How to Create a Regenerative Activism - NGO Panel Discussion
Video with Asad Rehman, Gita Parihar, Fatima Ibrahim & 1 more on Sunday 8th April 2018
An NGO Panel Discussion with Asad Rehman (War on Want), Fatima Ibrahim (AVAAZ) & Sophy Banks (Transition Towns) held at the Advaya event Regenerative Activism: Revitalising Self and Society, April 2017. Moderated by Gita Parihar.
About the Participants:
ASAD REHMAN (WAR ON WANT)
Bio: Asad Rehman is the executive director of War on Want, where he organises to put an end to poverty and injustice. Prior to that, he was the head of international climate at Friends of the Earth. Rehman has over 25 years of experience in the non-government and charity sector. He has served on boards of Amnesty International UK, Friends of the Earth International, Global Justice Now, and Newham Monitoring Project.
FATIMA IBRAHIM (AVAAZ)
Bio: Fatima Ibrahim is a campaigner with the global citizens movement Avaaz, working on variety of issues including the climate, land rights, and bringing the war in Yemen to an end. Prior to joining Avaaz she was an activists with the UK Youth Climate Coalition mobilising young people around the UN Climate Talks.
SOPHY BANKS (TRANSITION TOWNS MOVEMENT)
Bio: Coming from a background in engineering and computing, Sophy soon realised that there were many questions technology couldn’t answer, and in 1995 she started her inner journey. She has worked as a psychotherapist, family constellator and workshop leader combining insights from indigenous traditions, western therapy schools and meditation practices. In 2006 Sophy helped to set up the first “Heart and Soul” group of the newly forming Transition Town Totnes (link is external) , the first experiment in a movement (link is external) which thousands of communities globally have tried in some form. In her ten years at the heart of Transition she has trained people around the world in the model evolved in Totnes, to reimagine and build a vibrant, sustainable and inclusive future at the scale of local community. Sophy’s passion was to bring deep insights and processes to a movement tending to focus on external change. In 2016 Sophy stepped back from the Transition movement to give time to her own work and teaching. She played a lot of football in her youth, and is proud to grow most of her own vegetables and just about get up the Devon hills on her bike.
GITA PARIHAR (CAMPAIGNS CONSULTANT)
Gita was Head of Legal at Friends of the Earth until July 2016 and has spent 12 years working with and for campaigning organisations, using her skills as a solicitor to bring environmental cases and advise at international negotiations on issues like climate change. This gives her a deep familiarity with the rewards and challenges of environmental activism. Alongside her legal work, Gita is passionate about exploring approaches to saving the planet that sustain us as human beings. Gita is a trustee of the UKYCC and the Climate Justice Fund and currently studying for an MA in Spirituality and Ecology at Schumacher college.
About the Event:
An exploration of tools and approaches that can transform our activism into a source for flourishing, both individually and socially.
Those of us involved in social change are all too familiar with the challenge of meeting injustice and hardship in the world. Our aim is to explore a range of tools and approaches, collective and personal, to make our activism more effective and sustainable. We will look at the personal and inner dimensions, as well as the interpersonal and organisational factors that enable long term engagement and continuity in the struggles we face. We hope to understand how our work for social change can be a context for flourishing, both individually and socially. We will explore these issues using holistic and participatory methods, drawing on popular education, ecological and systems thinking, as well as reflective practices. The day will bring together leading activists and change makers from across the UK and beyond, to share practice and strengthen networks.
Gita Parihar #
Gita was Head of Legal at Friends of the Earth until July 2016 and has spent 12 years working with and for campaigning organisations, using her skills as a solicitor to bring environmental cases and advise at international negotiations on issues like climate change. This gives her a deep familiarity with the rewards and challenges of environmental activism. Alongside her legal work, Gita is passionate about exploring approaches to saving the planet that sustain us as human beings. Gita is a trustee of the UKYCC and the Climate Justice Fund and currently studying for an MA in Spirituality and Ecology at Schumacher college.
Fatima Ibrahim #
Fatima Ibrahim is a campaigner with the global citizen’s movement Avaaz, working on a variety of issues including the climate, land rights, and bringing the war in Yemen to an end.
Sophy Banks #
Coming from a background in engineering and computing, Sophy soon realised that there were many questions technology couldn’t answer, and in 1995 she started her inner journey. She has worked as a psychotherapist, family constellator and workshop leader combining insights from indigenous traditions, western therapy schools and meditation practices.