Throughout Autumn we moderated the First Wednesdays series in our continued partnership with Comhlámh. The series comprised of a set of three interlinked conversations with those currently involved in real-world struggles in Ireland and beyond. Moderated by Niamh Rooney, Tom Campbell and Paul O'Keeffe and together with a diverse group of panellists with vast experience, and of course the online audience, we took a closer look at commonalities ‘in struggle’ across campaigning and activism movements. Together we explored what it would mean to consider these struggles as part of a process of ‘acts of global citizenship’ and ‘democratising democracy’. We hope you managed to join us for one or more of the events but fear not, you can catch up on all three here if you missed out.
The stimulus for the discussions also came from a recent piece of engaged research, the ‘Emerging modalities of global solidarity and active global citizenship in Ireland’ report, carried out by Comhlámh and Dr Barry Cannon from Maynooth University (Department of Sociology). The research engaged practitioners from the development sector in an exploration of a range of theoretical perspectives on ‘struggle’, ‘globalisation’, ‘citizenship’, ‘democratisation’ and ‘democracy’.
Through the #FirstWeds series, as we heard directly from those currently involved in real-world struggles, we began to dig deeper into how we direct our thinking towards these theoretical perspectives, ensuring we remained responsive and rooted to struggles on the ground as we examined how they are aligned with ‘acts of global citizenship’ and ‘democratisation’. Asking questions such as: How do we consider struggles for justice and equality? Do commonalities ‘in struggle’ exist across campaigning and activism movements, and what would it mean to consider these struggles as part of a process of ‘acts of global citizenship’ and ‘democratising democracy’?
We really enjoyed the series and hope you find it stimulating and engaging too. Catch up here.
'Struggle as Acts of Citizenship' - #FirstWeds Autumn 2022 Series - Part 1 (Oct. 5th)
'The Struggle for the Earth – The Global is Local'- #FirstWeds Autumn 2022 Series - Part 2 (Nov. 2nd)
'Unpacking Commonalities in Struggle' - #FirstWeds Autumn 2022 Series - Part 3 (Dec. 7th)