Date: 28/04/2023

Time: 1pm GMT

Duration: 2 hours

Check-in and sharing

Physical Assembly in Kenya planning, ideas and involvement from members

GTAGlobal Tapestry of Alternatives Assembly members' updates and potential support/involvement from GTA

Facilitator: Donnie Maclurcan

Interpreters (es ↔ en): Bruno Pita and Victoria Heras

Donnie, Azril, Marco, and Vasna discussed the structure of GTA, including the endorsers, weavers, and founders.

The objectives of the Kenya physical gathering were discussed.
1) Building/strengthening the ties between Assembly members.
2) Facilitate a series of conversations between the core team, weavers, endorsers, and funders on radical alternatives emerging as responses to multiples crises.
3) Explore what kind of weaving could enhance global solidarity and foment critical mass to help transform the current system.
4) Strengthen ongoing documentation, research and mapping around alternatives.
5) Discuss ongoing and future GTA processes, activities & collaborations

FT also mentioned the funding constraints and the prioritization of inviting the core group and organizational endorsers due to limited resources, participants are being encouraged to source funding for their travels.

Vasna and others discussed the structure of the Global TapestryThe weaving of networks of Alternatives of AlternativesAre activities and initiatives, concepts, worldviews, or action proposals by collectives, groups, organizations, communities, or social movements challenging and replacing the dominant system that perpetuates inequality, exploitation, and unsustainabiity. In the GTA we focus primarily on what we call "radical or transformative alternatives", which we define as initiatives that are attempting to break with the dominant system and take paths towards direct and radical forms of political and economic democracy, localised self-reliance, social justice and equity, cultural and knowledge diversity, and ecological resilience. Their locus is neither the State nor the capitalist economy. They are advancing in the process of dismantling most forms of hierarchies, assuming the principles of sufficiency, autonomy, non-violence, justice and equality, solidarity, and the caring of life and the Earth. They do this in an integral way, not limited to a single aspect of life. Although such initiatives may have some kind of link with capitalist markets and the State, they prioritize their autonomy to avoid significant dependency on them and tend to reduce, as much as possible, any relationship with them. (GTA), which consisted of organizations doing work on the ground, weavers (networks of networks practicing radical alternatives), and endorsers (organizations and individuals aligned with GTA's work).

The group discussed plans for the upcoming assembly, including the importance of concrete plans and documentation. They also talked about their involvement with the World Social Forum. Regarding the World Social Forum, there has been a process called Towards a New World Social Forum in recent years. This was connected to some internal concern that the WSF was not taking a political stand. After some discussions within the International Council, the decision was made to create a WSF Assembly of People’s Movement which will have more of a political role. However, it is still in the early stages of development. The WSF itself is still ongoing in the current format and will take place in Nepal next year.

Donnie, Ashish, Shrishtee, and Vassna discussed updates on pressing matters and open dialogues in the GTA. People-2-people which was organised in January 2023 with MASSAMovement for Alternatives and Solidarity in Southeast Asia (South East Asia) AND Vikalp Sangam. It was a solidarity space mainly, so we don’t feel alone in our struggles. Hoping the next assembly will give us an opportunity to further this. We’re trying to prepare an analysis to present at the GTA Assembly.

Angging shared updates on the Southeast Asian Civil Society Conference whose announcement will be shared soon on the GTA forum, while Shrishtee gave updates on the resilience stories. Urvi shared information about the upcoming 10th issue of the GTA periodical, which will focus on social and environmental alternatives.

Madhuresh, Steve, and Donnie discussed the lack of activity in the Adelante network and the possibility of using it to push the revision of the World Social Forum, but Madhuresh stated that GTA has not yet collectively taken a call on where they stand with the WSF. They also reminded everyone of upcoming events, including an event that Ashish, Vasna, and Franco are involved in called “Learning from a Plural Verse of Radical Alternatives.”

Donnie mentioned that the reimagining education conference is going to take place in 2 days and GTA is participating.

The group discussed the possibility of making the upcoming assembly in Kenya more accessible to those who cannot attend in person due to monetary reasons. Virginia offered to help in any way possible to remove this constraint, while Ana suggested using WhatsApp and other means to allow remote participation.

There were questions about keeping the event hybrid and a lot of interest in participating remotely. The decision to avoid hybrid was explained (limited network at the facility).

Suggestion: Send links to the definition of GTA for first-time attendees, prior to the assembly, perhaps with invites https://globaltapestryofalternatives.org/definitions