WiPSA Virtual Event | Activism and Advocacy in times of COVID-19 | Friday, 9 October 2020

Fri Oct 9, 09:00 - Fri Oct 9, 11:00

Event is online

ABOUT

Dear WIPSA friends


Join us for our next WiPSA online event on Friday, 9 October 2020 where we share about activism and advocacy in times of COVID-19.


Forced by COVID-19, advocacy and activism have largely moved into the online space as face to face engagements have mostly not been possible. The online space has become overcrowded and social media content lifespan has shortened, yet there are organisations who have been successful during this time in mobilisation and lobbying for their causes. Where online was not an option, organisations had be creative around how to still engage governments. 


At our next WiPSA event, we will explore how COVID-19 has affected advocacy work for NPOs locally and globally. We will hear from three speakers who will bring their unique perspective. Claudia Arisi, Global Advocacy Advisor at SOS Children's Villages International, will join us from Austria to give an international perspective on advocacy during COVID-19. Carol-Ann Foulis will share the exciting case study on how DG Murray Trust together with other partners advocated for zero-rating of online services and resources provided by PBOs. Koketso Moeti, the executive director of Amandla.mobi, an independent, community advocacy organisation that seeks to build a more just and people-powered Mzansi will give an insight on how COVID-19 affected their advocacy driven work.


What we hope you will take away from the session:

-         Some insights into global advocacy work and how COVID-19 has shifted it

-         How to effectively mobilise to advocate and lobby government.

-         The shifts required in your advocacy work due to COVID-19.


Due to having to restrict the number of attendees for our virtual events, we are asking for a R50 donation to attend this event. All proceeds will be used towards purchasing data for under-resourced NPOs to allow them to attend our virtual events

Buy your ticket now to secure your place in this topical and inspiring session!


About the speakers:

Koketso Moeti

Koketso Moeti is the Founding Executive Director of Amandla.mobi. She has a long background in civic activism and has over the years worked at the intersection of governance, communication and citizen action. In 2019 she was announced as an Atlantic Fellow for Racial Equity. Koketso is also an inaugural Obama Foundation Fellow and an Aspen Institute New Voices Senior Fellow. She also serves as a reference group member of the Civic Tech Innovation Network and is the Deputy Chairperson of the SOS Coalition, a coalition of South African organisations committed to and campaigning for public broadcasting in the public interest. When not working, Koketso can be found writing and has been published by City Press, Al Jazeera, The Guardian, Africa is a Country, Salon and the Mail & Guardian, among others.


Carol-Ann Foulis

Up until recently, Carol-Ann Foulis was an Innovation Director at DGMT, heading up the strategy to ‘Nurture an innovative and inclusive society’. In this role, she worked on a diverse range of projects within the strategy of an innovative and inclusive society. These include: making the case for zero-rating of online services and resources provided by PBOs, developing and launching a Fellowship for young leaders within civil society, overseeing programme development for two community trusts benefitting from the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement (REIPPP) programme, and exploring strategies and interventions for tackling harmful drinking. Carol-Ann has a Master’s Degree in Development Studies (Politics of Alternative Development Strategies) from the International Institute of Social Studies in The Hague, Netherlands.


Claudia Arisi

Claudia Arisi, PhD in political science, is advocacy advisor for the promotion of the rights of children and young people at the international office of the SOS Children's Villages federation, which includes over 130 national associations. She works with various international civil society organizations, the UN and other intergovernmental institutions, in order to improve the protection systems for children and young people outside the family of origin and for families at risk of breakdown.