“We need more empathy…”
Everywhere we turn we find ourselves yearning for a culture that brims with putting others first, serving the greater good, leaving no one behind and striving to be kinder than necessary. In our homes. Our places of worship. In our workplaces. In our schools. In our policies.
This new space is a place where we will both update on our activities, campaigns, and stories around the organisation but also from beyond us to others that inspire us to go further, exercise our empathy muscles and give us hope to strive towards a culture of empathy.
Thanks for reading and please share with other like minded (and hearted) people… Welcome to all who whisper: “we need more empathy…”
Today is Peace Day! Blessed are the peace-makers!
12-17th Oct: The Poverty Trap (TPT) in Tunbridge Wells
2-7th Nov: Desperate Journeys (DJ) in Tunbridge Wells
23rd Nov: TPT for a 100+ Y9s Headington School, Oxford (c 12 people needed)
1st Dec: DJ (new ‘stage’ version) - get in touch if you would like to help
Thanks Ma’am!
Queen Elizabeth modelled a compassionate faith and inspired caring communities! The past 10 days of national mourning for the late queen has triggered a lot of community sharing and coming together. We loved her passion for service, duty and vision for community and charity. All characteristics of growing a culture of empathy. Thanks for inspiring us here at EA we will continue to uphold and model these values!
Today is Peace Day (21st Sept)
We’re going to send a bullet bell to our MP (Greg Clark) with a request to intercede for peace, highlighting areas in need of peace (posting tomorrow morning at c 10am). Would you like us to add your name and area that is on your heart on our note? We’re inviting our audience (via social channels) to lend us their names and highlight known areas for him to intercede. Let us know today.
Here’s a list of some of the current places of conflict.
AND….we’re getting some local enquiries for TPTs next month and DJ in Nov
…(a few local schools: Tonbridge Girls Grammar School & Hilden Grange). We’re looking for some more group bookings for some of the slots. Know anyone who like to come or bring a group? (eg a youth group, a bunch of work colleagues or friends & family). Please pass on our save the date page.
This week exercise your empathy through diving a little deeper into how Peace Day came about in recent years.
A day that was only ratified (again) in 2001 by the UN (just days before the attacks on the twin towers) lobbied for by a dyslexic film-maker, Jeremy Gilley (… who also faced a barrage of “so what… it’s another meaningless day that does nothing for peace”.)
For Jeremy, the issue with peace was… it’s so big where do you even start. A great starting point. Watch his story here and world peace definitely needs more peace makers!
(It also inspired our campaign with NRS and resulted in making Peace Doves from the scraps of aid items like tarpaulin and blankets… and we used the doves to fire up conversations of peace in schools and they even ended up in New York for Global Goals week around the UN General Assembly and Cox’s Bazaar in Bangladesh)
What we are watching, listening, reading, attending…
Q. Did you know that seeing other people experiencing the cold can trigger you feeling the chills?
Your body can decrease its temperature just by watching others be cold.
It’s a thing… and it’s called the '“temperature contagion”… and you feel it because of your empathy muscle that is triggered by your mirroring reflex.
Check out more here.
Other reads, clips, podcasts, events, films from around the team
a great book on empathy, creativity and the spirit by poet and musician, Kae Tempest “On Connection”
We are Antartica - new film by by Reboot The Future: https://globaldimension.org.uk/campaigns/we-are-antarctica/ (we’ve been invited to the launch in a few weeks)
The company Patagonia puts the Earth as its only main shareholder
Little Amal is currently in New York around the UNGA
Saddened to learn that Vicky Bowman who we met in Yangon (at a simulation called ‘Learning the Hard Way’) is arrested in Myanmar
6 ways to help us…
Volunteer - we really need a bunch of regular helpers (eg a few hours or more(!) a week or for our immersive workshops from time to time).
Share the news! - please forward, share any social media posts. Ta!
Spread the word! - we’d value an intro… to any potential vols, customers or even clients! Word of mouth is the best!
Become an Empathy Angel - this year we are looking for 100 ‘Empathy Angels’ to help invest into us as we reboot empathy action to build a ‘Culture of Empathy’. Could you spare us the price of a cuppa (£2.50) a week… We can’t and don’t want to do this alone!
Host a coffee morning with a table of our handicrafts to sell and invite interested people to learn more and enjoy a cuppa
Via smile.amazon - link here to enable amazon to give money to EA
Thank you!