Darcy Ataman is a Canadian humanitarian, music producer, and the founder and CEO of Make Music Matter, an organization that uses music therapy to help survivors of conflict and trauma. He created the Healing in Harmony program, which integrates music therapy with psychological support to assist individuals in recovering from traumatic experiences, particularly survivors of sexual violence and conflict in countries like Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and others. His work focuses on empowering marginalized communities by allowing participants to express their emotions and stories through music, helping them heal emotionally and psychologically.
Ataman has collaborated with Nobel Peace Prize laureate Dr. Denis Mukwege to expand this initiative, and Healing in Harmony has helped over 15,000 people across multiple countries. He has also worked on projects with Indigenous communities in Canada to address generational trauma. As a music producer, Ataman has collaborated with notable artists and earned several Juno nominations. His contributions to humanitarian causes have earned him multiple awards, including the Order of Manitoba and the Meritorious Service Cross from the Governor General of Canada.
Darcy’s latest creation is an art installation, made entirely from donated shoes, once belonging to and donated by displaced refugees, entitled Travel Safe. Travel Safe is a large-scale recreation of Turkish photojournalist Nilüfer’s photo of the body of two year old Alan Kurdi, who had drowned, along with his mother and brother, in the Mediterranean Sea while trying to reach Europe in September 2015.
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