Silence in the Village: Free

OVERVIEW

ABOUT THE PRESENTER

Nonkululeko Shibula is a bereavement care doula and parent-voice advocate specializing in stillbirth and perinatal loss. Her work focuses on advancing respectful, culturally responsive, and evidence-informed care for families experiencing pregnancy and infant loss, particularly within African health-care contexts. She is the founder of a South Africa–based non-profit organization that supports women and families through childbirth, stillbirth, and bereavement, integrating community-based support with clinical collaboration.

Nonkululeko was among the first doulas to participate in a pioneering public hospital volunteer program in KwaZulu-Natal and has worked across various hospitals in South Africa, supporting families navigating loss within complex clinical and systemic environments. She has also contributed to academic and professional forums, including the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, palliative care conferences, Sensitive Midwifery initiatives, PATCH, and Umuduzi, engaging in interdisciplinary dialogue on compassionate care, ethics, and continuity of support for bereaved parents.

As a bereaved mother herself, her professional practice is grounded in lived experience and informed by contemporary understandings of grief, trauma, and the psychosocial dimensions of perinatal loss. She serves on the Board of Directors of the International Stillbirth Alliance (ISA), contributing to global advocacy, research engagement, and policy discussions on perinatal bereavement care. Her writing has been featured on the Healthy Newborn Network and other international platforms. Through education, storytelling, and training, she works to reduce stigma, elevate parent voices, and support health-care professionals in providing sustained, trauma-informed care beyond the moment of loss.

This webinar was recorded on February 20, 2026