In this bonus episode of The Imposters, Season 1 guest, Nana Ama Boa Amponsem is the host. In true decolonial fashion, she and The Imposters founder, Lila Raouf switch places. In this episode, Nana Ama interviews the project founder on the concept underlying this project, season highlights, and what to expect next.

Chapters

• 00:00 The Birth of The Imposters
• 02:54 The Origin Story
• 03:23 Imposter Syndrome and Lived Experience
• 10:55 Validation and Change
• 18:42 Local Expertise in Global Development
• 25:31 New Concepts and Epistemic Resistance
• 36:35 Epistemic Resistance through Storytelling
• 38:11 Pockets of Epistemic Resistance
• 39:04 Creating Evidence for Policy Change
• 42:16 Challenging Systems and Resulting in Change
• 50:21 Post-2030 Global Development Agenda
• 54:50 Future of The Imposters Project
• 58:48 Engagement and Action for Listeners

The conversation with Fadela Novak-Irons explores the power of participation, the shift from inclusion to agency, and the challenges faced by refugee-led organizations in the humanitarian system. It delves into the concept of meaningful participation, the need for solidarity, and the systemic barriers to recognizing lived experience as expertise. By founding The CALLs Network, Fadela demonstrates the importance of shifting power dynamics and the role of international networks in supporting refugee-led organizations.

Chapters

• 00:00 Exploring Participation and Agency
• 09:38 The Role of Solidarity and Localization
• 24:03 The Future of Global Development
• 34:28 Supporting Refugee-Led Organizations

The conversation delves into the experience of imposter syndrome in humanitarian work and the potential of Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP) frameworks in ensuring meaningful engagement with communities.

The conversation delves into the complexities of humanitarian work, emphasizing the need to understand and address the diverse needs of affected communities. It explores the challenges of communication, the importance of mitigating performative feedback, and the role of lived experience in accountability. The discussion highlights the significance of empathy and empowerment in humanitarian efforts, offering valuable advice for practitioners and sharing personal experiences of lived expertise.

Chapters

• 00:00 Imposter Syndrome in Humanitarian Work
• 10:07 Understanding Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP)
• 41:01 Incentivized Relationships
• 47:23 Barriers to Effective Communication
• 52:31 The Significance of Empathy
• 01:05:00 Advice for Practitioners
• 01:13:17 Personal Lived Experience
• 01:26:20 Expertise and Future Work

In this conversation, Aya Sharfi delves into the redefinition of expertise and the intersection of lived experience and professional capacity. She then gives an overview of her research on peace education and her argument that imposter feelings can be used as diagnostic tools.

Chapters

• 00:00 The Impostors Podcast: Redefining Expertise
• 08:34 The Origin of The Impostors Podcast
• 14:11 Professional Journey and Expertise
• 21:35 Lived Experience and Professional Capacity
• 28:05 Research on Peace Education
• 38:17 Imposter Feelings as Diagnostic Tools
• 46:04 Future Plans and Goals

The conversation covers Jill Barasa's journey in navigating high-level policy and governance spaces, the importance of centering African voices in international initiatives, and the role of contextual intelligence in project success. Additionally, it delves into multi-stakeholder collaboration, the navigation of urgency and long timelines in policy work, and advice for early career professionals.

Chapters

• 00:00 Navigating High-Level Policy and Governance Spaces
• 07:16 Transition to Consulting and Pursuing Further Education
• 15:26 Navigating Urgency and Long Timelines in Policy Work
• 22:32 The Personal Aspect of Development Work
• 32:35 Advice for Early Career Professionals

The conversation delves into the intersection of education, power, and colonial legacies, highlighting the challenges and opportunities in higher education, the impact of colonial legacies on education, and the reimagining of TVET education. The discussion emphasizes the need to question the foundations of education systems and the importance of understanding education as a site of power.

Chapters

• 00:00 Recentering Aid and Expertise
• 05:59 Understanding Education as a Site of Power
• 11:00 Reimagining TVET Education
• 17:00 Equity in Higher Education
• 25:48 Reimagining TVET Education
• 43:54 Impact of Aid on Developing Countries

The conversation delves into the experiences of Najlaa Dawod, focusing on imposter syndrome and the challenges faced by refugee-led organizations. It explores the impact of displacement on identity and belonging, the empowerment and recognition of refugee-led organizations, the challenges and hope for displaced youth, and the vision for a community-led humanitarian system.

Chapters

• 00:00 Navigating Imposter Syndrome
• 16:34 Empowerment and Recognition of Refugee-Led Organizations
• 36:36 Challenges and Hope for Displaced Youth
• 57:25 Community-Led Humanitarian System

The conversation explores imposter syndrome in education and development spaces, the power of lived experience in education and emergencies, and the role of diaspora and community-led initiatives in education. It also delves into the impact of imposter syndrome on practitioners and the systemic outcomes of dependency and coloniality. Additionally, it highlights the research interests in refugee education and provides advice for early career practitioners in the field. The conversation concludes with a reflection on resilience and commitment to refugee education.

Chapters

• 00:00 Introduction to The Impostors Podcast
• 06:50 Journey into Refugee Education and Emergencies
• 17:21 Diaspora and Community-Led Initiatives in Education
• 26:41 Imposter Syndrome and Dependency
• 35:29 Advice for Early Career Practitioners in Refugee Education

The conversation explores the systemic nature of imposter syndrome and the recognition of lived experience as professional expertise in humanitarian and psychosocial work. It delves into the recentering of expertise in humanitarian work and the practice of psychosocial support, highlighting the importance of dignity, ethics, and community-led approaches to care.

What does it mean to navigate humanitarian spaces shaped by systems you’ve personally lived through?

In Part 1 of this two-part conversation, Lila sits down with Mohammed Kappi, a Sudanese humanitarian and human rights practitioner whose work is deeply informed by his own experience of displacement. Together, they unpack how “imposter syndrome” often shows up not as a personal shortcoming, but as a reflection of unequal power structures within the humanitarian sector.

Kappi reflects on his early career and the tension of entering professional spaces that rarely recognize lived experience as expertise. He shares how displacement has shaped not only his perspective, but also his approach to humanitarian work—grounding it in empathy, accountability, and proximity to the communities he serves.

This episode challenges dominant narratives around who gets to be considered an expert, and invites listeners to rethink how knowledge is valued in global development. It sets the foundation for Part 2, where Kappi explores how lived experience actively informs his psychosocial support practice.