The Imposters

The Imposters is a podcast and public archive exploring who gets recognized as an expert in humanitarian and development spaces. Too often, the people closest to the work are treated as beneficiaries rather than experts. The Imposters challenges that assumption by centering the voices and insights of practitioners whose knowledge is rooted in lived experience. In each episode, host Lila Raouf speaks with refugees, migrants, and Global South practitioners whose expertise is shaped by experience, context, and leadership. Together, these conversations examine how expertise and legitimacy are defined in the sector — and why imposter syndrome is often a systemic outcome rather than a personal failure. Each guest joins The Imposters : a growing archive of lived expertise in global development.