Connecting Hearts, Connecting Minds, Connecting Community, Funded by National Lottery Bringing People Together
We’re absolutely delighted to share that we’ve kicked off our new UK Project: ‘Connecting Hearts, Connecting Minds, Connecting Community’, funded by the National Lottery Community Fund’s Bringing People Together!
Through this programme, we will be taking our flagship course – ‘The Mighty Heart’ – to community leaders in six UK cities: Luton, Newham in London, Cardiff, Bradford, Glasgow and Belfast. The course is for anybody wanting to make a change in their community, and for established community leaders who would like to gain energy, inspiration and the opportunity to connect and share ideas with others in the UK working on grassroots social change.
Those taking part will learn how to develop deep listening skills to transform conflict, become skilled in using anger to fuel transformation, and will increase their capacity to take a stand on issues that are important to them. We will also be opening up opportunities to train to become a Mighty Heart facilitator so that the course can be delivered more widely, and will be offering a small number of seed grants for new projects.
What people will gain from taking part:
● Alignment/re-alignment with your purpose – find or reconnect with how you can make a difference in the world
● Learn and practice new skills – such as deep listening, taming your inner critic (sometimes referred to as ‘imposter syndrome’), and gaining the courage and capacity to take a stand
● Inspiration – hear from inspirational speakers who have driven social change around the world from the grassroots
● Connections – interact with people working on grassroots social change from all over the UK – through highly interactive and participatory sessions
● Energy – as community leaders working for grassroots social change, we rarely take the time to recharge our batteries, learn new skills/refresh old ones, or draw strength and inspiration from others – this will be a unique opportunity for this
● Accessible learning – the course will be delivered live online, with opportunities for in-person activities in each of the cities
● Join a global Mighty Heart Community – we’re hoping to create opportunities to connect with change agents from all over the world through our global Mighty Heart community
● Apply for a seed grant after the course is over to get a new project off the ground
So far, the Mighty Heart has played a transformative role in global corporations, and has supported individuals working for social change around the world. We’re so excited to be bringing it to communities across the UK.
In the words of Dr Scilla Elworthy, our founder:
“The ideas are there in profusion, everywhere you look. The energy for change is there too, simply bursting out…Brilliant projects are underway, producing hundreds of examples of effectiveness. We look forward to connecting these dots of light until they are a phenomenon to bring about change…”
If you live/work in one of the six programme cities, and would like to get involved, please contact Madeleine: madeleine@planforpeace.org
