After ten years of fighting with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), Tanja Nijmeijer joined peace negotiations in Cuba which culminated, four years later, in a peace settlement allowing the FARC to disband as an armed force.

She helped set up the cooperative De Mano en Mano, run by ex-fighters, selling products made by ex-fighters. They are converting a four-floor building into a centre for cooperativism called the "House of Peace" in central Cali. The space will include a shop, a coffee bar, and a cultural centre.

She lives on the outskirts of Cali with her husband, also an ex-fighter, an adopted son, three dogs, two cats, and twenty chickens.