This panel discussion aims to consider how environmental campaigners can decolonise our minds when addressing colonialism, extractivism and environmental destruction. At the panel discussion, we will unpack how decolonising requires non-indigenous activists to critically examine our power structures, our governance, our social values and our ways of thinking, and identify assumptions that are fundamentally colonialist so that we can weed them out, making us more receptive to listening to and cantering the voices of First Nations Peoples both here in Australia and around the world.

MODERATOR: Apsara Sabaratnam teaches in the areas of Organisation Behaviour and Managing Diversity at University. She is the Secretary of Multicultural Greens Victoria, a member of Stand Together Against Racism and one of the organisers of Blockade IMARC.  Apsara is an intersectional feminist and a climate activist who has worked in the community as a tireless and fearless advocate for environmental and social justice causes. She believes movements for change can only occur when we build coalitions between unions, migrant communities and climate and social justice groups.

PANELISTS

Jessie Ferrari (They/Them) is a proud Trans and Queer Yorta Yorta person, living on sovereign and stolen Wurundjeri land. They are an ecologist and activist, who does research around Indigenous (particularly Koorie) scientific knowledge and how it can be used to care for country and help to decolonize science

Lungol Wekina is a writer, performer, podcaster, and activist living on stolen Bedegal land. His portfolio includes poetry, prose, podcasts, short stories, and essays. Wekina’s work centres his indigenous, Black, and queer identities and is primarily about decolonisation, social justice, and environmental protection. You can typically find him at [redacted]. He is also an Aries.

Ruchira Talukdar is a doctoral candidate in the School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Technology Sydney. Her PhD thesis compares coal conflicts and protest movements in India and Australia. Ruchira has worked within the environmental movement in India, with Greenpeace, and Australia, with Greenpeace and the Australian Conservation Foundation. She is a regular contributor to environmental politics at New Matilda and Newsclick (in India).

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Beyond Mining - Protecting land, water & life.

This podcast series was recorded from a number of talks, panel discussion & workshops held between the 22nd-29th November 2020 at the Beyond Mining Counter Conference. This counter conference was organised by Blockade IMARC. Blockade IMARC is made up of an alliance of organisations that have been protesting the International Mining & Resources Conference held annually in so-called Melbourne, Australia on unceded Wurunjeri & Boon Wurrung country. Content Topics: First Nations' Sovereignty, Capitalism, Colonialism, Extractivism, Activism

For more information, please check out blockadeimarc.com

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