After a kickoff session in Berlin last autumn, the EMN is organising a series of online skills-share meetings in the first half of 2023. The skill-sharing sessions aim to reinforce peer-to-peer learning among municipalist actors facilitating exchange and learning on practices, methodologies, experiences and strategies that we need to transform the system.

We all have useful skills for municipalist activism and organising, either through our work in local communities, political activism in the institutions, advocacy, media and communications work, coalition building or you name it. These are valuable skills that we should democratise and render accessible to more of us. Skill sharing is a way to have knowledge traditionally held in silos be further promoted, while getting to know other people in the field and developing in our processes of network organising. The events have a practical focus, but their relationship-building component should be equally valued for developing joint strategies that can take municipalist activism further.

The kickoff meeting in Berlin gave the opportunity to define issues and topics for the sessions, which have been taken up by different members of the EMN network.

The topics

Each skill share will start with an inspiring presentation by an organisation with seasoned experience and knowledge on the particular issue. These will then be followed by participatory exchanges, breakout groups and plenary conversations.

Check-out the topics we will be diving into below.

LOCAL-ECONOMY

Building a Democratic Local Economy

By Nantes en Comun in collaboration with Commons Network

14th of March at 5pm

More info

In recent years new models of local economy have developed in cities in order to meet growing social and environmental needs. Although these developments are specific to each locality they often include giving a larger role to the community in some way or another. Furthermore specific initiatives often no longer work in one domain such as energy or food, yet in various domains at the same time in an integrated way.

Although activities emerge organically and are very context-based, examples, models or experiences from other places are very important for inspiration and guidance. This skill sharing session on building a local democratic economy aims to contribute to this exchange. During the session, we will explore examples, and share about our own situation and experiments with coops, community wealth building and commons in order to support and learn from each other.

EDUCATION

Storytelling & Political Education

How can storytelling be used for political education? We are organising this event in collaboration with our friends Verdedig Noord Amsterdam and Zagreb je Nas who will explore the importance of narrative building for wider political transformation, specifically focusing on how storytelling can be a tool to mobilise young people & engage disenfranchised groups towards radical systems change.

March 22 at 7pm

Skill-Share

Feminist Politics and Putting Care at the Center

Brought to you by EMN’s Feministisation of Politics working group, this session will explore how to create feminist foundations at the core of our movements and political action using care, mutual aid & solidarity as north stars in our political organising.

March 29th at 5pm

housing

Creative Use of Law in Reclaiming Public Space and Re-socialising Housing

Brought to you by L’Asilo and Deutsche Wohnen & Co Enteignen, this session will explore how Naples has transformed unused buildings into Urban Commons, and how Berlin is leading a referendum that creatively used the law to bring back public housing in the 21st Century.

April 13th at 5 pm