This International Women’s Day we can all #ChooseToChallenge and call out gender bias and inequality.
We hosted four lunchtime sessions where special guests spoke about the most pressing challenges facing everyone, including women, in our society.
Issues such as youth activism; domestic abuse, mental health and resilience; food poverty; and building trust between migrants/refugees and host communities, were addressed through storytelling and inspiration, where everyone can feel confident and empowered to #buildbackbetter.
Be inspired by the passion of young leaders who are choosing to challenge. We invite you to hear the wisdom and leadership coming from the next generation. We ask the important question facing many young people: how do you choose to challenge, when no one is listening?
Hosts: Amina Khalid and Miranda Shaw
Jasmine is a 20 year old student who grew up in Oxford and now studies Biomedical Sciences at St George’s University. She has taken part in various types of activism from a young age, as both of her parents have been involved in the climate justice campaign for many years. She and a team of young activists organised a Youth Strike for Climate protest in March of 2019, and she has since joined as one of the editors of Oxford’s Collective Conversationz magazine, where she writes about a broad range of social justice topics.
Lina is a 15-year-old community activist determined to bring racism to an end and to fight for human rights. She is in secondary education, but actively engaged in her community tackling issues like hate crimes and discrimination due to being surrounded by injustice while growing up. She has taken part in TV shows to speak about the importance of interfaith relationship and enjoys sharing her experiences with others to make a positive change, as she ‘believes that together we are stronger’.
How do we build ourselves back better when we have been abused? Roberta Pagliarulo shares her experience of overcoming trauma and resentment to a place of hope and power. Sandra Crathern focuses on resilient, mental health and the importance of self care leading to self repair.
Trigger warning: Voicing the unheard – sharing a lived experience of domestic violence.
Host: Amina Khalid and Jacqui Daukes
Sandra Crathern is the director of Innavision, which provides one to one coaching, corporate coaching, workshops, and international wellbeing retreats. She is an ACC ICF Accredited coach and author of the book ‘Know The Truth’. 25 years ago, Sandra was in a controlling marriage and felt she had no voice. She has overcome those challenges and is in an amazing marriage with the same man! Sandra realised when she put self-care first it dramatically improved her mental as well as physical and emotional health, and now her passion is to support others on a similar journey.
More than ten years ago, Roberta discovered coaching and realized that she was living a life that wasn’t hers. After her coaching degree she decided to quit her job as a HR professional and run her own business. Roberta now has extensive experience with top management and executives in multicultural contexts, delivering executive and business coaching as a facilitator and trainer. Her mission is to help others to live the life they want to belong to, to find their inner motivation and balance among body, mind and emotions.
Mutual Aid Groups have provided a lifeline for many people who have been left vulnerable and exposed by the economic pressures of the Covid-19 pandemic. Our speakers, who are working with organisations supporting vulnerable communities in Glasgow, London and Oxford, spoke about how food poverty inadvertently impacts women.
Host: Miranda Shaw
Amina supports different local mutual aid groups and faith organisations supporting families in marginalised communities with food parcels in Islington. She has been with Initiatives of Change for over 10 years and is currently the Head of Programme for Sustainable Communities and a Trustee for Somali Initiatives for Dialogue and Democracy (SIDD), as well as founder of Peace Begins at Home – an international intergenerational dialogue training created to build bridges between generations and policymakers.
Muireann is a Director at Oxford Mutual Aid. Originally from Ireland, she has been living (mostly) in the UK for the past 8 years. She has a background in campaigning and organising, particularly at the grass roots level, including in trade union activism and reproductive justice.
Pauline has been a Youth and Community worker for past 10 years in areas of deprivation. Now working for FARE Scotland (Family Action in Rogerfield and Easterhouse) a voluntary organisation working within disadvantaged communities throughout Central Scotland, striving to raise people’s aspirations, encourage them to become more involved in their communities, create opportunities for personal development with aim to reduce poverty, improve health and wellbeing, create safe spaces and empower individuals within our communities.
The debate around migration and refugees continues to be the centre of a harsh public debate with severe social and political implications, often causing misunderstanding and an ‘US and THEM’ rhetoric. Behind every migration statistic, there are individuals or families starting a new life in a new place in search of a new home and a place to belong. How can we build back better for everyone treating people with dignity and respect? Amina Khalid and Amanda Figueras spoke about the work they are doing to build trust with refugees, migrants and asylum seekers with host communities and what actions we can take.
Host: Jacqui Daukes
Amanda is a journalist and writer who spent more than a decade in the newspaper El Mundo where she achieved many successes. She was a fellow of the UN Alliance of Civilizations program (UNAOC) and was selected as a local project manager in 2018. In that same year, she launched her book ‘Por qué el islam: mi vida como mujer, europea y musulmana’ (‘Why Islam: my life as a woman, European and Muslim’). Amanda has been selected as Kaiciid’s European Fellow 2020 and is passionate about interfaith dialogue. She is currently working with Foro Abraham (Spain).
Amina is internationally trained in dialogue facilitation, mediation, communication and conflict resolution and has worked in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Europe. She has been with Initiatives of Change for over 10 years and is currently the Head of Programme for Sustainable Communities and a Trustee for Somali Initiatives for Dialogue and Democracy (SIDD), as well as founder of Peace Begins at Home – an international intergenerational dialogue training created to build bridges between generations and policymakers.
Will you #ChoosetoChallenge? Take One Step is our own challenge for you to take personal action on what matters most to YOU: https://iofc.org.uk/take-one-step/
Amina Khalid is internationally trained in dialogue facilitation, mediation, communication and conflict resolution and has worked in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Europe. She has been with Initiatives of Change for over 10 years and is currently the Head of Programme for Sustainable Communities and a Trustee for Somali Initiatives for Dialogue and Democracy (SIDD), as well as founder of Peace Begins at Home – an international intergenerational dialogue training created to build bridges between generations and policymakers.
Miranda Shaw is one half of the coordination duo for Creators of Peace UK and is involved in facilitating courses on sustainable activism. She has an intersectional approach to activism and is an anti-racist activist. In addition, she has been an animal rights and environmental campaigner for the past 15 years. She has previously supported campaigns to end deportations and is on a personal journey of decolonisation and anti racist learning and has a degree in Conflict Resolution from the University of Bradford.
Jacqui Daukes is currently the Partnering Manager for IofC UK where her work includes relational activism and delivering training for Refugees as Re-Builders on Dialogue for Social Cohesion. Jacqui has worked in retail, catering, cross-cultural community development, publishing and the performing arts. Inspired by the Dalai Lama’s call for the world to resolve conflict through dialogue she undertook academic studies of religion & gender, attaining her PhD in 2015, and training as mediator. Jacqui is a volunteer mediator and trustee for Croydon Community Mediation.
December Women in Leadership RoundtableJoin host Simone Müller for Gender Paradigm Shift @ Work featuring Teodora Quiroga!
The upcoming roundtable session on Zoom will focus on:
Who is this aimed at? Female professionals from across all sectors; academia, entrepreneurs, coaches & consultants. Please note that all roundtable sessions are held on Zoom – we advise that you ensure your Zoom application, whether on desktop, browser, or mobile device, is the most current version. Please see Zoom Updates for more details.
Use the ‘Contact Us’ button at the bottom of the page for your invitation to join!
Simone holds a Masters in Business Administration from the CAU University of Kiel (Germany) and has worked in international management roles at a multinational corporation for over a decade. Since leaving her corporate career, Simone focused on International Leadership Development and Business Coaching. She is an accredited coach, trainer, and NLP master practitioner.
Teodora has spent much of her career applying her understanding of psychology to the workplace to better understand the role of gender in organisations, so that women can engage with male colleagues in a way that takes into account gender differences more effectively.
January Women in Leadership Roundtable
Join host Simone Müller for Women as Leaders from the Perspective of Feminine Masculine Balance featuring Jacqueline McLeod!
The upcoming roundtable session on Zoom will focus on:
Who is this aimed at? Female professionals from across all sectors; academia, entrepreneurs, coaches & consultants. Please note that all roundtable sessions are held on Zoom – we advise that you ensure your Zoom application, whether on desktop, browser, or mobile device, is the most current version. Please see Zoom Updates for more details.
Use the ‘Contact Us’ button at the bottom of the page for your invitation to join!
Simone holds a Masters in Business Administration from the CAU University of Kiel (Germany) and has worked in international management roles at a multinational corporation for over a decade. Since leaving her corporate career, Simone focused on International Leadership Development and Business Coaching. She is an accredited coach, trainer, and NLP master practitioner.
Jacqueline was a health professional and clinician until her lifelong passion for self-development led her to the studies of spirituality and alternative health. Her book Feminine Masculine Balance introduces a paradigm shift that is a pathway to a more peaceful, progressive and nourished society.
Launch of Advocating for a New Story
Creators of Peace is launching a guide to conversation circles for trust and community building. These engage individuals and groups in exploring the impact of damaging narratives of human hierarchies and hurting histories.
Only a ‘Shared Humanity’ can create the new story that will allow us to work together to tackle the urgent needs of our age.
Hear from our panel of speakers followed by an opportunity to participate in a small group interaction.
Speakers
This event is in collaboration with Creators of Peace UK, Creators of Peace International, Initiatives of Change UK, Initiatives of Change International and the Oxford Human Rights Festival, the Centre of Development and Emergency Practice (CENDEP) at Oxford Brookes University.
Learn more about the speakers when you register below!
Please note that this event will be held on Zoom – we advise that you ensure your Zoom application, whether on desktop, browser, or mobile device, is the most current version. Please see Zoom Updates for more details.
ALL REJOICE!You are warmly invited to join us for an afternoon of music, inspiration and reflection.
Inspired by the legacy of Frank Buchman, founder of Initiatives Of Change, in the 1960s some young people from all walks of life used to travel together across the world, building peace through their love of sharing music, theatre and personal story-telling.
The event will be a space to come together as individual artists and advocates, connected across the borders of fear to boundless love.
Please note that this event will be held on Zoom – we advise that you ensure your Zoom application, whether on desktop, browser, or mobile device, is the most current version. Please see Zoom Updates for more details.
A Shared Gratitude and Grief
Ms. Ahunna Eziakonwa is UNDP Assistant Administrator, and Director, Regional Bureau for Africa at the rank of Assistant Secretary General.
She leads over 4000 staff implementing a $1.2 billion annual development programme in 46 African countries. She is deeply passionate about equality, inclusion, reshaping narratives on Africa, mobilizing for youth entrepreneurs and the dignity of Africa’s people. Her vision “Africa’s Promise: The UNDP Renewed Strategic Offer in Africa” employs an opportunity lens to development practice in Africa.
She established the Africa Influencers for Development (AI4D) to ensure that Africa’s Money works for Africa’s Development; the Africa Young Women Leaders Initiative; Africa Innovates Magazine; and the Africa Borderlands Centre. She leads UNDP Africa socioeconomic response and recovery from COVID 19 and (Co) Chairs the UN Africa Regional Collaborative Platform which oversees implementation of the Secretary General’s regional UN reform.
She spent 10 years as UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Ethiopia, Uganda, and Lesotho. As Chief (Africa) at UN OCHA, she led response to natural disasters, emergencies and transitions to recovery. Before the UN, Ms. Eziakonwa worked for “Initiatives of Change” serving as international coordinator of its’ “Creators of Peace – Women’s Initiative”. She is an alumni of Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School Executive Programme and has a Bachelors in Education from University of Benin Nigeria.
Interested in participating? Use the button below to contact us for the details!
Youth Voices for Human Rights
The 2020 UN theme for Human Rights Day relates to the COVID-19 pandemic and focuses on the need to build back better. Grave violations and abuses of human rights are being perpetuated at an alarming rate in our society, yet too many people particularly those in power, are hostile or indifferent to these claims. It is only through the inclusion of all voices, of today’s youth, that we can build back better and break the cycle of human rights abuses.
At this event we heard from four remarkable young leaders who had overcome challenging odds and have dedicating their lives to find practical solutions through their deep convictions to heal divisions and work towards a more just and fair future. Speakers addressed the critical role that they play to inspire, equip and empower individuals, policy makers, and organisations to make societal change.
Read about the event in our report.
Hope – A Youth PerspectiveThe Sustainable Communities Programme of Initiatives of Change UK, International Centre for Eritrean Refugees and Asylum Seekers (ICERAS) and Muslim Welfare House were thrilled to host an uplifting evening of celebration for Interfaith Week on the topic of ‘hope’.
During this two-hour gathering, participants heard from youth leaders of different faiths, including those with no faith, as they reflected on the impact of COVID-19. These leaders shared their inspiring personal experiences; especially as it relates to the forces that unite and divide us.
To read more about the event please read our report.
Image: Freepik.com
Learning to be a peacemaker
Young European Muslims were either born or brought up here. Their parents straddle ethnic and European cultures and often have an expectation that their children will be culturally more ethnic. However, many young Muslims are more comfortable with European culture, and Europe is ‘home’. This experience of young Muslims is not only limited to young European Muslims, but is experienced across the globe.
This programme defuses that tension and helps make young Muslims’ local and Islamic identities symbiotic. In the current environment of increasing hostility towards Islam, it is imperative that young Muslims form a confident identity to be at peace with themselves and others in an increasingly turbulent world.
Learning to be a Peacemaker (LPM) is a course on Islamic approaches to peacemaking for young Muslims and their non-Muslim peers aged 18-30. Designed and delivered by Imam and broadcaster, Ajmal Masroor, in association with Initiatives of Change, this 10 week course aims to offer:
The 90-minute sessions each week will be delivered by Zoom, and the training style is interactive, with introductions to the subject-matter by Imam Ajmal, followed by Q&A and small-group discussions. At the end of the course, participants will plan a practical project to undertake at home to demonstrate learning and commitment to peacemaking.
Keep an eye out on the Caux Forum page for upcoming dates of the course.
February Women in Leadership RoundtableJoin host Simone Müller for Embodied Feminine Leadership featuring Annelieke Verkerk!
The upcoming roundtable session on Zoom will focus on:
Who is this aimed at? Female professionals from across all sectors; academia, entrepreneurs, coaches & consultants. Please note that all roundtable sessions are held on Zoom – we advise that you ensure your Zoom application, whether on desktop, browser, or mobile device, is the most current version. Please see Zoom Updates for more details.
Use the ‘Contact Us’ button at the bottom of the page for your invitation to join!
Simone holds a Masters in Business Administration from the CAU University of Kiel (Germany) and has worked in international management roles at a multinational corporation for over a decade. Since leaving her corporate career, Simone focused on International Leadership Development and Business Coaching. She is an accredited coach, trainer, and NLP master practitioner.
Annelieke has spent the past 15+ years working as an international leadership and team coach, with a focus on developing conscious, embodied, and regenerative leadership. Through enhancing physical, emotional, mental, spiritual and systemic intelligence clarity and purpose emerges. Co-created the Full Potential Team Coaching Certification Training. She holds a Master’s in Public and Private Law at the University of Groningen.
