Description
International cooperation - especially "development cooperation," but also civil society collaboration across borders - is still shaped by colonial patterns. Money and decision-making power often sit in the Global North. Technical project plans frequently ignore the real causes of inequality. Communities meant to benefit have little say. And whose knowledge counts, and who gets to teach versus learn, often still follows old colonial hierarchies. Since decades, civil society groups in many places have pushed back (through protest, critical research, education, advocacy and critical consulting with(in) institutions, and building alternative practices). Progress has been made, but backlashes exist, change remains slow and fragmented across the globe. This workshop is about learning from each other and connecting efforts by civil society to decolonize international cooperation.Over two hours, we will start with 3-4 short impulses (5-10 minutes each) from participants sharing concrete experiences: what strategy they used, what worked, what did not work. We will then open into a discussion in small-groups and a "fishbowl" to exchange feedback, identify what strategies work and why. We will end the exchange by thinking together about how to better connect efforts to decolonize international cooperation globally.Everyone is welcome. No prior expertise required, just curiosity, experience, or a willingness to learn. We are still looking for groups to share their experience on a strategy they followed. Let us know if you would like to contribute one!