Around the
world today, movements and communities are making history – or trying to. Austerity is being challenged across
Europe. Elsewhere massive popular
movements are challenging the powerful:
from Latin America and Hong Kong to Turkey and US cities. In Ireland,
struggles around water charges, fracking, abortion rights and direct provision
are shaking the old certainties that “there is no alternative” to
neoliberalism, that being co-opted by
state institutions is the only game in town, that communities are
powerless, that we are condemned to an endless rerun of the same party
politics.
The need for change is huge
and the outcome is still all to play for. We see seemingly unstoppable
movements squashed - and seemingly hopeless ideas winning against all the odds.
Movements seem to come out of nowhere and shake the powers that be – but then
it can be hard to see a way forward. What makes the difference, and how can our
movements really change the world?
Are you
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Active in political and social justice struggles?
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Committed to community activism but frustrated by the
co-option of the sector?
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Fighting to preserve radical education in a seemingly
cold environment?
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Politically minded but don’t know how to turn that
into an effective and radical practice?
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Involved in NGO or trade union activism but feel constrained
by structures?
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Committed to a more equal and just society but unsure
how to build on this commitment?
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Interested in spending a year with experienced activists
and community educators?
The Masters in Community Education, Equality and Social Activism
(CEESA) at Maynooth responds to the crisis as we learn from each other’s
struggles in dialogue between different movements, different communities and
different generations. The course is not tied to any single movement and
participants come from many different communities and countries. Some are
experienced activists who want to go back to education; others are people who
are just getting involved in movements.
This lively mixture of ages,
backgrounds, experiences and questions is an integral part of what makes the
course so rewarding. Together we are building a diverse network of movement
activists, radical educators and campaigners for equality and creating new
alliances for change. See the video at http://tinyurl.com/ceesavideo
The course team are experienced
practitioners and engaged researchers working on equality, radical education
and movement struggles. The course combines political strategy, bottom-up
organising methods and social analysis with a wide range of learning and
research approaches. Its focus is on
“useful” knowledge for change and encompasses a practical but radical look at
the issues facing movements today. We don’t just learn within the classroom: we
organise joint events with a huge range of community groups and social
movements in Ireland as well as running events with international activists
like Hilary Wainwright, John Holloway, Selma James, Ian Manborde, Jane
McAlevey, Eurig Scandrett, Rhetta Moran, Firoze Manji, John Krinsky…
Often we are told we have to
choose between our politics and “real life”. This Masters shows how to
integrate the two with confidence, practicality, solidarity, emotional
resilience, seeing the bigger picture, taking time out to reflect and
supporting each other for the long haul. Participants re-engage with their own
movements refreshed, with new ideas, thinking and networks, to set up new
projects, to find work in movement organisations, to go on to further education
- and bring back what they have learned to their own struggles.
Image:
Spectacle of Defiance and Hope
Fees and
funding info: http://ceesa-ma.blogspot.ie/2016/02/how-to-apply-fees-and-funding-2016-17.html
Application deadline: May 30th 2016
