EMBED - Danish example page - Churchill Trust - Report - Page 24
Returning
Fellows share
their findings
Our Fellows return from their
Fellowship experiences excited and
motivated by the new information
and ideas they have gained. Their
Fellowship reports say it all.
Here are some excerpts...
Karrina Nolan
To enhance Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
women’s leadership capacity and engagement in
community and civic life - Canada, USA
Embarking on a trip like this felt ambitious, not just
because of the geographical distance, but the enormous
scope of issues people were working to address and the
deep ambition I have to build a better life for all of us
through the critical contributions of women in our
communities.
Trying to distil the richness of people’s experiences and
attempts to achieve justice has felt challenging. However
in amongst all the hard work being done, stories shared
and lessons learnt there are some clear messages for us.
Social movements are based on the premise that people
power can shift the course of history. We know that
building the power of peoples and communities contributes
to making change not just more possible but probable. This
trip was invaluable for consolidating my thinking about
how we as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people need
to do more of that.
People I met reminded me that we need strong leaders
with integrity to drive good decisions for our communities.
We need to invest in and add capacity to our women who
are leading and strengthening the power of our people.
When people’s individual agency is stronger then so to is
their capacity to do work at the community level.
Pictured left Indigenous
Rising for to protect their
land and water from the
Dakota Access Pipeline
Initiatives that connect local to national issues,
implementing at a grass roots level, advocating nationally
seemed to be having an impact.
This was particularly obvious in relation to the fossil fuel
industry and communities directly challenging certain
projects. It was also clear that having a national
infrastructure empowers communities to be better
resourced to explore alternatives on their own terms.
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Returning Fellows Feature
Pictured above Indigenous women’s
leadership group that aims to recognise and
support the role women play in building the
capacity and visibility of women to take on
public roles and offer solidarity to other land
and water protectors