Coming from Argentina, a country blighted by extractivism, I have developed a passion for environmental protection and human rights. Seeing the disastrous impacts that such strict adherence to a form of economic ideology has wreaked on my country, has sparked my desire to help make a contribution to stop these injustices that are occurring in Latin America and throughout the world.

Transnational corporations, international institutions and governments are applying neoliberal policies. But these ones, while trying to ensure higher production levels, do not take into account the true social and environmental costs and thus result in grave social inequality and exploitation of the world’s natural resources. Extractivism is no less than a new type of colonialism.

All the above has lead me to be a campaigner with particular focus over the past year on building relationship with communities most affected by climate change both in the Global North and the Global South. As a proud part of the Movimiento Jaguar Despierto and the Wretched of the Earth family I have been in an ongoing learning process, working in order to bring to the fore issues of climate injustice on the part of oppressed communities from across the Global South.

Hasta la Victoria Siempre.

Im a Bolivian indigenous women living in the UK and i grow up under white supremacist culture in Argentina. I understand oppression as a lived experience and do not want anyone else to suffer the way I have. I’m currently in various Solidarity networks, including Movimiento Jaguar Despierto and WOTE and want to take part in this course to build confidence in belonging.

Christine is a senior researcher at the New Economics Foundation. She specialises in financial reform but works across the organisation on a number of projects, with a particular focus on strategies for systemic change. Previously Christine has worked as Head of Policy and Research at ShareAction, where she campaigned successfully to clarify the law on pension funds’ environmental and social responsibilities, and as a parliamentary researcher.

Hello, my name is Rosie and I have spent the last 7 years working exclusively in museums – most recently the Imperial War Museum looking after their press. NEON is the first place I have worked which is not a museum, which is very new and exciting. I have become more aware and bothered by the lack of diversity in our museums in the workforce and campaigns that we run. I was also aware growing up that there was no-one who looked like me visibly in the media talking about the big issues which affect this country. I have wanted for a long time to change things but didn’t know how. With NEON now I’m working on the Spokesperson Network specifically looking at increasing diversity in the media by recruiting and training people from different backgrounds to talk to press which is amazing. But I’d like to learn what more I can do to be changing things now.

I’m a researcher at the Public Interest Research Centre. ‘Values’ and ‘frames’ are two words that summarise the main focus of my work. Since joining PIRC, I have run research for, and helped write up, a number of projects in different sectors – for instance No Cause is an Island, a collaboration with Scope and WWF to analyse effective charity communication; Valuing Equality, a review of tolerance indicators in Europe, and Building Bridges, about the framing of human rights in British newspapers. I’m currently researching people’s beliefs and attitudes towards LGBTI rights across the European Union, and I’m leading PIRC’s contribution to the Framing the Economy project. I’m an experienced facilitator, and am always trying to develop creative, participative ways of running workshops. I’m also trying to move beyond research and reports and do more work that helps build and sustain social movements. Originally from London, I now live in the beautiful ad-free surrounds of Snowdonia and am sometimes quite smug about it.

Fizza currently works for a leading HIV and Sexual Health charity in an operational role. Prior to this she worked as a Programme Manager for an international medical humanitarian organisation. She had responsibility for their UK independent health clinic, and health advocacy and campaigning programme. Fizza has retained a keen interest in health care and access issues. Her main interest is racism, migration and asylum issues, and has been volunteering as a Board Member with Migrants Rights’ Network for over two years. She is also a steering group member for Movement Against Xenophobia. She has also actively campaigned on UK anti-terror laws, and used to be a Board Member for the Institute of Race Relations

Experienced community development professional with a diverse portfolio of project management work in the non-profit and statutory sectors in the UK. Focusing on leadership, good governance, spatial planning, human rights and equalities law in order to support diverse communities in times of change and upheaval. Strong stakeholder engagement, project management, research, IT and interpersonal skills and an analytical mind help develop strong relationships with people and innovative solutions to a wide range of problems.

Marcela is a designer from Maracaibo, Venezuela. She came to the UK in 2010 to do an MA in Design and Environment, striving to find ways to contribute with her skills to tackling interconnected social-environmental stuggles. Marcela has since worked freelance and in-house for different organisations and is currently Art and Editorial Coordinator at Greenpeace. At a grassroots level, she is part of London Latinxs, Wretched of The Earth and Fossil Free Southwark.

Immigrant at heart, with Peruvian and Chilean roots, we came to Europe after neoliberalism and dictatorship hit our countries hard in the 80s. I have been involved in Latin American resistance groups in London and I’m passionate about the intersectionality of mental health, solidarity and mutual aid as a tools of resistance in a racist, capitalist and sexist country.

I am currently campaigning for the rights of young refugees with Jawaab, a grassroots movement against racism, hate crime and Islamophobia.

Outside my work with Jawaab, I am Media and Campaigns Officer at YoungMinds, a charity working to improve the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people. In the past I have worked in youth and parent participation roles, and am particularly interested in participatory research methods and practices.

A belief in the power of authentic storytelling to achieve social change is another energising force behind my work. I recently received a Winston Churchill Fellowship to research the role of museums, archives and digital storytelling in the ongoing movement against HIV/AIDS.