The Weekend To Inspire

THE WEEKEND TO INSPIRE
ON CATCH UP

The Ripples of Hope Weekend to Inspire
brought together conversations, workshops and performances,
for us to explore together the world as it is
and as we can make it.

Our audiences heard from - and added their voices to -
activists, performers, poets, organisers and artists
as we share stories, discuss and debate, laugh and listen
around our five themes:

Dignity & Justice

Equity & Equality

Arts & Culture

Activism & Participation

Environment & the Planet

We're delighted to share for a limited time
the livestreams from the powerful conversations had in
HOME's Theatre 1 during the Festival:

DIGNITY & JUSTICE - Where Are We Now?

Theatre 1

10am

Ground Floor

One of the UK's most distinguished human rights lawyers, Baroness Helena Kennedy QC takes stock of where we are now; the forces and trends defining our future and what we must do now - locally, nationally and internationally.

Speakers include:

Imtiaz Dharker, Poet, artist and video film-maker
Jude Kelly, Artistic Director, Ripples of Hope Festival (Chair)
Kerry Kennedy, President, Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights
Keisha Thompson, Manchester-based writer, performer and producer

11.15am

The Power of Policy: Intended And Unintended Consequences

Theatre 1

11:15 am

Ground Floor

Policy has the power to change every part of our lives - for good or bad. But so much about it is hidden in faceless bureaucracy, making it impossible to fight or challenge on a human level. How we make policy and who we make it for impacts all of us. So - how can we use the power of policy to create positive social change?

Speakers include:

Amelia Gentleman, Journalist and Author
Jude Kelly, Artistic Director, Ripples of Hope Festival (Chair)
Togara Muzanenhamo, Poet
Sally Penni, Founder, Women In The Law

What If The Law IS An Ass?

Theatre 1

1:30 pm

Ground Floor

The law is imperfect: From legal challenges to creating law where none exists - how can we move from legal injustice to enabling human rights to be reality through law.

Speakers include:

Baroness Helena Kennedy QC, Human Rights Barrister and Patron, Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights UK (Chair)
Gina Miller, Transparency and Rule of Law Campaigner
Figen Murray, Activist behind Martyn's Law

2.45pm

A Health Emergency: The Pandemic Of Male Violence

Theatre 1

2:45 pm

Ground Floor

In private, in public, in the headlines - male violence infects every part of our society. And COVID has been a super-spreader as rates of violence have gone up around the world. We say 'Time's Up', but what do we ALL have to do to end it?

Speakers include:

Nazir Afzal, former Chief Crown Prosecutor for NW England
Nimco Ali, CEO, The Five Foundation
Mona Arshi, Poet and Novelist
Gary Barker, President and CEO, Promundo
Jude Kelly, Artistic Director, Ripples of Hope Festival (Chair)
Harriet Wistrich, Founding Director, Centre for Women's Justice

Afghanistan - What now?

Theatre 1

4:00 pm

Ground Floor

Together, we look at what we can all do to take part in the decisions that shape our communities, society and future - and how we make sure everyone is able to take part as much as they want to.

Speakers include:

Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, Journalist and Author (Chair)
Mike Garry, Poet
Qazi Marzia Babakarkhail, Former Judge in Afghanistan
Jude Kelly, Artistic Director, Ripples of Hope Festival
Gulwali Passarlay, Author, The Lightless Sky and Refugee Rights Campaigner

EQUITY & EQUALITY - Where are we now?

Theatre 1

10am

Ground Floor

The award-winning author and broadcaster - and a professor of sociology at the University of Manchester - Gary Younge explores where we are on equity and equality, concepts at the core of human rights, and where we go next, both in places close to us and across the world.

Progress: Two Steps Forward and One Step Back

Theatre 1

11:15 am

Ground Floor

Progress is not a straight line - it often provokes a backlash that brings to the surface attitudes and prejudices that had been hidden. What are the gains we've made and how do we deal with both backlash and the rise of new anti-progressive attitudes across the world?

Speakers include:

Caroline Bird, Poet and Playwright
Jane Fae, Writer and Feminist
Cherylee Houston, Actor
Kerry Kennedy, President, Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights
Peter Tatchell, Campaigner and Director, Peter Tatchell Foundation
Gary Younge, Author, Broadcaster and Editor-at-Large, The Guardian

Human Rights And The Next Frontiers

Theatre 1

1:30 pm

Ground Floor

The state of human rights is constantly changing: Removing structural racism, rethinking asylum on a warming plant, the equitable sharing of the vaccine globally; just three frontiers, and now Covid has revealed so much inequity, what will we do? As we look at the world now, what are the new frontiers and possibilities for human rights?

Speakers include:

Gracie Bradley, Interim Director, Liberty
Maya Foa, Co-Executive Director, Reprieve
Jude Kelly, Artistic Director, Ripples of Hope Festival (Chair)
Mandu Reid, Leader, Women's Equality Party
Peter Tatchell, Campaigner and Director, Peter Tatchell Foundation
Sjon, Poet, Novelist and Lyricist

I See You, Do You See Me? Poverty & Disability

Theatre 1

2:45 pm

Ground Floor

Being seen and acknowledged is essential to our dignity being respected. The difficult truth in our society is that if we are poor or have a disability, we are less likely to be seen and acknowledged, reducing our power to make decisions in our interest. As we look to our society in the future, how can we truly recognise and value people's dignity - to see them - in our environments, culture, attitudes, behaviour and decisions?

Speakers include:

Jumoke Abdullahi, Co-Founder, The Triple Cripples
Stef Benstead, Disability & Social Security Researcher
Tishani Doshi, Poet and Novelist
Leena Haque, Senior UX Designer & BBC Neurodiversity Lead
Dave Moutrey, CEO, HOME (Chair)
Nadine Travers, Grassroots Commissioner, Poverty Truth Commissioner.

Whose story is it?

Theatre 1

4:00 pm

Ground Floor

Stories are part of what makes us human. At their best, though perhaps all too rarely, museums can be spaces for identity-forming and truth-telling. They ask “what is the story we tell ourselves about ourselves?” How might museums and the arts make room for new, inclusive narratives, perspectives and experiences? How do acts like repatriation shift the processes, language and thinking of the past to build empathy for the future?

Speakers include:

Dr Njabulo Chipangura, Research Fellow and Curator, Wits University, Johannesburg, South Africa
Shivanee Ramlochan, Poet
Joelle Taylor, Poet
Esme Ward, Director of Manchester Museum (Chair)

ARTS & CULTURE - Where are we?

Theatre 1

5:15 pm

Ground Floor

The Artistic Director of The Ripples of Hope Festival Jude Kelly explores how people are using the power of the arts to create change now and how we can encourage support artists and activists in our communities and globally to give life to our calls for change.

ENVIRONMENT & THE PLANET - Where are we now?

Theatre 1

10am

Ground Floor

Climate activist, former President of Ireland, former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and Chair of The Elders Mary Robinson calls us to collective action on the climate crisis, taking urgent hope from the work of people and communities across the world.

Speakers include:

Rabia Begum, Student, Artist and Climate Justice Activist
Emma Greenwood, Youth MP for Bury Council
Jude Kelly, Artistic Director, Ripples of Hope Festival (Chair)
Luthfur Rahman, Deputy Leader, Manchester City Council
Tim Smit, Founder, Eden Project

Good Growth, Bad Growth And How We Build Back Better

Theatre 1

11:30 am

Ground Floor

For so long, our success has been measured in financial terms, not the health of our planet or the happiness of our communities. How do we change what we measure and give value to things that support a healthier and more sustainable world?

Speakers include:

Sophie Benson, Journalist
Gordon Brown, Prime Minister, UK 2007-2010
Kimberly Campanello, Poet
Lucy Danger, Chief Executive, EMERGE 3Rs
Paul Lindley, Founder, Ella's Kitchen & Chair, Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights UK (Chair)
Keisha Thompson, Manchester-based Writer, Producer and Performer

Kailash Satyarthi In Conversation

Theatre 1

1:30 pm

Ground Floor

Kailash Satyarthi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 for leadership in a global movement to end child slavery and exploitative child labour practices. At a time, when we face a global financial and health crisis that puts huge pressure on children, Kailash joins Ripples of Hope to share his story, ideas and hopes for the future.

Ecocide: Putting The Earth In The Witness Box

Theatre 1

2:45 pm

Ground Floor

A law of ecocide would see acts of ‘massive environmental damage’, such as oil spills, large-scale deforestation and extensive pollution, become criminalised at the International Criminal Court, alongside genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and crimes of aggression. How might that change the behaviour of industries and governments that currently ride roughshod over the planet's needs?

Speakers include:

Nnimmo Bassey, Director, Health of Mother Earth Foundation
Jude Kelly, Artistic Director, Ripples of Hope Festival (Chair)
Jojo Mehta, Co-Founder, Stop Ecocide International
Karen McCarthy Woolf, Poet and Broadcaster
Philippe Sands, President, English PEN

Stop Screwing Up Our Future

Theatre 1

4 pm

Ground Floor

In the face of the climate crisis, deepening inequality and rising authoritarianism, never has that generational promise "to pass on a better world to our children" seemed more unlikely. Young people all over the world are rightly demanding more. Join young leaders to explore the question - what actions have we got to take now for all of our future?

Speakers include: