35 people joined us from  Canada, Mexico, UK, Belgium, France, Kenya, Uganda and India. The sessions was moderated by Kenzie Harris (GGSN coordinator) and the event featured the following speakers:

• Natasha Adams (Thinking Doing Change, natasha.adamscampaigns@gmail.com) – UK
• Kate Turner (Building Power Network, bpn-rpc@protonmail.com) – Canada
• Jacob Okumu (GGSN, jacob@blueprintsfc.org) – Kenya
• Anonymous speaker – India

Speakers gave an overview of the context in their countries, shared specific examples to further understand the context and how the grassroots/NGOs are responding, and discussion that followed reviewed the Gen Z protests in India, moving towards what we want (not just resisting what we don’t want) and tips for holding coalition building/strategic gatherings to fight the right collectively. The descriptions provided below mostly reflect the wording the speakers themselves used.

“Core advice for people doing this work, wherever you are, is to, first of all, think about protecting your people and communities, because that’s a really important basis for doing anything else.”

You can access the whole edited transcript here.

Natasha Adams, UK

Natasha’s (she/her) work on Thinking Doing Change focuses on understanding things that are driving the rise of the right in the UK, how it’s impacting civil society and movements, and what movements can do about it.

The UK context

The UK has seen a rise of strong far-right parties in the shape of reform. Nigel Farage, who is Trump-like, could become the official opposition in the next election. The government in power, the Labour Party (which should be left), have adopted far-right rhetoric and policy around migration and disability. They’ve also labelled Palestine action as a terrorist group (the average detention time for Palestine activists is 6 months-Anonymous source).

The UK has seen a rise in racist violence on the streets. Unite the Kingdom, has seen the biggest ever far-right rallies and marches ever in the country. The Patriot Front vigilantes blocked the port of Dover to resist small boats (with migrants). Political threats plus far-right protests have shifted mainstream politics and discourse further to the right (against marginalized groups).

Photo from Natasha’s slides

How the grassroots and NGOs are responding

Towards Meaningful Action research by Natasha and colleague Jim Coe found that there are impacts on wellbeing and safety, especially for marginalized folks, in NGOs and communities. What’s more, discourse and policy is shifting to the right on many issues (e.g. the climate debate).

Natasha used an initiative called the Anti-Racist Movement by Black Lives Matter (BLM), along with three other organizations, to illustrate the grassroots response. Koji Kyerewaa from BLM UK discussed the following in his speech about the power of organizing…

Two years ago, in the UK, there was a summer of riots. Asylum hotels were targeted, fires were set outside of them, and organizations retreated. Some of the asylum seekers in the hotels were left to put out the fires for themselves. The civil society sectoral response? Hundreds of charities wrote a letter condemning to the violence. They wrote to the Home Secretary. Lots of them closed their doors because of fear of safety concerns. Staff and volunteers faced racial abuse, and retreated. The organizing infrastructure to support and mobilize communities wasn’t there.

Photo of Belfast from Natasha’s slides

Earlier this year, in Northern Ireland or the north of Ireland, there were racist riots after a Sudanese man stabbed a man from Belfast. The far right organized a violent response. There were headline reports of masked people setting cars alight, families of colour being forced from their homes and onto the streets. This time, the response was community-led.

A collective called Annika Women’s Collective raised over £150,000 in a single day for accommodation, transport and supplies, and they housed tens of thousands of people that were displaced. Community organizations across Belfast found temporary accommodation for hundreds of people, and volunteers stepped forward to support. What made this possible was that the community relationships and infrastructure were already in place.

In Belfast, one of the members of the anti-racist movement arm have been training some of their migrant organizers there for years. They’ve built relationships, trust, and capacity. Annika Women’s Collective runs 12 events and workshops every week. It’s self-organized, self-funded, and its members come from 27 countries and represent a range of religious backgrounds. They didn’t stop this from happening, but they stepped in and supported immediately after it happened.

What’s happening and what’s needed

Natasha and Jim’s research report Meeting the Moment looked across the whole movement ecosystem. They identified five big categories, and lots of subcategories, of all of the things that are needed.

Photo from Natasha’s slides

The addressing threats category includes things such as addressing safety and security. For example, there’s a pooled fund to support migrant and racial justice organizations with any security needs, therapy, training etc.

The influencing politics category has seen lots of electoral work around recent elections. For example, climate groups teamed up with tactical voting initiatives and others to stop reform from getting in.

The addressing narrative dysfunction category includes building narrative power. One of the strategies used here is we’ve seen efforts to organize and engage content creators, many of whom don’t have a core focus on politics, to tackle online narratives.

The sector, strategy and resources category includes strategies like having one-to-ones, connecting and convening, and working to influence and advise organisations and funders about their strategy.

Natasha’s advice for people doing this work is to think about protecting your people and communities, as it’s the basis. Then you can start to think about which part of the ecosystem you can best contribute to. “You might need to change your strategy, you might need to change your structure or your culture as needed to step in to kind of meet the moment and deliver the thing that is needed. Relationships are central to building power, so work collaboratively outside silos wherever possible. We need to work together to build power and fight back. Lastly, tend to the trauma and stress. Focus on hope and build in joy and care. Try and bring the world that you’re working to create into being through how you do the work as well.”

Kate Turner, Canada

Kate (she/her) works for the Building Power Network (BPN). BPN is trying to advance capacity-building resources for folks across Canada who are defending their communities from far-right attacks or working to oppose the populist right. They’re producing intelligence reports that are actionable for grassroots movements. Through partners, they’re also giving people access to trainings and workshops, and legal and security resources. They’re working to cultivate more cross-movement spaces to break out of silos and heal the fragmentation of the left in Canada.

The Canadian context

Canada is a settler colonial state. There is a history of a violent, occupying government on Indigenous land. The Indian Act is a piece of legislation that created an apartheid reserve system for Indigenous peoples, took away their right to vote, made certain cultural practices and cultural clothing illegal, and created the residential school system. Residential schools were a series of schools across Canada that kidnapped children and abused them in the name of assimilation. Unmarked graves are still being investigated.

Prime Minister Mark Carney has passed a series of laws and policies to attack Indigenous rights, human rights, workers’ rights and the environment in the name of corporate interests and economic security.

For example, Bill 5 is a law that pre-approves projects which are mostly situated on Indigenous land, without their consent. Bill C-2 is a law that blocks refugee claims. It will affect millions of people through the refusal to renew permits, leading to mass deportation. Carney is also pushing to enact a new law that would attack labor unions’ right to strike.

Photo from Kate’s slides

Canada has major corporate interests at play, especially fossil fuel and big tech companies. The biggest tech company is Shopify. It’s CEOs have created a right-wing think tank called Build Canada. Build Canada produces policy memos aimed at the federal government. Increasingly, Carney’s government has enacted several of these memos.

Canada experiences foreign interference. One of the Canadian provinces, Alberta, is about to have a referendum on whether or not to separate from Canada. The Trump administration has been meeting with pro-separation groups, and there’s evidence that MAGA officials offered a loan to the Alberta Separation Movement to accelerate this. Israel has also interfered in Canadian politics by manipulating public opinion about the genocide in Gaza, influencing news coverage and politicians’ statements, and creating fake social media accounts to spread Islamophobic disinformation. Israeli spyware has been used to dox pro-Palestine organizers in Canada and to spread disinformation about pro-Palestine advocates.

Since 2023, Canadians no longer have access to mainstream news sources on Facebook and Instagram. This has resulted in the amplification of far-right political narratives and disinformation. One of the biggest actors in the far-right propaganda machine is called Canada Proud, which is a network of hundreds of social media accounts that explicitly focus on returning our Conservative Party to power. Canada Proud has so many accounts that they’re able to rapidly create, amplify, or shift political narratives. They spend millions of dollars on micro-targeted ads.

Far-right white supremacists and neo-Nazi groups are organizing by going door-to-door in communities outside of urban centers. They’re talking about LGBTQ plus positive education in schools, and about Indigenous land claims, falsely stating that an Indigenous land claim could threaten a person’s home or property. They’re also discussing re-migration to describe the deportation of over 10 million non-white people from Canada, which would be ethnic cleansing.

Photo from Kate’s slides

How the grassroots and NGOs are responding

Communities are developing multiple different strategies, such as forming a coalition between Indigenous communities and labor groups. In 2022, a coalition formed to evict a far-right convoy that was occupying Ottawa. In Montreal, several of these coalitions have come together to organize large public education events and protests. In Vancouver, where there is an explicitly far-right party campaigning for municipal seats, there is a progressive municipal party that is campaigning for 12 different seats.

There is bipartisan momentum in opposition to hundreds of data centers being proposed. Almost everywhere, there is resistance being organized by the local community, and that resistance is crossing political lines.

Indigenous resistance is leading the way. There are several Indigenous coalitions forming to push back on the legislative attacks that are happening across the country on Indigenous rights and on Environmental Protections and worker protections. This includes on-the-ground resistance land defense tactics, and legal counter moves.

Photo from Kate’s slides

There are formalized coalitions emerging to connect folks to fight back, especially against Provincial level or federal level issues. Both in Ontario and Alberta, there are coalitions emerging to attempt to remove the leaders of those provinces who are right-wing and have been attacking and privatizing public services. There’s a national level group that emerged from ‘Draw the Line’ protests last year, which was the unification of, migrant rights, pro-Palestine, and climate justice groups.

A paper by Erica Chenoweth and Zoe Marks, called Pro-Democracy Organizing Against Autocracy in the United States, is a good resource for folks facing a global north context of rising authoritarianism.

The three pillars that the authors highlight in that paper are; 1) we need to have communication infrastructure that connects us across the entire left, 2) we need to focus on community power as a foundation of anti-fascist resistance, and once we have those things in place, and we are working more collaboratively, this is the only way that we can begin to advance 3) non-cooperation tactics, which could attack the pillars of power of a autocratic or a fascist regime.

Jacob Okumu, Kenya

Jacob (he/him) is a supporting coordinator for the Global Grassroots Support Network (GGSN). He is working with other leaders in the region on creating a regional network for grassroots movements in East Africa, to offer solidarity whenever there’s a challenge in any of these countries. His work with the GGSN also involves encouraging the sharing of tools, practices, and knowledge to support one another’s causes.

Gen Z protests and their influence

East Africa is seeing increasing authoritarianism, democratic backsliding, populist politics, civil space is continuing to shrink, youth disenfranchisement, disinformation, and state repression. East Africa operates like one community. In Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya, leaders are operating in similar ways.

Two years ago there was a tax that was proposed by the government, the finance bill tax, that was going to make the life of Kenyans difficult. People rose against this tax. What was supposed to be just an opposition to this tax turned out to be a call to demand accountability, a call against corruption, and a call on economic injustice. Instead of using platforms the government was used to surveilling, young people used apps; TikToks, and Instagram and WhatsApp. This meant the government couldn’t establish who the leader was, or where it was operating from. It also produced many other smaller movements beyond the protests.

Civil society organizations are beginning to see that we cannot work alone to hold our government accountable. We have to bring in youth, NGOs and other stakeholders to make our movement stronger. Jacob saw this echoed in the recent ‘People’s Dialogue Festival.’ It brought together different stakeholders, including faith leaders who hold a lot of power within the church. People’s faith can be utilized to hold the government accountable.

Civil rights organizations are beginning to re-examine how they work. For a long time, they’ve been reactionary, but organizations, movement, activists are beginning to see that there is value in proper organizing, investing in information, technology, and that it takes a bit of time that hold the government accountable.

Organizing around upcoming elections

Kenya has an upcoming election, and organizers can anticipate how that election is going to turn out. There are signs from regional elections and by-elections; violence, the political climate, the violence that are in the campaigns, the words that politicians are using… they can anticipate the elections will not be peaceful. So, people are beginning to organize and ask questions. Mainly, how do we organize and prepare ourselves so that it doesn’t take us by surprise?

In Uganda, the National Resistance Movement Party has been in power for over 40 years. There has been efforts by opposition leaders, to organize youth to challenge existing powers. This has activated the political temperatures in the country. Grassroots activists continue to face arrests. They continue to be held in police custody for non-violent action. During Uganda’s election and post-elections, they couldn’t communicate because the internet was shut down by the government.

Grassroots movements are also beginning to recognize that we cannot just be organizing around elections and then post-elections, going quiet and waiting for the next elections. Organizations like Solidarity Uganda are helping activists to hold governments accountable outside of elections.

From Julius Okoth in the chat: Zambia, Uganda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Rwanda’s opposition leaders have all been locked up for “treason”. Kenyan Courts aren’t perfect, but they can make ruling not favouring the executive.

Showing up in solidarity across regions

For the region, Tanzania has been the hub of peace. In 2025, this got challenged when they held their election. The government learned from what Kenya was doing and what Uganda was doing, and the election turned violent. Activists were arrested, internet was shut down, communication became difficult. Activists in Kenya and Uganda crossed the border to support activists in Tanzania who fought back. Kenyans and Ugandan activists were also asking questions and demanding accountability from the Tanzanian government. When the leader of opposition in Uganda was arrested, lawyers from Kenya, and activists from Kenya and Tanzania rose up to ask questions. The hope is that this will lead to a regional push for accountability.

Interested in knowing more about the finance bill protests that happened in 2024? Read Jacob’s article here!

Anonymous speaker, India

Our final speaker, who has requested to remain anonymous, is working to fill the gaps in grassroots support in India.

The far right takeover

Social media was used to call actual historical facts into question. Media and advertising agencies built a cult-like image of Modi ahead of the 2014 elections. For 60-70 years, these organizations have infiltrated civil society spaces. India is large, diverse, and ethnically different. These organizations focused on these differences to sow hatred in Indian society.  A fascist party would not have come to power had the previous government not been center-right. These governments chipped away at civil liberties. It is with this background that a fascist political party was able to take power.

In 2014, when they won a majority, the first thing that they did was capture media, which was easy because it was corporatized. Independent media bodies were attacked. Several journalists were murdered. They created an environment of fear, silencing voices that might have otherwise spoken up.

Next they closed down human rights and environmental NGOs. Greenpeace was the first NGO that they attacked, removing it entirely from the country. NGOs funding was taken away and licenses were canceled. Civil society was not organized at that point, and most couldn’t understand what was going on. The intelligence apparatus played a major role in capturing institutions, including civil society organizations. A similar parallel is the CIA in America.

Next they captured watchdog institutions, which ensure that governments are kept in check, and a balance of power is maintained. They also tried to capture Bollywood. While Hollywood is an effective propaganda machine, Bollywood has not been. While this was happening, Parliament was robbed of its powers. In democracies for an act or a law to pass, it must be debated in parliament. This was bypassed, and special powers were given to the Prime Minister’s office.

How citizens and opposition parties are fighting back

There were two key moments of opposition in recent years. The first thing the government tried to pass was the Citizenship Amendment Bill, which would give them the power to strip people of their citizenship. People targeted by this law would be Muslims and other minorities. By this point, there was significant civil society anger and opposition to what was going on. This resulted in large-scale civil society protests, led by Muslim women, against this bill. They occupied the streets and refused to leave, putting an end to the bill.

Another key moment was the farm laws that would have corporatized farming in India. This saw a similar takeover of streets, with protests by farming groups and farming unions. For more than one year, farmers were sitting on the streets, and they refused to leave, they refused to budge.

Something that shifted society’s image of the Prime Minister and his party was a political opposition leader who decided to go on a Yatra, or march. He called it the Bharat Jodo Yatra. The English translation is Unite India Rally, to acknowledge a level of polarization within Indian society that has never happened before. Family members are fighting family members, friends are fighting against friends, and neighbours are fighting against neighbours.

He walked from the southernmost tip of the country all the way to the northernmost tip of the country in Kashmir. When he started walking, civil society organizations and community members started joining him, walking alongside him. Things that are going wrong in the country, started coming out. Despite that mainstream media did not want to cover it, they were forced to cover it because so many independent social media influencers were amplifying it. Social media influencers, stand-up comedians, civil society organizations, and political opposition parties started talking about misinformation and the propaganda that the government was doing, and mainstream media lost credibility.

Massive student protests happened this year, and the reason behind those protests is that the government’s policies that have resulted in unemployment and disrepair. As of this year (2026), Modi himself, and his government are having the least amount of popularity that they’ve had since they’ve come to power.

Interested in knowing more about the rise of authoritarianism in India? Read the article here!

Discussion

Gen Z protests in India

Aslam: GenZ movement in India exposed the fascist government.“It’s impacted the political spectrum of the country itself… especially the role of young women in the whole movement.” “There are two things that happen in this movement. One is to tarnish that image. The second thing is overcoming the fear. The fear that they had.”

Anonymous speaker: The protests resulted in the resignation of one of Modi’s cabinet ministers. “The Gen Z protest has not happened in isolation, and it would not have happened unless and until these previous groups that fought, the farmers, the Muslim women, the Shinbach protests that happened against the citizenship Amendment Bill, without those happening, this probably would not have happened.”

Moving towards what we want 

Farrah: “I’m putting on events to work with Black people to process the effects of trauma, racial trauma. My question is… what can be done around not just working with resistance and talking about what we don’t want, but also what we do want… what needs to be put in place so that, systems are more in favour of human beings as opposed to corporations, or far-right, or anti-human sentiment?”

Natasha: “I didn’t go into the detail of the research that Jim and I did, but there’s all sorts of different things that we think are needed, not just resistance to it, but also… kind of imagining the world that we want to live in, and creating that.. there are so many levels that we can address this on… the work that you’re doing sounds so important, because this is a lot for people to hold and process, and I’m finding that any sort of event that I go to, that there needs to be a rural arc to support them through it, and to manage the emotions.

I think, actually, a lot of the problem that we’re seeing is that the emotions that this brings up are so big that a lot of people are just shutting down, and they’re not actually able to stay with it, because they just get such a strong fear response… that response is different depending on how much you are personally directly affected by what is going on…

I was at the World Times gathering that the Social Change Nest put on… there were lots of people talking about, regenerative futures work, participatory local work, how we create the world that we want in what we’re doing, and how we push for change, as well as fighting back, and all of those things. And I feel like there are lots of things happening. It’s easy to focus on the difficult parts of this. I do feel hopeful, and I do feel like there’s a lot of possibility and a lot of good people doing brilliant stuff.”

Kenzie: Emphasized that grief work is central to the disability community, and is necessary to reach a level of creativity that’s harder to access if you haven’t processed your grief. The work Farrah is doing is an important part of moving towards what we do want.

Kate: Shared that in so-called Canada there’s a focus on “uplifting Indigenous knowledge and Indigenous stewardship, especially when we’re talking about land and cultural practices and, just the protection of ecosystems.”

Holding coalition building/strategic gatherings to fight the right collectively

Kenzie: “There are groups that are coming together, and they’re trying to hold these sort of gatherings to do coalition building, or thinking about a common strategy across issue lines, or across organization lines. I wonder for other organizations here, or other people who are part of groups that maybe want to host something like that, if you have any advice for what supported you in that process in holding what were effective gatherings?”

Farrah: “I had an experience, where I had to travel… for an interview… and it meant leaving a very multicultural, relatively safe space to a place where I knew would be majority white, and with tensions rising around race… there was a lot of terror that I experienced, and when I got really ill… I had a really bad cough and a cold, but as soon as my train pulled back into Kings Cross, my cough abated, so that indicated the physical stress, I guess, and impact, the psychosomatic impact of it.

I decided that I would put on an event to create space for people to… talk about the impact of racism… to start processing, because there is research that indicates that racism has not just mental issues, but can cause physical ailments as well in the long term. And so the structure that I put in place, just given the training that I’ve done, and, other things that I’ve done around… processing emotions and raising consciousness, is that in the first section, there was a space for people to surface their emotions, because I think that’s what people often come in with is the big feelings…

Giving people that space to… talk about their emotions, their feelings, what they’re affected with, then created space for dialogue… I had a panel discussion after where we then spoke about the psychology of racism, and that meant that because those emotions had been dealt with or processed as much as they could be in that time, it meant that [it was] much more kind of fruitful. It seems important that the emotional side is recognized as part of any gathering, really, whether it’s before, during, or after, but probably before, to clear the way for a fruitful discussion, in line with whatever the objective is of that gathering.”

Kenzie: “Yeah… I’ve definitely been to coalition-type gatherings where that wasn’t present, and so there were tensions that gathered as we were having these strategic discussions. So, doing that proactive work is… something that’s often missing in these spaces.”

Natasha: “There have been quite a lot of gatherings in the UK to talk about this, but a lot of them have ended up centring the problem, rather than what can be done, and there’s been a lot of things that should be the beginning of a process, but they’re just an event that then is left hanging, and there have been some processes. I’ve been trying to get funding to do something more sustained with very limited success.

I’ve started doing unfunded, some convening of conveners that have started convening in their different spaces to build up a bit of momentum and relationships between people… we’re really thinking about how do you take that towards action, and I think the only way that you can really get different people to collaborate is by building relationships and building trust, and that takes time and needs some process.

But also, with getting people together, there’s a real balance between having an agenda that is very structured, and is too structured, and doesn’t allow space for things to emerge, and it being completely unstructured, and yeah, there’s nothing to kind of pull it together and identify those things, and then take it forward. So it’s really thinking about a balance.”

Hilal: Finished our discussion with a lesson from their work with Ulex, which was to “hold our opinions lightly,” rather than “my theory of change is better than yours,” etc.

The post Fighting the far right appeared first on Blueprints for Change.

Approximately 53 participants came from the following countries: Kenya, Uganda, Cameroon, Sénégal, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Malawi, India, the Philippines, Indonesia, Japan, Mongolia, Cambodia, Afghanistan, Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, Panama, Canada, the USA, UK, France, Germany, Austria & Slovakia

Resources on safety and security

The post How do we keep each other safe? appeared first on Blueprints for Change.

Many protestors were killed in these protests, many were also injured. Following actions, many activists faced abduction. There were also reports of infiltration. As a result of the protests, Kenya’s President removed budget lines, and fired the cabinet.

Quotes from group discussion have been anonymized.

Takeaways from this moment

“The protest is a cumulation of many issues; the finance bill was a trigger for all these grievances; housing, health etc. The bill was a commonality.”

“This is a question of ‘Finya’ (to keep pressing): Where we go next goes back to what it’s all about; basic health, education, infrastructure like roads.”

“The bill has been translated into 20 different languages, so that the information reaches more people… someone made a website on everyone in the cabinet; their salaries etc. to make this information more available.”

Sustaining accountability beyond ‘Ruto must go’

• • Advocating for the government to implement the public Participation Act, which could change the trajectory of how communities can prioritize development needs.
  • Advocating for yearly audits for MPs, wealth declaration etc for those in power.
  • Helping young people use their voice in budget proposals and policy involvement.
  • Education for young people to understand the budget making processes and what it means to advocate for expenditure, etc.
  • Translating all documents, including the constitution, into local languages.
  • Supporting young people to register as voters and take part in electing their leaders. 18-30yrs olds hardly voted in the last election.
  • Support amplifying the ongoing issue of abduction and murdering of young people.

Further questions

The post Kenya huddle: learnings and next steps appeared first on Blueprints for Change.

The current situation in Myanmar

Mandatory conscription and extreme violence

Since the attempted coup took place, the Junta has killed thousands of civilians including women and children.

For the past few months, the Junta has been putting up operations to bomb hospitals and schools in areas that are controlled by Myanmar resistance groups. In April 2023, the Junta took up an operation of aerial bombing in a village that took 165 lives.

The Military Junta enforced the Myanmar Conscription Law, forcing peoples of Myanmar age 18-35 to serve the Military Junta. The Junta is currently on its second wave of recruitment.

Since the active enforcement of the law, young people and their families have started fleeing and are now displaced in Mae Sot or in the areas of Myanmar that are controlled by resistance groups (liberated areas). Some are committing suicide to prevent from hurting other people and becoming human shields.

The Junta remains active in arresting political activists in the country.

Displacement and Migration

“Many Burmese people have been forced to flee in Mae Sot, the border of Thailand and Myanmar… One of the primary efforts of [our organization] is supporting displaced Burmese people and giving them necessary information.”

Economic Situation

“Prices of basic commodities have skyrocketed since the coup, making food and other household needs inaccessible to many… Many are in an internet blackout, and supplies to villages have been cut.”

How activists are showing solidarity

In Myanmar

The Blood Money Campaign aims to pressure companies that keep doing business with the military junta – especially countries that remain to trade jet fuel for the Junta.

[Our organization] has also been campaigning against the conscription law enforced by the Junta. Currently, we are collecting statements and mobilizing direct actions to stop the forced recruitment of young people.

In Thailand

Resistance groups have been lobbying, protesting and planning direct actions for a concrete action plan of the Thai government regarding the Military Junta. Thailand’s policy on the Myanmar issue is importance because of Mae Sot that sits on the border of Myanmar.

In the Philippines

The Philippines have formed a broad solidarity network for Myanmar. The network has been active in organizing protest actions and other creative protest actions to bring light on the situation of Myanmar.

The network has also lobbied the Philippine Government to fully recognize the National Unity Government (the democratically elected government of Myanmar headed by Aung San Suu Kyi) as the official government of Myanmar.

The UN and ASEAN continue to recognize the Military Junta as the official government of Myanmar.

Ways to support outside of Asia

• Provide these organizers contacts to journalists and writers to raise awareness.
• Provide monetary aid to sustain the resistance movement; most NGOs and funders pulled out of the region.
• Sign their statement in solidarity: Tinyurl.com/sol4burma
  • Consider having your organization release a solidarity statement against the military conscription law, against the actions of the junta and for democracy.
• If you are part of a student organization, amplify what is happening to young people in Myanmar.

The post What’s happening in Myanmar, and how can you help? appeared first on Blueprints for Change.

Our June call was an opportunity for GGSN members from India to give an overview of the situation in their region, and of the challenges they’re facing. Our September call brought together folks to discuss challenges and approaches for addressing rising authoritarianism generally. Our November call was a funder education event on the state of grassroots activism globally. Our October call featured discussion on accountability to launch our Accountability checklist, which coincides with our collaboratively developed Charter for equitable relationships between NGOs/funders and grassroots groups.

This summary does not cover all aspects of this topic. Rather, it provides a snapshot for some of the challenges and strategies relevant to grassroots organizing and support around the globe.

Quotes from discussion have been anonymized.

Overview of the situation in Southeast Asia

Waves of autocratization have been non-linear; most Southeast asian countries are in the same position.

“In Thailand, the biggest progressive party was dissolved by the monarchy. Smaller political parties were also dissolved. Myanmar is the biggest issue in the region, where the Junta facilitated a coup. In the Philippines, Marcos and Duterte continue to hold power; all power lies in two families. They have killed thousands of people in their war on drugs. In Indonesia, a murderous general is now president. In New Zealand, the conservatives have gained power. This is very reflective of the situation in Asia.”

Grassroots activists are pushed underground due to advanced surveillance.

“The Chinese government had drones fly over us and take photos to manipulate and amplify; these kind of tactics are used to scare activists in Thailand, China, the Philippines, this is happening all across Asia. Activists are hesitant to engage with cross-border organizations because of the real threats they’re facing. Especially in regions like Myanmar, beyond security and democratic backsliding, there are so many other issues they’re grappling with too.”

A culture of security is more important than the platforms themselves. 

“We are proactive with simulation audits, and scenario mapping to identify different risks. We have developed our own templates and tools for categorizing information and identifying who needs to have access to what. When contacting government officials, we rely on the back up of organizations to not expose our personal identities. Services like proton are safer but have a barrier of accessibility due to the prices. If a government wants to take you, they will despite the tools used. If we focus too much on security issues, we become alienated for acting on human right, since we feel like we are committing a crime. It is necessary to keep a balance.”

The main expressions of resistance; political parties exist in most of these countries, or they form new groups but find difficulty grappling with power.

“There’s trans-local and transnational approaches, such as the Milk Tea Alliance. It started with a # on twitter, which transformed from an expression of resistance into a space to collaborate and collectivize people. The alliance has come together against the occupation in Hong Hong, and for Thailand for the dissolution of their political party, and now for Myanmar. We are also present in the streets.”

Overview of the situation in India

The political context across the country

“For the last 10 years, the government has had openly fascist agendas. Minority groups, Indigenous communities, coastal communities and farmers are all groups that continue to be vulnerable alongside everybody who is fighting for civil rights…

These groups are also facing increasing amounts of climate threats. The Indian political landscape is not acting on the climate crisis. Even the other somewhat moderate political leaders and parties are yet to show awareness of the crisis.”

Context in Kashmir

“Young people are joining armed resistance, with no other option against the military state. The state is using chemical weapons to punish them. Locals are also punished; they’re framed and killed for crimes they didn’t commit. The media has been silenced. The government is taking land for tourism projects.

There is no political space in Kashmir. Leadership, journalists, activists are behind bars to send a message to people not to act. Civil societies are not producing research; the goal is to survive these times. The human rights commission is not working across the country, but especially in Kashmir. Cases can’t even be registered.”

Context in Jammu

“Jammu is a Hindi majority area, there’s some repression in the area. There have been internal issues between Kashmir and Jammu since 1947, which have been exploited by fascist government. The strategy of the government has been disconnecting these regions economically, so the local economies have been disrupted, with resources being corporatized. The government has worked to polarize these groups from their interdependence, and severe dialogue between Jammu and Kashmir.

Our climate action group began in 2019. We have a law in Jammu that prevents assembling for protests. However, many topics are depoliticized, such as environmental projects. There was no interference from police, just surveillance. Notably, Hindu communities (like the majority involved in this group) have more privilege.”

There’s a serious lack of legal support.

“A lot of youth collectives do rapid response, and when activists get arrested, there’s no structure for support in India. Amnesty and Greenpeace have programs where they provide immediate assistance to activists if they get arrested. But in India, we don’t have that. It’s just DIY solutions, no lawyers.”

Kenyan finance bill protests (against tax increases) were successful.

“Mobilizations were led by grassroots groups, with considerations for women, youth, and disabled people… Certain organizations could have been targeted by the government, but they could not identify a single specific organizer. Decentralization was the strength. These mobilizations activated people that were not involved in activism before, which is now having lasting impacts on movements in the country.”

Overview of the situation in Türkiye

How rising authoritarianism is impacting funding

Laws on preventing financing terrorism are being created to investigate civil society organizations, to prevent funding from abroad, and to shrink civil spaces. Funders are giving up on countries when things get bad, leaving grassroots more exposed.

Accounts are being frozen, and activists are being arrested, which incurs additional costs and financial insecurity.

Government responses to NGOs vs the grassroots

Ongoing challenges to NGO/grassroots partnerships (to fight authoritarianism)

There are divides within funding organizations/NGOs. Some people say we need to listen to the grassroots, others are more conservative. This can be influenced by geography, hierarchy, and whether staff do grassroots organizing and/or are part of marginalized groups themselves.

Funding and decision making is often top-down. Groups are implementing donor, rather than community, wants/needs. Funder/NGO priorities often shift, which restricts long term planning, sustainability and effectiveness.

The institutionalization of groups can slow things down and de-radicalize their actions and approach. There are also clear power dynamics between precarious organizers and paid staff. NGOs can become ‘brokers’ between funders and the grassroots, when the grassroots isn’t funded directly due to ‘risks’.

What support could look like

• Peer-to-peer knowledge exchange spaces to share lessons from other countries where authoritarianism is strong.
• Apprenticeship and continued eduction programs to support activists and groups self reliance.
• Funding community and independent media.
• Protection networks such as a legal hotline for local advice.
• Solidarity beyond statements, such as cross-border alliances for targeting the government embassies of neighbouring countries
• Sharing examples of alternative systems for self-sustaining communities
• Convincing local private companies to invest in resistance as local funders; good for business.
• Funding the work of organizers as service contracts to avoid surveillance.
• Translation support; language barrier creates a lack of access to resources.

The post Understanding rising authoritarianism appeared first on Blueprints for Change.

GGSN members were considering: We have people who are valued driven leaders who present themselves for election, who build power. But after elections, what’s your role? What skills and knowledge have you gathered? How can that be deployed to continue momentum, and to prepare for the next elections?

Quotes from group discussion have been anonymized.

In many countries, elections are increasingly untrustworthy avenues for change

Organizers from Kenya, Uganda, India, Japan, and the U.S. agreed that elections are not always democratic in practice—especially in increasingly authoritarian systems. But, even flawed elections can still be used as tools for organizing, relationship-building, and resistance, rather than just as moments to win or lose seats.

“In places like ours, do elections really matter — and if not, how do we turn them into tools for organizing and resistance anyway?”

Examples of how organizations around the world respond

We looked at 5 examples to map the different roles that organizations are taking to build power and lead to success in the elections that follow; base-building, political education, policy campaigns and internal pressure.

Example 1: Democratic socialists of America. After losing key races in 2022, NYC-DSA:

• Ran local policy campaigns and won in 2023
• Built tenant and worker bases (rent strikes, unions)
• Coordinated mutual aid and solidarity networks
• Used mass door-knocking to support organizer-candidates → culminating in Zohran Mamdani’s 2025 mayoral win

Example 2: After Labour won in 2024, Momentum UK:

• Trained organizers in political education
• Applied internal party pressure through policy and leadership organizing

Example 3: After winning a congressional seat in 2025, Gabriela in the Philippines:

• Filed electoral fairness complaints
• Continued grassroots organizing on women’s health, labor, and migrant justice
• Advanced international solidarity work

Example 4: After 2024 elections, KA.DER Türkiye:

• Documented gains/setbacks for women in politics
• Advocated legal and structural reforms
• Ran public education and media campaigns on gender and participation

Example 5: Future Elects Africa prepares candidates year-round through:

• Leadership development programs
• An app for entry-level political education

“These candidates reflected deeply on what they built during the election process. They took notes and made a commitment not to let that power disappear. They deliberately organized around the same resources they had developed — the people, relationships, understanding of the community, and their ability to communicate in inspiring ways. They used all of it to keep holding their government accountable.” 

Individuals and grassroots organizations have roles to play outside of elections

Are we ready for the next election? Or are we just preparing to defend ourselves again instead of shaping the narrative and strategy?”

Real power is built through:

Educating your community.

“Voter registration numbers in Kenya — especially among youth, who are the majority — were extremely low. That tells us something is wrong with how we organize. Either people have lost faith in the system and don’t believe they can create change, or they’ve become completely disengaged.”

Bringing community members together.

“Because of social media, nuclear families, and migration, many families are scattered…  We don’t talk to our neighbours… There’s little unity and a weak sense of collectivism — less recognition that we are interconnected, and that harm to one group eventually affects everyone.”

Understanding different community interests.

“Even though I didn’t win the seat, I carried these [electoral campaign] lessons back into my activism. Now, when I’m in community dialogues or organizing spaces, I always ask: Who should be in the room? Who has influence here? Who has a direct interest in this issue?”

Valuing everyone’s contribution (knowledge, skills, influence, connections—not just money or titles).

“During protests in Kenya in 2024, many of the people who showed up were young people with no formal roles or titles. But they had numbers, energy, and commitment. And that mattered.” 

Showing up consistently in small, practical ways.

“We’re helping [young people] submit written memos [in budget hearings and development forums]. And when they do, about 90% of those ideas actually make it into county or national plans. That shows people that participation works.”

Documenting abuses of power.

“Even in that [internet shutdown], people on the ground kept documenting abuses and injustices. When the internet was restored, we shared everything. We had planned for repression, and that preparation mattered.”

Calling on National and International networks of solidarity for support.

“We saw African and global leaders respond — and that shifted attention and pressure toward what was happening in Uganda.”

Building a base that is ready to mobilize in key moments.

“They didn’t know when the next election would be, so they wanted to make sure their base had built enough power that, whenever an election was called, they could mobilize immediately.”

Building resilient grassroots structures.

“You need a framework that consistently invites people in, provides moral clarity about what you’re trying to accomplish, and brings others along in the work… it needs clear goals, clear processes for onboarding people, and defined resources.”

Investing in leadership development.

“I’ve seen movements fizzle out again and again because of weak leadership. And we don’t invest enough in cultivating new leaders.”

The post Beyond elections, where do we go from here? appeared first on Blueprints for Change.

Managing internal conflicts is crucial for the success of broad-based organizing efforts, as unresolved tensions can lead to fragmentation, working at cross-purposes, and even the dissolution of movements. By strengthening internal capacity in tools that can address these challenges, movements can build resilience, foster collaboration, and maintain the alignment necessary to achieve their goals.

“Mediation for Movements: Managing Intra-Movement Conflict” was held on April 16, 2024, co-hosted by The Horizons Project and the Global Grassroots Support Network. This event was part of the Intermestic Learning Exchange Series hosted on the Democracy Resource Hub.

Webinar Transcript

The global panel of speakers included:

• Zelda Holtzman, formerly of Tshisimani Centre for Activist Education, South Africa
• Ruhie Kumar, Heatwave Action Coalition, India
• Wendy Wood, The Karuna Center, US
• Lisa Schirch, Kroc Institute, University of Notre Dame, US

Identity-Based Differences

Identity-based differences, such as racial, cultural, and generational backgrounds, can create significant tensions.

Ruhie Kumar, a climate activist from India, shared this story:
“I observed two groups and they were very specific. There was a group of queer women and people who are not identifying as men, and another group identifying as men. These two groups really wanted to be acknowledged and heard about what they were really feeling, but as one group they were not able to express that. Communication, it was constantly in that conflict zone…
In the two separate calls, the tone was very different because people were able to express themselves in a safe space. Safety is really essential to this sort of communication.”

• It can help to create spaces for different identity groups to express themselves separately before coming together.
• Learn how you can directly address marginalization and division that can occur within movement building from this Mobilization Lab resource: Do Better and Win Bigger by Taking on Marginalisation by Kaytee Ray-Riek.

Ideological and Strategic Differences

Ideological and strategic differences often come to the surface when members express divergent views on goals, priorities, and tactics.

“We often talk about civic engagement as something that we need to do in democracy for our governments but [it’s] really [about] being able to involve people in a movement in the decision making about the movement’s goals and tactics. …When you have a community that is fractured and even experiencing extreme cancel culture by both sides, the ability even for people to sit and talk to each other is gone. Deliberative technologies, like Polis, enable just a little bit of safety and ability for people to be able to talk on what are their shared commitments are. What are their shared values or principles.” says speaker Lisa Schirch, a movement mediation trainer and facilitator.

• If we can re-focus on shared interests and values, we can often re-establish common ground.
• Learn how you can communicate about common values with diverse audiences using Beautiful Trouble’s tool for seeking common ground.

Interpersonal and Relational Conflicts

Interpersonal and relational conflicts are inevitable when you are bringing together diverse coalitions and groups with different experiences, power, and priorities. When unaddressed, they can harm movement alignment and solidarity and erode trust.

“I’ve found that as the polarization has continued… that these feelings of isolation, anger, frustration, fear and so much more are starting to spill over into these organizations themselves. And for the people that work so diligently within these organizations.  It’s important to “develop skills related to what to do when differences arise,” affirms speaker Wendy Wood, co-founder of the Karuna Center for Mindful Engagement.

• Supporting intra-movement mediation capacity can help movement organizers and activists to hold dialogue and implement processes for understanding and restoration with coaching and guidance from a credible and trusted source.
• Connect with local mediation centers to learn about contextualized trainings they may offer to support your movement’s internal mediation capacity and check out this guide on Where to Start: Restorative Justice.

Structural and Systemic Challenges

Structural and systemic issues, rooted in historical legacies and internalized oppression, can create deep-seated tensions.

“Unity doesn’t come automatically; it’s a continuous engagement,” reinforces speaker Zelda Holtzman, anti-apartheid activist and trainer.

• Engaging in nonviolent direct action tactics that reinforce your movement’s common vision and points of connection can help foster alignment around the positive change you want to make and fortify movements from external pressure.
• Deepen your capacity with this mini-masterclass on the three tips of coalition building: “Why coalition building isn’t about the coalition: Listening, leading, and making change happen from Future Advocacy and Mobilisation Lab.
  • Dive deeper into these tips in their Creative Coalitions Handbook.

Organizational Capacity & Culture

Tensions are common when people are overworked and unable to approach the work with the intention and attention to building and sustaining a healthy, resilient, movement culture. But this is easier said than done.

“Early conflict management is essential for strong coalitions,” affirms Lisa Schirch.

• One strategy that can help is offering movement organizers space to attend trainings and coaching sessions that help strengthen internal capacity for conflict management.
• Visit the Democracy Resource Hub directory to check out organizations and networks who offer training on a number of different topics, including mediation and conflict transformation.
• “Principles of Co-operative Conflict Resolution” offers five tips from peacebuilding to help you de-escalate tense and challenging situations.
• Bridge-Building and Power-Building An Ecosystem Approach to Social Change [PDF] shows how the skills/tools of activists, bridge-builders, and organizers can mutually reinforce one another.

Q&A

In this section the speakers answered questions specific to their work:

Zelda Holtzman: What challenges and opportunities are emerging for movements building broad-based coalitions in South Africa and elsewhere?

Link to video (8 min)

Wendy Wood: What does mindful engagement involve, and how can it strengthen movements? Could you suggest key skills for handling conflicts within and between movements?

Link to Video  (6 min)

Ruhie Kumar: Could you describe the tensions you’ve faced in organizing movements and how they were addressed? What should people understand about how organizers manage conflicts, and how can non-activists support these efforts?

Link to Video (4 min)

Lisa Schirch: What insights or tools have proven effective for mediators within movements? How can deliberative technology improve mediation processes in social movements?

Link to Video (3 min)

Additional Learnings from Participants

The following ideas and insights from people who participated in the event.

Identifying and Addressing Tensions

• Recognize that fragmentation is the most difficult tension, and there is no one-size-fits-all solution.
• Acknowledge the importance of recognizing our own power and choosing whether to transfer, engage, maintain, or challenge it.
• Be aware that movements may have different goals, even when working side-by-side, such as the tension between stability and transformation.
• When bringing together practitioners across different fields and approaches, go back to the vision to determine when and how to engage with people in power.
• Differentiate between individuals and the system, personalize the struggle, and view people as potential agents of transformative consciousness.

Support and Initiatives for Intra-Movement Mediation

• Address the cultural denial of conflict and create spaces to transform it.
• Recontextualize conflicts within the larger movement strategy, recognizing that we are a movement of many movements.
• Conduct 1:1s with change-makers to help them engage constructively.
• Create parallel engagements that are less polarized to build relationships and navigate disagreements.
• Implement circle processes where leaders answer prompts to move away from cross-talk.

Building Credibility and Legitimacy

• Build internal capacity to avoid escalation, as mediators are often called in late.
• Approach mediation gently, focusing on skill-sharing and building confidence.
• Provide formal trainings on mediation and conflict management to build capacity and legitimize conflict as a normal part of movement-building.
• Organize listening circles within communities to hold space, problem-solve, and build confidence.

The post Mediation for movements: managing intra-movement conflict appeared first on Blueprints for Change.

• Sandra Portela, Xinca community member, Director of Alternativas de Desarrollo para las Juventudes y las Mujeres (ADEJUM) Izabal, Guatemala
• Christy Nag, Adivasi community member, Core member of Umul, an Adivasi led organisation in Dooars, West Bengal
• Christian Jake S. Tabara, Youth Campaign Officer for the Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM), the Philippines
• Leonard Mabasa,  Director for the Buhera Residents Network Trust, Zimbabwe

Speakers addressed how Indigenous land theft historically, and presently, is driving the need for land resistance efforts, and that there is no ‘just transition’ off fossil fuels without addressing the needs of the Global South. 

More specifically, the presenters touched on; how communities can be empowered through storytelling, that building up a diverse community network builds resilience, that building broad alliances with one common goal is effective, and empowering most affected community members with knowledge and skills builds ownership.

“There was an old proficiency that would say that when the planets are about to collapse, we need to become warriors of the rainbow. And this is important to recognize and value our colours, our differences. And this comes from inside, to the outside because we know that oppression and inequality is already there.” -Sandra Portela, Director of Alternativas de Desarrollo para las Juventudes y las Mujeres (ADEJUM) Izabal

You can access the whole edited transcript here.

You can view and hear the full english recording of the session here:

And vea y escuche la grabación completa en español de la sesión aquí:

La transcripción en español se puede consultar junto con la grabación de YouTube.

Indigenous land theft historically, and presently, is driving the need for land resistance efforts

IN INDIA: Community education and storytelling empowers community members to take part in resistance efforts

The British built the tea plantations (pictured below) in Adivasi communities through violent coercion and deception. Adivasis were held captive for labour, and were denied land rights and mobility. The colonial state supplied just enough to keep them alive to exploit their labour. 

“Due to the colonial state they had easy access to land, but to establish the tea plantation they needed a huge workforce… they uprooted and displaced Adivasis from their village.. they lost their forest, they lost their rivers, they lost their way of life and what did they get here? A life with no dignity.” -Christy Nag

In 1951, the plantation labor act was supposed to guarantee housing, healthcare, food and education to permanent workers. No tea company has implemented the act in full in Assam and in West Bengal. Around 50% of the workforce in the tea gardens are temporary workers, who do not have statutory rights. 

The minimum wage act was enacted but does not cover tea plantation workers. Tea workers earn about $1.38 USD)/hour less than the minimum wage. The image below shows some of the temporary workers of tea the plantations.

“There is again silence from the state and the unions have failed… in 2023 what the West Bengal government decided is to give away land to the tea companies. Earlier the land was given to the tea companies on lease, but in 2023 West Bengal government said okay we will make the tea companies owners of the land.

Here the key question is what will happen to the homes? What will happen to the workers living and working in the tea garden? The other thing is this amendment [says the land can be] used for tourism. It can be used for an industrial park. There’s no limitation to the usage of land.” -Christy Nag

The tea gardens land has 2 zones; one is the cultivation zone (managed by companies). The other is the village zone where people have built their homes and have kitchen gardens. Communities are declaring the land where they have been living and surviving, is theirs historically.

“From Umul, we organize a community library and we work with children and youth and women, primarily talking about what we have been discussing [in this event]. We have extended discussion around these things with the communities, primarily knowing our own story, our histories, what are the laws, and the other work that we do is around collectivization.” -Christy Nag

Question for Christy: How and why unions have failed in India?

“If we look into the union structure at the ground level, there are workers who are doing the footwork of the union, and at the top level you will not find workers and you will not find Adivasis. It is led by the Bengalies. So, even if they start negotiations with the state and the tea companies, slowly over time they give up because it is not their fight at the end of the day. 

In West Bengal, the Trinamool congress party is the ruling party and at the national level BJP is the ruling party who have formed the government in West Bengal. West Bengal is run by trinamul congress and India is run by BJP, it has formed the government in India… The unions are affiliated either with TNC or with BJP, and in Assam BJP has formed the government…. when the union is affiliated with the ruling political party, then the same political party is designing laws with the colonial mindset.” -Christy Nag

Follow and amplify Umul: Instagram

IN GUATEMALA: Developing a diverse community network builds community resilience; a necessity against violence

ADEJUM collective is formed by women and Indigenous youth, trans women and non-binary people in the rural areas. They live in Machacas Puerto Barrios in Guatemala. The Machacas river provides water for communities of the region. 

The water system is collapsing due to several projects that are related to fertilizer production, and oil and gas. The projects are being positioned over rivers and lakes, and the main root of the Machacas river. 

ADEJUM collective is resisting 5 projects. They have been persecuted with firearms of high caliber for their resistance to a project that is close to the river bend of the Machacas river. The river is an ancestral area for recreation, fishing and bathing. 

“This has forced us to move from our territory, [and caused the] social death of our community. Collectively it has made us invisible also to keep our colleagues safe, to keep a low profile, and also to understand when we can raise the bar, raise our profile and when we need to keep quiet in order to protect our safety.” -Sandra Portela

The projects are changing the ecosystems of swamps in the region. This is causing destruction to homes, notably impacting marginalized community members such as children, disabled people and elderly people. Sandra explained that species of duck and chickens that drink the water are dying, and they fear for their children that play and fish in the water. This is shown in the images above, shared by Sandra.

The collective has brought the issues to authorities through different voices and channels, from people who understand and live in the community. 

“We are Indigenous people, Xinca, Maya and there’s a wide diversity of people living here in this area and we are trying to move forward step by step and we always say that fear is inherited and we are trying not to pass down fear to our children. We’re trying to raise our voices because we know that we don’t want our children to be scared from their guns.” -Sandra Portela 

Community members are trying to participate in the recovery of the water systems through clean up days and forest replants. Some community members are shown in images shared above by Sandra, anonymized to protect their identities. The collective is fighting for the recognition of the river as a sacred being, not just a resource, to be honoured, supported and enjoyed by generations to come.

“We’re trying to develop the community network through different activities, related sports, cleanups, campaigns to prevent violence. We’re also trying to develop our traditions and communicate with our sacred spirits for them to give us the kind of strength to save our water system.” -Sandra Portela

Their call to action includes the protection of different species present in the Machacas, many of which have been lost. They are seeing animals coming back to the area. The collective needs communications support from organizations to prepare their storytelling and narratives to buy the swamps land for it’s protection.

This image, shared by Sandra, is of a local Otter threatened by activity from the projects they are resisting.

Follow and amplify ADEJUM Izabal:

• • • • • Facebook
          • Update on the criminalization of Machacas River defenders
        • Instagram
        • Tiktok

There is no ‘just transition’ off fossil fuels without the Global Majority – examples in the Philippines and Zimbabwe

IN THE PHILIPPINES: Broad alliances with one common goal are building widely supported campaigns

Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM) is a coalition of mining affected communities, local organizations. ATM is not advocating to ban all mining. Rather, they are advocating for an end to large scale mining which exploits mineral resources, undermining the value of land to Filipinos.

In the Philippines, there are 6 financial agreements with over 103 hectares of land being mined. There are 49 registered community mines.

“This mining is also exacerbated with the just transition that the global north is pushing for the energy transition for solar energy, wind energy or e vehicles. But there are communities in the Philippines that are suffering because of these transitions. So the just transition is kind of absent in the process and there are sacrifice zones like the Philippines, Indonesia and some parts of the global south.” –Christian Jake S. Tabara

The image shared above is of mining resistance in Cibuan Island, Harlon. Police are shown assisting a mining truck with the transfer the mineral ores.

Where there’s mining, there’s drought, air pollution, water pollution from their extraction, and other kinds of pollution. There’s also a disruption of livelihood for farming, fishing and the use of ancestral domains.

“[There is a] biologically dead river in uh Marindok, one province in the Philippines. So they declared the river as biologically dead, meaning after the tragedy where the mine tailings were, [they] spilled in the river and up until today the river is totally dead.” –Christian Jake S. Tabara

Based on the global witness report, the Philippines is the number one place in Asia where land and environmental defenders are threatened, and worse, being killed. The Philippines is third in the whole world after Brazil and Colombia.

In the Philippines, companies are joining the race for a position like Senate or Congress to ensure that there’s no laws being passed that delay their businesses. There is weak legal enforcement of environmental laws and accountability mechanisms. The government or the ministry of environment is selling the Philippines to foreign investors, effectively greenwashing mining operations in the country.

“We do community assemblies, Indigenous councils in Barangai level or village level to raise awareness amongst mining affected communities and create support from those who are not directly affected. Say, for example, in Metro Manila or universities near mining affected communities. And we also create solidarity networks among farmers, fisher folks, youth and translating it into more marginalized sectors like women, members of the LGBTQ, disabled people. So we’re also in the process of creating policies for these things and then we also have public campaigns, legal and policy engagement and cultural resistance.” –Christian Jake S. Tabara

Calls to action for the public include advocating to learn more about the effects of mining, and to support grassroots efforts through donations, volunteering and amplifying their stories. Create and share content to highlight local struggles and victories, and advocate for community-based alternatives like solidarity economies, ecotourism and agroecology.

For the government, they are calling on officials to enforce stricter environmental regulations, ensure environmental laws are observed, and to prioritize renewable energy and a just transition in communities.

The video above sums up the work of ATM. It includes a song composed by young people in the Philippines called “Ipamana Huwag Ipamina.” Ipamana means to inherit or to pass on. Huwag means don’t and is for mining. it translates to inherit it, don’t mine it.

Question for Jake: What lessons can you share about how you can build power together with organizations across diverse perspectives?

“We’re engaging the Catholic church as well because they have a push for influence. I mean, they are good partners when it comes to conservation of the environment. Then we have different religious groups as well, and academic institutions. So what we need to do is to create a popular version of our research so people from different sectors are engaging with it.” -Christian Jake S. Tabara

Follow and amplify Alyansa Tigil Mina:

• • • • • Website
        • Facebook
        • Instagram
        • Music video for Ipamana, Huwag Ipamina
        • Music video for Ipaglalaban ko, lupang sinilangan ko
        • You can also follow the Youth Empowerment for Climate Action Platform (YECAP):
          • Website
          • Facebook
          • Instagram

IN ZIMBABWE: Empowering most affected communities with knowledge and leadership skills builds momentum

The Zimbabwe government is projected to have a 12 billion economy by 2030 due to an abundance of natural resources (lithium, gold, phosphate, coal, diamond, nickel, iron etc). In Buhera (average population of 170,000), land represents life, stability, dignity and livelihood.

23 households were pushed from their ancestral land to relocated in Murambinda, an urban area. In 2024, it was found that the mining company Sabar Mine paid, who paid for each family to build a five room house, prejudiced their land size by 70 square meters to 120 square meters. 1,910 square meters were stolen by the local authority.

Engagement meetings were done in 2024 to compensate for the white collar crime. Compensation has not been done. The case is still being pursued.

“2 million litres of water is required to process one ton of lithium. Pollution of underground water and contamination in mine communities is a cause for concern. We did water testing for one bowl in 2024 and the results showed high nitrates, meaning the water is not suitable for drinking. The burden is for women, children, and [disabled people who] walk nearly 2 km distance to look for clean water as shown [in the picture above]. They fetch water a distance from their residence and they were using a vehicle that was offered by the counsellor in ward 14. ” -Leonard Mabasa

The image above, shared by Leonard, is of a burial shrine after the exhumation process. There was no emotional support for the deceased’s families.

Excessive abrasion of water causes water scarcity. Dust pollution impacts flora, fauna and over 2,000 school children along the 30 km gravel road that links the main road and the mine.

“Issues to do with harassment, intimidation and sexual exploitation are issues in the line of work. Below 18 years in terms of the law are not eligible for marriage or any form of sexual engagement. But because of mining, the girl child is at risk of sexual manipulation.” -Leonard Mabasa

Buhera Residents Network is empowering local women with knowledge and training, and documenting human rights violations. They keep online (including social media) and print media informed on the injustice happening at and around the mining site.

“To build a strong united front through the Buhera resident trust, we have trained 25 women to be women human rights defenders so that they can speak of injustice in their settlement. This is beefed up by 22 community leaders whom we train to document violations, be it environmental, social, economic or political.” -Leonard Mabasa 

The next tool they are trying to employ is exploring the Ramsar convention guidelines. They are assessing whether the wetland can be accorded a national or international wetland status, which may aid in conservation efforts.

Follow and amplify Buhera Residents Network:

• • • • • Facebook
        • For news updates, join the Enviropress Zimbabwe WhatsApp group

The post Building power with land defenders appeared first on Blueprints for Change.