Loomio
Mon 21 Jan 2019 12:59PM

2019 - developing our workshops

AG Angela Ghadery Public Seen by 134

Hello everyone, and welcome to our new members! I messaged just recently to say that the Brexit issue in the UK had been taking up all my time. Despite this though, we ran three successful workshops in Staffordshire in December - on Participatory Budgeting, Transparency and deliberative democracy. These were just a beginning I hope!

DiEM25 UK NC is focused on their Take a Break from Brexit Campaign and also setting up People's Assemblies around the Brexit Leave and Remain issues.

Personally, I am very much supportive of People's Assemblies but of the view that DiEM's policies are a much preferable starting point to bring about unity. That said, we now have:
1) the 8 DiEM25 Pillars
2) the European Spring 10 Point programme
(https://diem25.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/European-Spring-Policy-Programme_ENG_Final.pdf )
3) 6 points for people's debate specific to the UK that Yianis put forward in a recent article in Project Syndicate, which are
* The UK/EU relationship
* Ireland & Scotland
*The Constitution
*The Financial System
*Freedom of Movement
* The voting system

Personally I think we would be best now focusing on any of the 10 ES areas for workshops (and maybe rename in that case)? Your opinions please....!!
Here in the UK I also believe we can look at the 6 themes Yianis suggests but only once we have gained engagement / or at least concurrently but not beforehand, and that through the other issues in the 10 ES points relevant to peoples' ordinary day to day lives

So, during February, I will be setting up workshops and forums with the UK trade union, called UNITE. They are quite special because people who are unemployed can also join as 'community members'. Those of you based in the UK please get in touch if you'd like to be involved in those, as UNITE if of course, nation wide.

Those of you in other countries, do you have a similar union? It would be good to know, as perhaps there would be possibilities of parallel arrangements for workshops?

Look forward to hearing what you think regarding the above! Carpe DiEM!