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CCS Webinar: 'Solidarity in the Time of Covid' - Civil Society Responses to the Pandemic |
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Facilitators: Andries Motau & Danford Chibvongodze
Speaker: Andrew Firmin
Date: Wednesday 14 July 2021
Time: 16:00-17:00 SA Time
Zoom: Register in advance for this meeting:
https://ukzn.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0lc-GgqzMoGdMylRXl2O8Gy-J4kOd06ItW
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Topic
This report outlines some of the key civil society responses to the COVID-19 pandemic that unfolded during 2020. It sets out how civil society organisations (CSOs) provided help to communities who experienced the impacts of the pandemic and of the emergency measures taken by states; how CSOs defended rights during the pandemic, including the rights of the most vulnerable and excluded groups; and how civic action was sustained through new and alternate means. It complements CIVICUS’s work in other areas to document and understand the multiple ways in which the pandemic affected civil society, including its impacts on civic space and civil society resourcing.
Published at a time when the pandemic and its impacts were still affecting most societies, the report seeks to present a snapshot of a diverse array of civil society actions, pointing to the vital role civil society played in responding to the crisis and defending rights, and its role as a source of creativity and innovation. It draws some preliminary lessons and makes recommendations on how states and other stakeholders can enable and work with civil society in emergency situations, both in immediate response and in rebuilding in the wake of crises in ways that tackle the underlying issues that emergencies expose.
Speaker Bio
Andrew Firmin is Editor-in-Chief at CIVICUS, the global civil society alliance. His main role is researching and writing CIVICUS’s State of Civil Society Report, a regular analysis of civil society trends, challenges and responses. In earlier work with CIVICUS, Andrew headed the research, convening and communications teams. He previously worked with the Commonwealth Foundation, an intergovernmental civil society agency, in areas including people’s participation in governance, culture and civil society strengthening. He has also worked as a freelance research, editorial and communications consultant, including with Restless Development and UNESCO, and with the UK Labour Party’s International Development Taskforce.
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