Belonging as an Embodied Practice: Reflections from the March 2026 NOW Webinar

April 15, 2026

By Summer Peace, Birth Justice Resource & Engagement Coordinator Intern

In March, Networks of Opportunity kicked off their 2026 NOW Webinar Series with a panel conversation entitled The Practice of Belonging. The panelists included Tayla Kelly, doula, community-based birth worker, and VVN National Birth Justice Fellow, and Stefanie D. Belnavis, perinatal movement psychotherapist and founder of A Bucket For The Well, LLC, who shared their own insights and experiences in practicing belonging in birthing work. Moderated by Aditi Subramaniam, Director of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Policy at Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, the webinar explored how we design and contribute to systems that cultivate shared humanity, connection, and agency in everyday practice.

Both panelists emphasized the importance of co-journeying to cultivate a sense of community in the birthing and perinatal space, highlighting the value of genuine relationships and storytelling. Honoring histories and stories is not just crucial for community building, but also for reimagining systems to center liberation. Including different perspectives, such as black feminist theory, queer culture, and indigenous practices, serve as one way to break down the hierarchies that make belonging feel so impossible for many.

Authenticity was one of the key aspects of belonging that both panelists highlighted. Kelly stated that belonging “is being able to show up as your full self without explanation,” which encompasses both the individual in the present moment and also the various histories, experiences, and journeys that they and their communities have had in the past. 

The full self is someone who laughs, cries, dances, eats, moves, emphasizing how belonging is an embodied practice. Centering the body in belonging is less about performance and more about the full experience of individuals and communities, an act of resistance in itself. Belnavis stressed how that resistance lives “in her veins” and contributes to her desire to carry out her ancestor’s dreams and embrace their stories. Belonging, in that sense, is both grounded in a lived experience and relies on the freedom to dream with joy and limitless possibilities.

The webinar’s closing poem, Radical Gratitude Spell by adrienne marie brown, offered by moderator Aditi Subramanium, truly embodies the sentiments of the practice of belonging, stating:

“i want you to know

i honor the choices you made in solitude

and i honor the work you have done to belong

i honor your commitment to that which is larger than yourself

and your journey

to love the particular container of life

that is you”

Thank you to both our panelists and our moderator for reminding us to not deviate from our authentic selves as we work towards cultivating systems that honor our humanity, connection and agency.

You can access a recording of the full webinar here (ENG/ESP). To stay up to date with the NOW Webinar Series and other related events, join our mailing list!

Author Bio

Summer Peace is a current MPH candidate at the Yale School of Public Health in the Health Policy Department. Her key areas of focus are reducing inequities in Black birthing outcomes, promoting community-based health interventions, and expanding culturally-specific public health communications.