Bridging Peoples: Recent Episodes
Deborah Cummins
::Exploring the Human Side of Aid, Development and Social Change::
Bridging Peoples Podcast takes you behind the scenes to talk with researchers and practitioners working in aid & development, human rights, and social change, all over the world the world.
Every conversation brings you a mix of research, stories and insights from people doing fascinating things, in fascinating places.
Brought to you by: https://bridgingpeoples.com.
What happens when you bring together two powerful women, a common cause, and a Facebook page? In this episode, we discuss a Kenyan social movement and community-based organisation called 'Usikimye', which in Swahili means 'do not be silent'. Stella Busolo Khachina is an international aid practitioner who, together with her co-founder Njeri Migwi, decided something needed to be done to humanise the rising number of femicide cases in Kenya. They started with a Facebook page, and things took off from there. Shownotes: full notes to this episode available at https://bridgingpeoples.com/podcasts/7-usikimye-and-addressing-gender-based-violence-in-kenya/. Donate to Usikimye via https://www.givengain.com/cc/help-1-in-5-kenyan-women-stay-safe-from-violence/. Usikimye Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/usikimye. Usikimye website: https://usikimye.org/. Njeri Migwi interview with BBC News Africa: https://youtu.be/8pwWiz8jJfY
What is the connection between virtual reality gaming, building connection to country & cultural heritage, and supporting First Nations identity & traditional knowledge? Brett Leavy is the founder of Bilbie Labs and creator of the Virtual Songlines project, with big dreams to build a 'multiverse' or 'digital twin' of different times and places, told from the perspective of First Nations peoples. It's history from a new perspective, centring the First Nations experience, and telling the history of pre-colonisation Australia & interactions between colonisers and First Nations peoples. Brett Leavy is a First Nations man, from the Kooma nation, in Australia.
Local government in India is a complex mix of formal and informal (customary/traditional) institutions. Listen to Kripa Ananthpur, Associate Professor at the Madras Institute of Development Studies, describe what she has learned through her many decades' experience researching local government in India, how this connects with women's human rights, and the lessons we all can take in understanding the importance of customary governance institutions.
Community organising seems an unlikely activity in a conflict zone - particularly for young people whose childhoods have been shaped by war and bombardment. But this is exactly what Karam Hilly, community organiser and CEO of Door Beyond War, has managed to achieve via the Youth For Change network in Syria. Listen to Karam Hilly talk about what it takes to give young people hope in a warzone, and encourage them to shape their communities' future for the better.
In the Occupied Palestinian Territories, land is a key issue, with Israel continuing to annex land and Palestinians struggling for the right to return to their homelands. Listen to Lubnah Shomali, Palestinian human rights defender and unit manager for BADIL Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights in the West Bank break down the Israeli-Palestine conflict, land grabs, human rights violations, and colonisation of the Palestinian Occupied Territories.
Find the episode transcript and other resources at bridgingpeoples.com.
How has anthropology changed over the years? And how does it intersect with aid & development, sociology, political science, history, even literature? Listen to husband and wife team David and Maxine Hicks talk about their many decades' experiences in Timor-Leste working as anthropologists, supporting the 1999 referendum on independence for Timor-Leste, and their reflections on the changing face of anthropology.
'Herstory' is a participatory documentary and book project, exploring the stories of a group of women correctional officers from the Solomon Islands who worked in the prisons from the 1986 to 2018. The stories are told from the perspective of the women correctional officers themselves, looking at their experiences breaking into and then working in a male-dominated space. This podcast interview was conducted with documentary co-producer Dr. Anouk Ride, who lives and works in the Solomon Islands.
Find the episode transcript and other resources at bridgingpeoples.com.