Peacebuilding a shared Northern Irish society
In this episode of What Northern Ireland Means to Me, we meet William Redpath, who is a business owner and community worker. TRANSCRIPT My association with Northern Ireland is very much here — someone who's born here, someone that believes in this place, someone that believes in the possibility and the opportunity that exists... Continue Reading →
In this episode of What Northern Ireland Means to Me, we meet Malachi O'Doherty, who is a writer and commentator. TRANSCRIPT I think in some ways there's a wave pattern in history in Northern Ireland, and the wave pattern being one between trouble and peace. A lot depends on where you were born on... Continue Reading →
In this episode of What Northern Ireland Means to Me, we meet Rich Dale, who is an entrepreneur and environmentalist. TRANSCRIPT I was born and raised in Portadown. I've lived in Belfast for about 20 years. Generally see myself as Northern Irish, first. But beyond any other identities, whether it's Irish or British or... Continue Reading →
Book review: Reporting beyond the Problem (eds Karen Hopkinson and Nicole Dahmen) by Allan LEONARD 9 September 2021 While there is a historic tradition of journalism that strives towards a common, public good (however defined), this has occurred in a paradigm of a professionalisation of journalism and a business model where editors responded to a... Continue Reading →
In this episode of What Northern Ireland Means to Me, we meet Quintin Oliver, who's an activist, a campaigner, a lobbyist, and a public policy specialist. TRANSCRIPT I was brought up in east Belfast in what was termed a Protestant house in a Protestant area. And I went to a Protestant school and my... Continue Reading →
The media’s role in peacebuilding: none of its business? by Allan LEONARD 9 June 2021 So is peacebuilding none of the media’s business? That was a conclusion that broadcaster and journalist, Declan Harvey, posed to a panel of fellow journalists and writers at an online webinar delivered through Belfast City Council’s PEACE IV Programme, which... Continue Reading →
Appropriate and accessible storytelling in museums and heritage sites by Allan LEONARD 26 March 2021 During an Imagine! Festival event, academics and practitioners shared their knowledge and experiences of the use of storytelling in museum and heritage site environments, as a means of evoking emotion in appropriate and accessible ways. “Storytelling enables us to learn... Continue Reading →
Musicking for peacebuilding Sounding Conflict: From Resistance to Reconciliation by Allan LEONARD 28 November 2019 The state-of-the-art acoustic facility, the Sonic Arts Research Centre (SARC) at Queen’s University Belfast, was a most appropriate meeting place for a two-day symposium that explored the roles of music, from activist resistance to a hopeful tool for reconciliation from... Continue Reading →
The role and responsibilities of media in divided societies. Discuss. by Allan LEONARD 8 November 2019 A two-day international conference examined the role that media plays in divided societies and in creating more peaceful and stable communities. Organised by the Social Change Initiative in partnership with Conciliation Resources and the University of Edinburgh’s Political Settlements... Continue Reading →
Considering Grace: An invitation to listen by Allan LEONARD 5 November 2019 Considering Grace, by Gladys Ganiels and Jamie Yohanis, is a new book that explores how Presbyterians responded to the Troubles, through a series of narratives from 120 people who tell their stories of how they coped with trauma and tests of their faith.... Continue Reading →
Lost Lives: Beauty from sorrow by Allan LEONARD 1 October 2019 At Queen’s Film Theatre, Dermot Lavery and Michael Hewitt welcomed guests to a preview screening of Lost Lives, inspired by the acclaimed book of the same name, one which Lavery described as a monumental achievement: “Lost Lives was always at my side when I... Continue Reading →
The role of media in conflict: A Féile discussion by Allan LEONARD 8 August 2019 Hosted by Féile an Phobail, the campaign group Time for Truth organised an event to examine the role of the media in conflict and to listen to the account of those journalists in the front line who helped shape and... Continue Reading →