How to Use Your Creative Business as a Platform for Activism

“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” - Anne Frank

Something true of our members across the board is their desire to do good things with their businesses. And many of you are looking to do even more. So, in this Masterclass, we’re taking a deep dive into Activism and the hundreds of ways you can positively change our environment and society.

We've established that everyone can be - and on some level already is - an activist. But what if you want to campaign for change? Where do you start?

In this lesson, we draw on the advice of activist Gina Martin to bring you a series of things to consider when planning and running an activism campaign. Think of it as your campaign checklist. And then get out there and fight for what you believe in!

You've decided on a worthy cause, and your campaign is underway. But how will you make sure that it has the impact and reach it deserves? From targeting the right individuals to ensuring you get great press coverage, this lesson is about raising your campaign profile for maximum effect. 

If you put your head above the parapet, stand up for something you care about and shout about it, you're likely to get pushback. Unfortunately, this can sometimes take the form of online abuse. In this lesson, we will explore tools you can use to deal with trolls and bullies and ensure that you can maintain your resolve as you fight for your cause. 

Well done - you're campaign is over! Maybe you have secured the change to legislation that you were hoping for, or raised well over your goal amount of money for an amazing cause. So, what now? 

Climate change is affecting every one of the earth’s systems. We have just over a decade to cut pollution or CO2 and limit the global temperature rise to two degrees Celsius or less if we are to prevent the collapse of the natural world and the societies that rely on it.

The impact of climate change is already being felt in our food chains, contributing to refugee crises in some countries and creating a global security nightmare for domestic governments and international bodies. So why is it so bloody hard to convince people to act??

Breaking the climate silence is essential to break human cognitive biases and psychological barriers surrounding climate issues. 

Katharine Hayhoe, ‘The most important thing you can do to fight climate change: talk about it’. 

If you are an activist working in the climate change arena, chances are you have come up against both climate change deniers and climate anxiety or despair. Climate change deniers are those people who refuse to accept the facts of climate change. Sometimes, as an activist, you will come up against these kinds of people. This lesson will help you to deal with them. 

Climate anxiety or despair is a term that refers to the feeling of helplessness that many feel in the face of such a large, daunting and seemingly unmanageable issue. 

This video will give you some tools that you can use to work through both, and make sure that you don't lose sight of what's important as you fight against climate change.