Currency of Change - Women's Sector Leadership Conference

40 days 7 hours 40 mins 10 secs

Join your sisters at WRC's second annual Women's Sector Leadership Conference!

After the tremendous success of our 2023 conference last June in London, WRC are pleased to announce our second annual Women's Leadership Conference in Manchester on 7th June 2024, in collaboration with the Alternative Women's Economy (AWE) Manchester Women's Network.

This free one-day conference will explore the themes of economic justice and empowerment, with a specific focus on radical ideas and solutions for economic justice and financial independence. It will explore new forms of working, organising, delivering services and supporting women and girls, that truly work for them. 

It will also be a chance to explore your leadership skills in a collaborative setting. In the face of a cost-of-living crisis that we know is hitting women the hardest, and in the face of a government who are doing little to address the crisis, it will be a unique opportunity to come together as a sector collectively around one of the key issues affecting women in the UK today and to explore radical solutions together. 

The inspiring agenda kicks off with an expert panel discussing how to achieve economic justice for women in a hostile environment. This is followed by a series of curated workshops in the morning and afternoon. The day will also feature the award for the Audre Lorde Prize for leadership in the sector and concludes with a drinks reception in the evening. 

Our expert panel of speakers include: 

• Rose Ssali - Chief Executive, Support and Action for Women's Network (SAWN)
• Carrina Gaffney - Nurturing Alternative Realities Lead, Lankelly Chase
• Claire Dove CBE - Crown Representative for the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) Sector

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Develop your own radical ideas and leadership skills

There will be two workshop sessions during the day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. You will get an opportunity to attend two different workshops. You will be asked to pick which workshop you would like to attend in each session upon registration. We will do our best to accommodate your preferences, however we may not be able to give you your first choice for both sessions.

Workshop 1 - Alternative Economies, Radical Solutions & Personal Finance: Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies
The Case of the Saturday Savers Club

N.B. This workshop is full for session is 1 and is only available for session 2.

Women are, in general, financially worse off than men, and this is exacerbated as we get older. The gender pay gap, having children, doing more part-time work, caring responsibilities and lower pensions are all part of the systemic discrimination of women in our society.  

In this workshop, you will find out how the Hive blockchain is being used to create alternative economies in Venezuela, bring fresh water to rural communities in Ghana, tackle environmental conservation in South Africa and support musicians, writers and artists in England. Explore the opportunities for creating new streams of individual and collective wealth and new, decentralised, ways of leading and organising. Discover low-risk ways to overcome the barriers and learn firsthand about cryptocurrencies through the Saturday Savers Club. 

Workshop 2 - Ways Out of Poverty for Migrant Women

Women with insecure immigration status' face destitution because they cannot access benefits. This is compounded for women trying to leave violent and abusive relationships. Asylum-seeking women live off £40 a week. The current political landscape is hostile to any progressive change to alleviating these hardships - so what are the alternative strategies to make the lives of marginalised women better? What can we do ourselves, in the here and now, that will alleviate hardship and provide opportunities for women to help themselves? Listen to some 'outside the box' ideas from our facilitators.

This workshop will be facilitated by Ruth Mbera and Jasmine Mohammad.

Workshop 3 - Leadership for Change: Introducing the Network for Black Women Leaders and the Feminist Leadership Programme 

What does it mean to be a leader of social change? How can we level the playing field and attract and sustain talent within the women's sector? What does it mean to lead in challenging oppressive power dynamics? How do we lead collaboratively and what are the barriers in sharing power? These and many more questions are explored through WRC's leadership initiatives. This session will introduce these initiatives with opportunities to ask questions. It will also feature a mentoring match scheme for the Network for Black Women Leaders.

This workshop will be facilitated by WRC facilitators Evelina Svensson and Mariama Njie-Ceesay. 

Workshop 4 - Creative Solutions to our Sector's Funding Problems

We are still fighting over the scraps, but the financial and political outlook looks bleak for a while yet. So how can we think more creatively and collectively about resourcing our vital work? 

Workshop 5 - Plotting Economic Justice Through Art 

Art can be a revolutionary form of expression and protest. Join our artist-in-residence who will be using art to challenge economic injustice and inequality for women.

You are invited to take part in an interactive workshop and unleash your creativity to give voice to the powerful conversations, radical ideas and thoughts emerging through the day. The aim of the workshop is to create a space for unlocking, reflecting and expressing complex ideas, issues and narratives through co-creation whilst sharing, enjoying and exchanging ideas for social justice. 

If you can make a line, then count yourself in. Please come along for some fun, relaxing time while 'Plotting Economic Justice'.

This workshop will be facilitated by Padma Rao. 

Workshop 6 - Building Resilient Regional Voices

WRC has been supporting specialist women's organisations in London and Manchester to collaborate for greater voices and influence in their region. This workshop will explore how the process of building collective organising has been working - the ups, the downs, the opportunities and longer-term vision. If you're thinking of how to build a stronger women's sector voice in your region, this workshop will provide valuable insights. 

 

Please note: there is a maximum of three women per organisation who can register.

 

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This national conference is free to attend and open to women across the UK. We encourage women from Manchester and the North of England to attend.

We can offer a limited number of travel bursaries covering expenses for those travelling from outside of Manchester and who cannot otherwise afford to attend. More information on travel bursaries will be provided upon registration, however, if you require more detail please email [email protected].  

WRC are pleased to be able to offer a travel bursary of up to £60 per individual for travel to and from the Women’s Leadership Conference from outside of London for those who cannot otherwise afford it. These apply for any voluntary or community organisation with an annual income below £350,000 and for individuals from other organisations who fund their travel themselves.  

The deadline to apply for a bursary is the 10th May 2024.

Please register below by the 24th May 2024.