Monalisa grew up in Guwahati, in Northeast India, a geostrategically sensitive region that shares borders with countries such as China, Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, and Bangladesh. Having been raised in a region marked by the presence of insurgent groups, illicit arms and narcotics trafficking, and organized crime networks, she recalls recurring news of a context in which armed violence and a culture of impunity affected communities for decades. It was within this environment that