Mission Equality CIC

You may recall we promised an update on some significant changes we’ve been busy working on at Mission Equality…well here they are! 1. Mission Equality CIC will be refocusing to build a product on our roadmap that we weren’t due to work on until late into 2025…the ‘equality curriculum’ for young people. Our goal is to secure funding for this as a non-profit, Community Interest Company (CIC) so the offering can be completely free for everyone. You can read a little more about our new direction here: www.MissionEquality.org 2. We will continue to work with businesses and organisations under a new for profit entity, Mission Different. This is currently in pre-launch and you can take a sneak peek here: www.MissionDifferent.com 3. Both organisations will form the beginnings of our own Equality Alliance, the progress of which we will share here: www.PathToEquality.com There is MUCH to do, not least of all build the products! Our current priorities however are to secure funding for ME, secure some early pre-launch sales for MD and then build the teams for each organisation. More on each of those soon...

Leading not one but two start-ups is a wild ride 🎢 Mission different is…different. We’re busy in build mode behind the scenes but if you’re curious what we’re up to, take a look at our website (link in the comments). Thankfully we intentionally have a sustainable pace at both Mission Different and Mission Equality CIC which makes it do-able while also single parenting and home educating my two kids! What we’re building at MD is - in a snappy nutshell - leadership training and development with a difference. It’s more than the ‘softer’ skills…It’s equipping folks with the real world skills we all need to lead themselves and others from and to a foundation of equality. These skills are hugely lacking and the education system is not addressing them either (hence Mission Equality’s mission). We will shortly be looking for organisations to help test what we’re building…DM me if you’re interested. Note: We don’t work for free so this will require investment but at a significantly lower rate than when we’ve launched.

Alongside scarcity and individualism, the concept of POWER is another principle of colonialist thinking that keeps us locked in battle, pitted against each other, BY DESIGN. COLONISED… Today, the concept of power is an accepted norm. Power is seen as: - Limited, with only so much to go around (scarcity!) - Something that typically therefore needs to be kept, and not shared by those who have it. - Being used to act in other peoples’ best interests (for those in power to keep it!) But why do we need power at all?  As 'we' Brits colonised other lands, once control was gained, power was used to maintain that control. The same is true today in countries, cities, towns, communities and organisations. From these colonial roots, today we typically see power manifest as: 1. Power hoarding - controlling access to key tools of power such as knowledge, money, food, weapons to maintain control over people or land (or an organisation). 2. Paternalism - making all the decisions for the people you govern, employ, or are responsible for, so that they cannot or do not have to make their own decisions. 3. Defensiveness - a strategy designed to keep power where it is. We are conditioned to see power as a ‘good’ thing; as something we should want and work to have. “Look at what we could do if we had the power instead”... Power pulls heavily on scarcity thinking and the emotion of fear; if power is limited (scarcity thinking), then to gain it we must take it from somewhere/someone else. With that goal of taking it from somewhere else in almost everyone’s minds when they want more power, it typically means that those in power operate from a space of continuous fear of losing the power to somewhere/someone else. Power is a very smart mechanism to keep people afraid of each other, pitted against each other and therefore maintain control over them. VERSUS DECOLONISING… What if, instead of redistributing power, we took power out of the equation ENTIRELY? What would that mean? Imagine if instead of power and control, we operated from the paradigms of trust and freedom...what could our world look like then? —— [Image Description: A graphic of two halves. The top half has a faded image that depicts/represents the colonising of a map with text that reads: Power & Control: Power is needed to keep control of everything and everyone. Underneath this, sitting above the dividing line is the word “COLONISED”. Below this, underneath the dividing line on the lower half of the graphic is the word “DECOLONISING”. The lower half of the image has black text on a white background that reads: Trust & Freedom: Trust in ourselves and others creates freedom of choice for everyone.]

In just under 3 weeks time, I'll be moderating a panel at the Ashoka Changemaker summit with some outstanding fellow changemakers, Nani Jansen Reventlow of Systemic Justice and Stephanie Brobbey of Good Ancestor Movement The theme this year is on True Participation; we'll be facilitating a participatory session on "Building Ecosystems of Change from Within: How and Where do we Start?". Join us? More info in the comments.

Alongside scarcity, INDIVIDUALISM is another damaging principle of colonialist thinking that keeps us locked in battle, pitted against each other, BY DESIGN. COLONISED… In this context, individualism emphasises the value and worth of the individual, and prioritises our individual needs. Along with the concept of scarcity, this principle is used to keep us disconnected from each other, fighting each other for what's ours and far away from the idea that there's a different path we could choose to take that looks nothing like the isolated, lonely and disconnected lives so many of us lead. If we're kept in this state we'll buy more (food, experiences, products, devices...things we really don't need), to try and fill the void that exists. And capitalism...persists. VERSUS DECOLONISING… So how do we shift from this colonised way of thinking to decolonising? Imagine if what we worked towards was balancing the value, worth and needs between the individual, collective and systemic? What then? Perhaps then we'd be an integral PART of our ecosystem, instead of believing we need to dominate and control it to thrive... —— [Image Description: A graphic of two halves. The top half has a faded image that depicts/represents the colonising of a map with text that reads: Individualism: "My needs are more important than yours". Underneath this, sitting above the dividing line is the word “COLONISED”. Below this, underneath the dividing line on the lower half of the graphic is the word “DECOLONISING”. The lower half of the image has black text on a white background that reads: “Considered Balance: The needs of the individual, collective and systemic are considered and balanced”.]

There are certain legacies of colonialism - beliefs, mindsets or principles - that continue to dominate today and that perpetuate the harmful status quo. These legacies keep us locked in battle, pitted against each other, BY DESIGN. You will see and experience them embedded and integrated into all the systems we operate within - governance, health, education, justice, economic and more. —— COLONISED… One of these principles is SCARCITY. That there’s just not enough to go round. This principle is used to keep us believing that we need to spend ALL our attention, time and energy working hard to secure the limited resources that exist… WHY? Because if we’re so occupied fighting to get our share of what there is, we’re too busy to do anything else, not least of all question this status quo and whether it’s actually a truth and works for us all. VERSUS DECOLONISING… So how do we shift from this colonised way of thinking to decolonising? Imagine if we ALL believed there was ENOUGH for everyone; what then? —— [Image Description: A graphic of two halves. The top half has a faded image that depicts/represents the colonising of a map with text that reads “Scarcity Thinking: There’s not enough to go round; we must fight each other for what’s ‘ours’. Underneath this, sitting above the dividing line is the word “COLONISED”. Below this, underneath the dividing line on the lower half of the graphic is the word “DECOLONISING”. The lower half of the image has black text on a white background that reads: “Abundant Thinking: There’s enough for everyone; we can take what we need and leave the rest for others”.

DECOLONISING… 1. One of the basics of anti-oppression work and decolonising is to not centre oneself when others are experiencing harm. 2. Another is to believe a global majority/deliberately disadvantaged person when they tell you you’ve harmed them. 3. A third is to sincerely and genuinely apologise and commit to doing better next time. VERSUS COLONISED… 1. This week has not been the time to centre oneself or one’s struggles as a white person or make yourself a victim, no matter what’s going on in your life. And especially not at the expense of a Black or Brown person. 2. Nor is it the time to deflect any harm you’ve caused back on the harmed person, or attempt to make it their fault or deny their experience. 3. And any apology must come with changed behaviour, and a deep commitment to understanding the roots of harmful behaviour, or it means nothing. Sometimes a refresher on the basics is necessary…

This week has been an extreme week on the path to equality...and obviously not in a 'positive' way. Our co-founder, Lea, is from and lives in the UK and has experienced numerous racially aggravated 'micro' aggressions, more so than usual. She is not alone... We send our unwavering and unyielding love and support to all Global Majority folks in the UK who have quite likely had one of the toughest weeks in a while. Stay safe this weekend; nothing about it feels normal despite the relative calm after the storms of the past 2 weeks. We remain hopeful in our mission - it's hard sometimes! - and members of our team are supporting Mission Different in the creation of something we hope will help...a training mission, "Decolonising 101" (hope on over to that page for more info).

Hi all, I'm announcing that I'm stepping back from Mission Equality CIC, with effect from 28 June 2024.  I have very much enjoyed being part of the early startup phase of the company. I'm proud of the work we've done as a team, the resources we've produced, and the impact we've had on conversations around equality. We have always been willing to make a pivot as we learn and grow, and this announcement is a result of one of those pivots. Going forward, Mission Equality will focus on the youth education part of our roadmap, with the business education handled by another company in a pilot Equality Alliance. I know that it's not the right time for me personally to take Mission Equality forward into the next phase, which is why I've made the difficult decision to step back.  I look forward to supporting Lea, Mae and the rest of the team and Equality Alliance as they continue to make a huge impact on equality in business and education.

Startup life is nothing if not constant change. We have been busy behind the scenes strategising and planning our path (to equality) forwards as we learn ever more from the consulting and client work, and work to optimise our product roadmap. We will be saying goodbye to Sharon Hurley Hall (she/her) who has made the difficult choice to step back from leading Mission Equality as of Friday 28th June, as we pivot our focus (more on that soon). We are sad to see Sharon go, immensely grateful for her contribution to the mission so far and look forward to all continuing to work towards the same goal, albeit now from different vehicles.