology. It is a conversation about ensuring that humanity, dignity and choice remain at its centre.

Because, as Joy reminds us, if you have skin in the game — if you have skin on your face — you deserve a seat at the table.

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Mindful Mondays with Shudu, Shudu sits down with Dr. Claudia-Santi F. Fernandes — Vice President of Research and Evaluation at the Born This Way Foundation — to explore how young people experience mental health, safety, and belonging in digital and physical spaces.

From peer support and online communities to AI and the role of adults in youth mental health, this conversation challenges the dominant narrative that social media is the enemy — and asks a more honest question: how do we make both digital and physical spaces safe enough for young people to be themselves?

This episode examines why digital spaces are lifelines for many young people, why the adults in the room also need to learn, and why systems-level change must begin with listening — not fixing.

It is not a conversation about policing screens. It is a conversation about building belonging.

Additional resources:

• Born This Way Foundation Research: https://bornthisway.foundation/research-survey/
• Born This Way Foundation Programs: https://bornthisway.foundation/current-programs/
• Born This Way Foundation LinkTree: https://linktr.ee/btwfoundation?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAcGRvZgJleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA85MzY2MTk3NDMzOTI0NTkAAadSVd5YCo0d9Gwv45W34LJwC6gF0cRFkt_wQoBNG2_ao1NNBjQrJ-r9DrU2FQ_aem_v6WCgjB1WAKhiyN6ZnWheA
• Born This Way Foundation x American Psychological Association Commentary: https://psycnet.apa.org/fulltext/2028-13008-001.pdf

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In this episode of Mindful Mondays with Shudu, Shudu sits down with Charlize Theron, Academy Award-winning actor, producer, UN Messenger of Peace and founder of the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project (CTAOP), for a conversation about Africa’s young people, gender-based violence, grassroots leadership and what accountability looks like when the institutions meant to keep women safe are not doing enough.

Recorded at a moment of collective grief and fear in South Africa, the conversation does not treat hope as optimism. Charlize speaks openly about anger, frustration and the refusal to accept complacency, while reflecting on almost two decades of CTAOP supporting locally led organisations across Southern Africa.

This is a conversation about what meaningful investment in young people looks like, why women need to be taken seriously when they ask for help, and how we hold on to hope without using it to look away from what still needs to change.

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In this episode of Mindful Mondays with Shudu, Shudu travels to Tarime, Tanzania, spending three days on the ground with police officers, social workers, families, survivors and faith leaders to understand what female genital mutilation looks like within the communities where it is still practiced.

She is joined by Grace Uwizeye, a harmful practices and social norms expert at UNFPA, and Michael Marwa, CEO of C-Sema, who comes from the region and has spent more than 13 years working to end FGM from within communities.

This is not simply a conversation about statistics. It is a conversation about systems: the economics, social power and deeply rooted norms that sustain the practice, the cost of saying no, and what it would actually take for a girl to refuse FGM and still belong.

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In this solo episode, Shudu gets personal about what three months of 'nothing' actually looked like — and what it cost her to finally stop.

This is a raw, unfiltered conversation about burnout that went deeper than exhaustion, the identity crisis that followed graduation, and the uncomfortable process of rediscoveringwho she is without the schedule, the stress, and the achievements. From crying because she didn’t know how to do nothing, to reading books that reignited her curiosity, to a UN mission in Tanzania that brought her back to her purpose —this episode is about the messy, beautiful work of getting to know yourself again.

Shudu shares the books that shaped her break (Greenlights, A Thousand Splendid Suns, Unmasking AI, Maktub), why she’s learning to say “I don’t know,” and why gravitating towards what’s meaningful — not what’s easy — is the new compass.

If you’ve ever felt like you had everything figured out and nothing figured out at the same time, this one’s foryou.

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In this solo episode of Mindful Mondays with Shudu, recorded as part of the 2026 Be Hope Podcast Takeover, Shudu reflects on what it means to hold onto hope in a world saturated with despair.

Drawing from her recent UN mission to Tarime, Tanzania — where she met young survivors of female genital mutilation and gender-based violence who still carried dreams of becoming lawyers, entrepreneurs, and champions for change — she explores how hope is not passive optimism, but an active force that drives real progress.

Referencing Adrian Gore’s The Four Principles and the concept of nocebo versus placebo, this episode unpacks why we are wired to expect the worst, and why choosing hope is a deliberate, radical act. With data on global progress in girls’ education, gender equality, and community-driven change, Shudu makes the case that the good is happening — it is just not being documented.

This episode is a reminder: hope liberated South Africa. It has liberated nations. And it remains the most powerful tool we have for building a future worth living in.

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In this episode of Mindful Mondays, Shudu sits down with Dr. Thomas Insel — psychiatrist, neuroscientist, and one of the world's leading voices in mental health innovation — for a conversation that began at a mental health retreat in Cascais, Portugal.

Together they explore what AI can and cannot do for mental health, the difference between engagement and therapy, and why access to care is not the same as quality of care. From the Three Ps of recovery — People, Place, and Purpose — to a critical Fourth P that the system has consistently overlooked, this is both a science lesson and a deeply human one.

They also confront the hard questions: What happens when chatbots become the primary mental health support for millions? What do communities in the Global South stand to gain — and lose — as this era accelerates? And what must remain irreplaceably human in the healing process? If you've ever turned to an app instead of a person, wondered what ethical AI in mental health looks like, or simply want to understand where we are heading — this conversation is for you.

Note: This episode was filmed in April 2026. Any data or statistics referenced were current at the time of recording and may have since changed.

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.