Globalnet21

Influencing COP26 - Through The Climate Change Festival

This Podcast is with with Fiona Dear the Campaign Manager of the Climate Coalition when we talk about the work of the Coalition and their plan to hold a nationwide Festival in September this year prior to the COP26 Summit in Glasgow the following month.

We discuss with her how we can all get involved in local Festivals during that month to make it clear that we are in an emergency and that governments must act urgently and that COP26 is crucial for this

The Climate Coalition is the UK’s largest group of people dedicated to action against climate change. Along with our sister organisations Stop Climate Chaos Cymru and Stop Climate Chaos Scotland, we are a group of over 140 organisations — including the National Trust, Women's Institute, Oxfam, and RSPB — and 22 million voices strong. We are reaching across the UK to show our love for all the things we want to protect from climate change, and to ask politicians to put aside their differences and commit to doing whatever is necessary to protect them.

Fiona is a passionate campaigner with 12 years experience of working with UK and international climate coalitions, managing projects and engaging supporters at a community level in climate change campaigning. Focus in recent years has been on engaging organisations and new public audiences in climate change campaigns. Enjoying applying experience to voluntary local environmental campaigning.

Local Authorities & Good Governance

In this Podcast we interview Sue Sanders on the importance of good governance for local authorities

In local government the idea of “governance” is different from the practice of government. It is about how a local authority relates to its stakeholders and citizens. Some local authorities although they govern are not always good at involving their citizens and those they work with in an open and transparent way.

In this Podcast we will look at what local authority governance means and also look at Enfield in north London an authority that illustrates serious deficiencies in good governance,

In some authorities governance is good but this is not universal and in some authorities governance is under strain, as funding reduces and responsibilities and exposure to commercial pressures change. There are worries about audit committees that do not provide sufficient assurance, ineffective internal audit, weak arrangements for the management of risk in local authorities’ commercial investments, and inadequate oversight and scrutiny.

So we will discuss this and also how governance means the way a local authority relates to civil society and citizens, how a strong and free local press is important and how local authorities can learn from each other through case studies of good practice

We will be interviewing Sue Sanders who has worked with several local authorities on governance and is now a consultant on good governance to local authorities.

Self Compassion To Support Community Building

In this Podcast we talk with Anuka Gazara Anthony and Ashley Nelson about the powerful concept of self compassion and how this can be used to support community building especially with a focus on the difficulties faced by communities over lockdown in London at the moment and in the future.

Self compassion is made up of three components. Kindness, common humanity and mindfulness. We will explore the concept of self kindness v self judgement and particularly the desire to alleviate suffering (any pain or emotional discomfort- large or small) with regards to building communities.

We also will talk about the idea that self compassion builds communities because it is linked to motivation. When we exercise self compassion, we have less fear of failure more likely to try again and persist in efforts after failure. Self compassion means we have more personal responsibility and motivation to try repair past mistakes.

When brain scans are taken of people who have experienced self compassion, the motor cortex is often activated. Therefore there’s a desire to help and alleviate suffering which in the context of building communities is key.

Anuka Gazara Anthony mentors executives, entrepreneurs, and individuals to help them become more confident, mindful, and effective leaders. A Certified SIY Teacher, she is also a trained Hypnotherapist and Hypnobirthing Practitioner, and has extensive experience supporting organizations in Human Resources, Program Management, and Executive Officer roles.

Ashley Nelson has completed rigorous training in neuroscience, mindfulness, and emotional intelligence from the Search Inside Yourself Leadership Institute and UC San Diego’s Mindfulness Based Professional Training Institute in the School of Medicine. A former senior leader at a Fortune 500 company, she is also a Certified SIY Teacher, Qualified Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Teacher, executive coach, certified hatha yoga instructor, and the founder of Inseus. Patrice is an executive coach, speaker, facilitator, and the founder and principal of Prevention Strategies, LLC. In addition to being a Certified SIY Teacher, she is also certified in the EQ-i 2.0 and EQ 360 Emotional Intelligence assessment tools, the Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument® and as a professional and executive coach.

The Power Of Debate - An Interview With Tony Koutsoumbos

In this Podcast we talk to Tony Koutsoumbos about the importance of learning the skills of debate and the value it has in shaping our ideas and arguments.

Recently debates and debating has had a resurgence in schools and colleges as an important tool not only for learning but also for engagement. It is not the only approach to discussing crucial issues but it is one that helps to sharpen our minds both to our own and our opponents arguments.

We shall talk to Tony about why he thinks debate is valuable and why he has spent much of his time developing community activities around the skills and practice of debate.

We shall also discuss whether in public life the intrinsic value of debate has been lost whether because politicians no longer understand it or because social media has generated a more visceral approach to public discourse.

Tony has over many years developed workshops and training around debate and set up a meet-up group of people interested in using the tool of debate to discuss major issue as well as acquired its skills. He has been a major influence in the work of debate and has inspired many to take part in what has been an exciting venture.

“Looked After Boy.” An Interview With Lynda Brennan

In this Podcast we interview Lynda Brennan who has written a remarkable book called “Looked After Boy.” It raises questions about young people and care, about deprivation and county gangs. We are left wondering whether we have a care system around both children and problem families that is fit for purpose.

For readers Joe the 13+Looked after Boy tackles difficult, but topical, issues. It is a gritty, but moving, tale of a marginalised group; that of children in the care system at risk of involvement in County Lines gangs.

Joe s unique voice and sparkly personality speaks out from every page and, despite the topics tackled, young readers will empathise with Joe as his story deals with familiar issues of fear, separation and loss. The story doesn't t shirk away from the telling of Joe’s experiences, but it does offer hope too.

Lynda M Brennan was a drama teacher for many years in schools and Pupil Referral Units. She created Acting Out, a therapeutic drama project working with vulnerable children using creative drama and story. With Islington Virtual School, she trained foster carers and became a foster carer thus gaining insight into the needs of vulnerable Looked After young people. She is now the Artistic Director of Tottenham Theatre - a community-based theatre

Disinformation or Fact - How Do We Form Policy?

In this Podcast we will interview Tracey Brown who founded Sense about Science an independent charity that champions the public interest in sound science and ensures evidence is recognised in public life and policy making.

This is particularly relevant for the discussion we are having globally about disinformation. Tracey argues that policy should be based on science and empirical evidence and not just upon opinion and a whim. How do we establish empirical evidence and how can we get the general public to value that when they form an opinion is an important issue.

Sense about Science is an independent campaigning charity that challenges the misrepresentation of science and evidence in public life. Their campaigns challenge the misrepresentation of evidence in public life and advocate open and honest discussion of research findings.

Tracey Brown has been the director of Sense about Science since 2002. Under her leadership, the charity has turned the case for sound science and evidence into popular campaigns to urge scientific thinking among the public and the people who answer to them. It has launched important initiatives to expand and protect honest discussions of evidence,

Radical Help - A New Approach To The Welfare State

In this Podcast we explore with Hilary Cottam the ideas of changing the welfare state

The welfare state was revolutionary: it lifted thousands out of poverty, provided decent homes, good education and security. But it is out of kilter now: an elaborate and expensive system of managing needs and risks. Today we face new challenges. Our resources have changed.

We must work with individuals, families and communities to grow the core capabilities we all need to flourish. Radical Help describes the principles behind the approach, the design process that makes the work possible and the challenges of transition. It is bold - and above all, practical.

Hilary Cottam is one of our foremost social thinkers and actors and she has a radical approach. Starting in the lives and homes of those who face every day struggles - teenage depression, poor health, a lack of good work or a lonely old age - she asks people what they would do, with help and collaboration, to design a better way forward.

We can recover the original and powerful intention behind the welfare state with Cottam's ideas: crucial shifts in the way we can think about welfare. At the heart of these new systems are human relationships - the simple bonds with one another that enable us all to flourish.

Can Travel Ever Be Sustainable

In this Podcast with Charlie Cotton we discuss if travel can ever be sustainable.

In this time of Covid19 travel has been severely curtailed and this has profoundly affected the travel industry. Travel can congregate people together in such a way that pandemics can spread. They can also be highly intensive in their carbon footprint.

So in a time of climate change when we are trying to reach net zero in greenhouse gas emissions can we justify mass tourism and is it possible that such travel can be sustainable.

In this Podcast we will explore these questions with Charlie Cotton who runs a sustainable travel company. Charlie believes that travel can be organised in such a way that reduces the carbon footprint and thus lessens the environmental impact. Travel organise this way is not costly and can give a positive return on investment.

One of the ways this is done is by using common sense and technology to calculate just how streamlined supply chains are and to do so through stakeholder engagement and with clear transparency.

How successful is this and how authentic sustainable travel can be is something we will discuss in this Podcast

Councils & Digital Transformation

In this Podcast we discuss how Enfield Council lacks a digital strategy but where individual councillors have developed their own.

The digital age has profound implications for local authorities in the way they use big data for community benefit and for the way they communicate and engage.

So why does Enfield do it so badly

This webinar will look at how Enfield can embrace the digital world more effectively as well as look at some examples of local authorities that already have.

We will also look at how individual Councillors have taken things into their own hands and developed innovative ways of working digitally like the Conference recently on Cervical Cancer Awareness organised by two councillors and a recent ex councillor and organised uniquely across Party lines.

Also James Hockney will join us and tell us how he as a Councillor has arranged online surgeries and recently engaged in an innovative online Ward Forum

We will look at how important these initiatives are but also how important it is for Enfield as a whole to have a digital strategy that is central to every Council Department and that engages with community stakeholders and follows good practice.

Story Telling & Ourselves. What Do They Tell Us?

In this Podcast Katrice Horsley discusses how to unravel the narratives that form us and our identify. Where do they come and how do they form our own story

"Katrice Horsley is an International Narrative Consultant and former UK National Storytelling Laureate.

She has a background in Child Play and Development and worked for many years within Birmingham delivering their City Play Training Course as well as working as a Youth and Community Worker.

She lived and worked in Ghana for 6 years and whilst there delivered and designed training for UNICEF, DFID and UNHCR as well as developing a TV show that used storytelling to help children learn.

She is published by Routledge (The Evaluator’s Cookbook) and is presently working on a workbook about her Narrative4Change Training. She has also written an award winning bereavement resource for the British Heart Foundation that is available online.

Her passion is to ‘give voice’ to those who feel they have no story to tell or who are unable to speak it out. This work has taken her into high security prisons, to areas of high conflict such as Gaza and into the slums of Nairobi.

She has started a podcast Un-Stuffing Our Story about the stories about ourselves and others. "In this podcast we start unravel the narratives that form us, identify where they came from and own our own story."