Dear friend,

A couple of weeks ago we held our ‘It Starts Here’ digital conference and we wanted to let you know how it went and how you can catch up on any sessions you missed. 

Together we delivered an ambitious, exciting, and educational interactive programme from Friday 19th March - Sun 21st March which brought together much of our work in previous years as we continue to understand how the arms trade is inextricably linked to other intersecting issues.

In light of covid-related restrictions, over 400 people signed up to take to Zoom and convene over a jam-packed and thought-provoking weekend.

We launched with an event on Friday evening marking 10 years of the Arab uprisings of 2011, and drawing parallels with the Black Lives Matter Civil Rights Movements of 2013 to the present, with last year’s peak of activity sending powerful reverberations globally. 

Other panels that took place across our Saturday programme included taking a look at Scotland and its relationship to the arms trade; exploring how we demilitarise education; how we re-think security and move towards Real Human Security; and reflecting on the role of art and creativity in our resistance.

As part of our commitment to capacity building and working with supporters and activists in a more decentralised way, on Sunday there was a full day of workshops and trainings, aiming to upskill our activists to campaign in a digital world, while also preparing us to resume our in-person work once the world opens up again.

We were also delighted to work with an outstanding team of five British Sign Language (BSL) interpreters across the weekend who ensured our panels could be accessed and engaged with by a wider audience, including D/deaf communities.

If you weren’t able to join us, or you’re keen to relive the conversations and continue unpacking and untangling these key issues, keep an eye on the CAAT YouTube channel for recordings of the Friday and Saturday panels from the weekend as and when they become available: [link removed]

Thank you to everyone who attended It Starts Here and supported the conference in so many different ways. In the face of a government committed to its deadly ‘business as usual’ approach, our training and events are essential for giving activists the tools they need to continue to challenge the power and influence of the arms trade, even during a pandemic.

Finally if you did attend any part of the It Starts Here conference, we would really love to have your feedback: please complete this very quick survey so we can make our future events even better: [link removed]

Thank you for all you do,

Siana (CAAT Training & Events Co-ordinator)
Campaign Against Arms Trade

PS. Thank you to everyone who donated to our last appeal to help CAAT deliver anti-arms trade training and events like ‘It Starts Here’ this year. You have helped to raise over £11,000 so far and donations are still coming in! We know not everyone has cash to spare right now but if you can afford it you can make a donation to fund our training and events work here: [link removed]
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