Justine Hardy has been a journalist for twenty-four years, many of those spent covering South Asia. She is the author of six books on the region. After the earthquake in Kashmir in October 2005, Hardy worked with a local NGO in Kashmir rebuilding homes, schools, and medical centers in some of the worst affected areas, as well as moving into conflict mediation. Having completed her training in conflict trauma therapy, she founded Healing Kashmir in 2008, an integrated mental health project addressing the debilitating mental health situation in the region.