About Us
Nua Silta takes its name from two Irish and Finnish words. Together, they mean “new bridge”.
Psychedelic experiences tend to make certain things more visible and accessible. They can bring forward emotions, memories, or patterns that are usually kept out of view. The conditions in which these experiences take place and how they are accompanied makes an enormous difference to what they can offer. This is why we have created carefully held small-group retreats, with attention to preparation, the session itself, and integration over time.
We also train people who want to accompany others in this work, with a focus not only on building knowledge but on the quality of presence a facilitator brings into the room.
Co-Founders
Elina
Elina Viitaniemi is a coach and facilitator working with psychedelic and other non-ordinary states of consciousness. Her work covers the full arc of the psychedelic process: preparation, accompaniment during sessions, and integration afterwards.
She trained in transpersonal coaching psychology with the Alef Trust and in psychedelic-assisted therapy in the Swiss context, and holds degrees in Social Anthropology and Intercultural Communication. Her own practice has included meditation, contemplative and spiritual traditions, nature-based practice and singing over many years. Live singing and drumming are an important part of how she accompanies psychedelic sessions.
Elina has spent more than twenty years in global health, innovation and organisational leadership. She has held senior roles within the United Nations, founded and co-founded initiatives, served in board and advisory positions, and led a national cancer support organisation in Switzerland. Her experience also includes volunteering in end-of-life care and accompanying people facing serious illness and major life transitions.
Her Finnish background and Nordic traditions also inform her work. She lives and works in the Lake Geneva region.
Book: Accords Parfaits (in French)
Pierre
Pierre Tchaikowski is a therapist and educator working in the field of psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT). He trained and developed his practice in Switzerland, and has been involved in the training of PAT practitioners since 2021. He is a certified hypnotherapist, a trained PAT practitioner and holds a Swiss Federal Diploma in Adult Education, as well as a law degree from the University of Geneva, completed alongside classical piano studies.
Before turning to therapeutic work, he served with the International Committee of the Red Cross as a delegate and head of field offices in conflict zones, working with detained populations and coordinating operations.
His therapeutic work centers on altered states of consciousness, with particular emphasis placed on the role of focused attention and music in accompanying and holding the experience. He lives and works in Geneva.
Pierre is the author of Accords parfaits, a book on music and psychedelics, published in French, with English and German editions forthcoming.