Building BridgesCreating Healthy Collaborations
for Climate Justice |
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This online series is co-hosted by the Inner Resilience Network and the Transition US Social Justice Working Group, and is intended to build a foundation for healthy collaborations and regenerative culture in our work around climate justice.
Upcoming Building Bridges
Building Bridges meets on Zoom every 3rd Sunday of the month from 3:00 to 5:00p.m. Pacific Standard Time.
July 19: Mutual Aid for Climate Justice and Healing
During this time of social change, we are seeing a blossoming of solidarity networks, alternative economies and cooperative ways to directly respond to needs in the community.
In this Building Bridges, we will focus on the grassroots activity called Mutual Aid and how it helps promote more equitable and just ways of responding to climate change driven disasters. Perhaps even laying the groundwork for new systems in this time of transition.
We will be in conversation with longtime Mutual Aid organizers and their direct experience with how MA works, how it helps serve those in marginalized communities.
We will also be asking how we can better support MA work with self-care practices, so that those who are involved can avoid burnout and this vital service can be done regeneratively.
Our speakers:
Raven Dodson with Open World Relief
Jimmy Dunson with Mutual Aid Disaster Relief
Hosted by Jul Bystrova and Galen Meyers
Jimmy Dunson is a writer, activist, and co-founder of Mutual Aid Disaster Relief. Jimmy has responded to disasters in Louisiana, North Carolina, Florida, Tennessee, and Puerto Rico distributing supplies, assisting with solar infrastructure, clearing debris, listening, and building a lot of friendships along the way. Jimmy’s passion is building mutual aid survival programs.
Raven Dodson is an Mutual Aid activist for both Indigenous and environmental causes and for disaster relief. She has been a "keyboard warrior" on many frontlines, including her latest project--coordinating the sewing of thousands of masks to go to the Dine' nation and other tribes
During this time of social change, we are seeing a blossoming of solidarity networks, alternative economies and cooperative ways to directly respond to needs in the community.
In this Building Bridges, we will focus on the grassroots activity called Mutual Aid and how it helps promote more equitable and just ways of responding to climate change driven disasters. Perhaps even laying the groundwork for new systems in this time of transition.
We will be in conversation with longtime Mutual Aid organizers and their direct experience with how MA works, how it helps serve those in marginalized communities.
We will also be asking how we can better support MA work with self-care practices, so that those who are involved can avoid burnout and this vital service can be done regeneratively.
Our speakers:
Raven Dodson with Open World Relief
Jimmy Dunson with Mutual Aid Disaster Relief
Hosted by Jul Bystrova and Galen Meyers
Jimmy Dunson is a writer, activist, and co-founder of Mutual Aid Disaster Relief. Jimmy has responded to disasters in Louisiana, North Carolina, Florida, Tennessee, and Puerto Rico distributing supplies, assisting with solar infrastructure, clearing debris, listening, and building a lot of friendships along the way. Jimmy’s passion is building mutual aid survival programs.
Raven Dodson is an Mutual Aid activist for both Indigenous and environmental causes and for disaster relief. She has been a "keyboard warrior" on many frontlines, including her latest project--coordinating the sewing of thousands of masks to go to the Dine' nation and other tribes
About the Series
We create space for the “messiness” of human emotions when we collaboratively awaken our shared histories, and our questions and reflections result from a clearer lens. We believe that a safe and respectful space to explore these sensitive topics together will help catalyze the connection and mutual understanding we need to truly co-create a world of social and ecological justice.
By exploring the layers within the issues around climate justice, we gain tools and practices that will assist us in reaching outside our familiar circles. In this way, we can work together in solidarity with frontline communities who are most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, widening economic inequality, and systemic oppression. To do this does require healing, reconciliation, and evolving our cultural understandings. We are committed to this.
We begin our new series with a warm welcome and invitation to understand the significant connection between climate change and social justice. Our intention is to open our hearts together to explore the ways our own lives are embedded in the issues, and to learn to bear witness to how others are affected in ways beyond that with which we are already familiar.
During this series, we will deepen our understanding of ourselves and others as we cultivate relationships across cultural differences. We also aspire to strengthen the “intersectional justice culture” that we need for this climate emergency. One of the core beliefs underlying this series is that we all hold an essential piece of the collective wisdom that is needed by the whole. With the intention of weaving together a more diverse, inclusive and influential movement for social change, we will explore successful models for building resilience in disadvantaged and marginalized communities.
Our Healing Dialogues follow-up conversations are two hour practical explorations of agreements and tools we can all use to improve our abilities to hold space for authentic, mindful, and connected dialogue around these sensitive topics. We explore these in practice through a “fish-bowl” of four participants sharing a discussion about the previous week’s presentation, and is open for all to observe. There is also some opportunity for all to engage with questions and reflections.
By exploring the layers within the issues around climate justice, we gain tools and practices that will assist us in reaching outside our familiar circles. In this way, we can work together in solidarity with frontline communities who are most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, widening economic inequality, and systemic oppression. To do this does require healing, reconciliation, and evolving our cultural understandings. We are committed to this.
We begin our new series with a warm welcome and invitation to understand the significant connection between climate change and social justice. Our intention is to open our hearts together to explore the ways our own lives are embedded in the issues, and to learn to bear witness to how others are affected in ways beyond that with which we are already familiar.
During this series, we will deepen our understanding of ourselves and others as we cultivate relationships across cultural differences. We also aspire to strengthen the “intersectional justice culture” that we need for this climate emergency. One of the core beliefs underlying this series is that we all hold an essential piece of the collective wisdom that is needed by the whole. With the intention of weaving together a more diverse, inclusive and influential movement for social change, we will explore successful models for building resilience in disadvantaged and marginalized communities.
Our Healing Dialogues follow-up conversations are two hour practical explorations of agreements and tools we can all use to improve our abilities to hold space for authentic, mindful, and connected dialogue around these sensitive topics. We explore these in practice through a “fish-bowl” of four participants sharing a discussion about the previous week’s presentation, and is open for all to observe. There is also some opportunity for all to engage with questions and reflections.
The Building Bridges Team
Jul Bystrova is the co-founder of the Inner Resilience Network and Director of the Era of Care project, which works with frontline communities. She has a 25 year history of community activism and a private practice in trauma-informed mind-body healing work. She is an Interfaith Minister and holds a graduate degree in Interdisciplinary research and a focus on how to bridge perspectives in Science and Spirituality. She is a poet, and writes and teaches about cultural healing, social justice and psycho-spiritual topics. She also serves on the Transition US Collaborative Design Council and is a member of the Social Justice Working Group. She is dedicated to bringing awareness and actions towards greater social justice and wellness in the Transition community.
Galen Meyers is a passionate social change practitioner focused on the holistic approach of regenerative culture growth. Galen has a background in math, physics, and biology and he is an avid lifelong learner in many fields of study, including permaculture, complexity science, and the emerging field of cultural evolution. He is trained as a group facilitator through both of the organizations “Institute of Cultural Affairs” and “Prosocial”. He is also a certified yoga and meditation instructor. Galen is co-founder of Common Ground Networks, and he serves on the Inner Resilience Network and the Collaborative Design Council for Transition US.
Ayako Nagano serves on the Board of Transition Berkeley, and on the steering committees for the Green Leadership Trust, a coalition of green non-profit board members of color promoting equity and inclusion within the environmental movement. Ayako serves on the Social Justice Working Group for Transition US, and was recently appointed to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s National Environmental Justice Advisory Council.
Marissa Moemmarts (info in process)
Inner Resilience Network: We connect in order to catalyze local, national and international efforts centered on building skills, resources and support systems that promote personal-relational resilience in the face of today’s multifaceted challenges and foster personal-relational growth to bring forth the human qualities needed in a life-affirming culture.
Transition US Social Justice Working Group: Our mission is to grow justice, equity and inclusion in the world, and to create the conditions for diversity to flourish in the Transition Movement. We do this by educating ourselves on social justice issues and sharing resources with the broader Transition movement, connecting and collaborating with the broader social justice movement, and implementing practical projects that incorporate justice and equity as integral aspects of building community resilience.
